CN and LBC Tank Terminals team up to increase heavy northern Alberta crude oil shipments through Geismar, La., facility

CHICAGO, IL, Feb. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ - CN (TSX: CNR) (NYSE: CNI) announced today it will increase shipments of heavy northern Alberta crude oil through LBC Tank Terminals' expanded terminal at Sunshine, located within the Geismar, La., Industrial Complex, starting in March 2013.

The new service is part of CN's plan to develop new markets for northern Alberta crude oil on the east side of the Mississippi River near the Gulf of Mexico. CN is also moving chemicals from the Chicago area to the LBC Tank Terminals facility at Geismar, which is home to a large concentration of petrochemical industries.

Russ Crawford, vice-president, marketing, Americas, at LBC Tank Terminals, said: "The expansion of the Sunshine storage capacity by 160,000 barrels, with additional rail unloading spots, steaming spots and increased storage capacity, is another step in our long-term global growth program. It will help us accommodate the rise in customer demand as a response to the growth in the movement of heavy crude oil and fuel oil products. CN's service to our facility is a key part of our growth plan."

LBC Tank Terminals' Sunshine facility is located near two of the largest heavy crude refineries in Geismar and various pipeline assets and marine terminals.

Jean-Jacques Ruest, CN executive vice-president and chief marketing officer, said: "Louisiana terminals on the east shore of the Mississippi River are a good fit for heavy crudes. CN is the natural supply chain partner to help connect northern Alberta with desirable markets on the U.S. Gulf coast.

"CN provides direct, efficient single-line service from northern Alberta to the Gulf Coast, and we are pleased to be working with companies such as LBC Tank Terminals to move heavy crude oil volumes to the Gulf for our customers. Crude oil by rail is one of CN's fastest growing businesses. We moved more than 30,000 carloads of crude last year, and we believe we have the scope to double this business in 2013."

The expansion of the LBC Tank Terminals Geismar facility is expected to be completed by October 2013 and will eventually result in total storage capacity of close to three million barrels.

About CN
CN - Canadian National Railway Company and its operating railway subsidiaries - spans Canada and mid-America, from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to the Gulf of Mexico, serving the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the key metropolitan areas of Toronto, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., Green Bay, Wis., Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America. For more information on CN, visit the company's website at www.cn.ca.

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information included in this news release constitutes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and under Canadian securities laws. CN cautions that, by their nature, these forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions.  The Company cautions that its assumptions may not materialize and that current economic conditions render such assumptions, although reasonable at the time they were made, subject to greater uncertainty. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results or performance of the Company or the rail industry to be materially different from the outlook or any future results or performance implied by such statements. Important factors that could affect the above forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the effects of general economic and business conditions, industry competition, inflation, currency and interest rate fluctuations, changes in fuel prices, legislative and/or regulatory developments, compliance with environmental laws and regulations, actions by regulators, various events which could disrupt operations, including natural events such as severe weather, droughts, floods and earthquakes, labor negotiations and disruptions, environmental claims, uncertainties of investigations, proceedings or other types of claims and litigation, risks and liabilities arising from derailments, and other risks detailed from time to time in reports filed by CN with securities regulators in Canada and the United States. Reference should be made to "Management's Discussion and Analysis" in CN's annual and interim reports, Annual Information Form and Form 40-F filed with Canadian and U.S. securities regulators, available on CN's website, for a summary of major risks.

CN assumes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect future events, changes in circumstances, or changes in beliefs, unless required by applicable Canadian securities laws. In the event CN does update any forward-looking statement, no inference should be made that CN will make additional updates with respect to that statement, related matters, or any other forward-looking statement.

About LBC Tank Terminals
Headquartered in Belgium, LBC Tank Terminals has operations in ARA, U.S. Gulf Coast, China, France, Spain and Portugal. Business Development in Asia is supported by its commercial office based in Singapore.

LBC works with the world's leading petro-chemical producers and distributors. LBC supports them with tank storage, a range of value added services and in-depth knowledge of local regulations, logistics and transport facilities. LBC offers a comprehensive storage solution, designed to meet the individual needs of our customers. For more information on LBC, please visit its website at www.lbctt.com.

SOURCE CN