Greenbrier Endorses Green Railcar Enhancement Act of 2010

LAKE OSWEGO, Ore., June 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Greenbrier Companies (NYSE: GBX) today endorsed The Green Railcar Enhancement Act of 2010 ("the Act"), co-sponsored by Congressmen Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Kevin Brady (R-TX), Bill Shuster (R-PA) and John Tanner (D-TN) with the bipartisan support of 50 members of Congress.  The legislation is aimed at revitalizing the U.S. freight car manufacturing industry, generating between 30,000 and 50,000 jobs nationwide, and accelerating the adoption of "green" technology enhancements.

The proposed Green Railcar Enhancement Act provides a 25% tax credit for replacing or rebuilding outdated, inefficient railcars. The tax credit would be limited to cars built in 2010 and 2011 and would require a minimum 8% increase in capacity or fuel efficiency.  In effect, the legislation would shift market demand from 2012 – 2014 to this year and next.  

William A. Furman, president and chief executive officer, said, "We are thankful for the leadership of Congressman Blumenauer, and for the support of Oregon Congressmen DeFazio, Schrader and Wu, along with Washington Congressmen Dicks and McDermott.  We anticipate many of the family-wage jobs generated by passage of the bill will be throughout Greenbrier's extensive North American railcar manufacturing, repair and refurbishment network.  Congressman Blumenauer has our full support, and Greenbrier, along with our fellow railway suppliers nationwide, is prepared to work with him and all members of the House and Senate to ensure the Act's passage."

Furman concluded, "During the economic downturn, about 54,000 jobs were lost in the domestic freight car building and component supply industry.  Deliveries in 2010 are projected to be at the lowest level we have seen since the mid-1980's.  At the same time, the railcar fleet is aging and will eventually have to be replaced or rebuilt.  By accelerating future demand we can put thousands of Americans back to work and ensure a stable and dependable supply base."  

The effort to enact the Green Railcar Enhancement Act of 2010 is being spearheaded by the Railway Supply Institute's ("RSI") American Railcar Institute Committee and several freight car component suppliers. Greenbrier is an active member of the Committee.

Additional information on the Green Railcar Enhancement Act of 2010 is available on RSI's website, www.rsiweb.org, or by contacting Nicole Brewin at RSI, [email protected] or 202-508-1282.

About Greenbrier Companies

Greenbrier (www.gbrx.com), headquartered in Lake Oswego, Oregon, is a leading supplier of transportation equipment and services to the railroad industry. The Company builds new railroad freight cars in its three manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and Mexico and marine barges at its U.S. facility. It also repairs and refurbishes freight cars and provides wheels and railcar parts at 37 locations across North America. Greenbrier builds new railroad freight cars and refurbishes freight cars for the European market through both its operations in Poland and various subcontractor facilities throughout Europe. Greenbrier owns approximately 9,000 railcars, and performs management services for approximately 223,000 railcars.

"SAFE HARBOR" STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995: This release may contain forward-looking statements, including certain statements related to the offering. Greenbrier uses words such as "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "expect," "future," "intend" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements should be evaluated together with additional information about Greenbrier's business, markets, conditions and other uncertainties which could affect Greenbrier's future performance.  Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements are described in greater detail under the heading "Risk Factors" contained in our prospectus supplement and in our periodic SEC filings, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2009 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended February 28, 2010.  Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect management's opinions only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements.

SOURCE The Greenbrier Companies