USA: Patriot Rail has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Delta Southern Railroad, which operates two sections of line in Louisiana totalling around 60 km.
The Monroe – Sterlington and Tallulah – Lake Providence lines serve the Mississippi river ports of Madison Parish and Lake Providence, and interchange with Kansas City Southern’s Meridian Speedway route and Union Pacific.
Patriot said DSRR is well situated in a petrochemicals corridor, with other traffic including grain, aggregates, agricultural products, cotton, coal, chemicals, fertiliser, forest products, sand clay and soda ash.
The acquisition announced on September 26 is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory authorisation. Winston & Strawn and Gentry Locke served as legal counsel to Patriot, Northborne Partners served as financial adviser to DSRR and Reed Smith served as legal counsel.
The announcement follows the completion on September 14 of Patriot Rail’s acquisition of Pioneer Lines, and will take the Patriot group to 32 regional and short line railways in 23 states.
