Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) has completed its purchase of Kansas City Southern (KCS).
This comes after both companies’ shareholders voted in favour of the move.
The merging of these two companies will lead to the creation of the only single-line railway linking the Canada, the United States and Mexico.
On the closing of the deal, valued at roughly 31 billion USD (27.52bn euros), KCS shares were placed in a voting trust that will stay in place until the US Surface Transportation Board (STB) announces its decision on the companies’ joint railroad control application. The voting trust is there to ensure that CP and KCS will operate independently until a decision is made.
The STB review is expected to be completed by late 2022 and if approved will lead to the creation of Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited (CPKC).
Full integration of the two businesses will then take place over the following three years.
Keith Creel, CP President and Chief Executive Officer, said:Today is a historic day for our two iconic companies. CPKC will become the backbone connecting our customers to new markets, enhancing competition in the US rail network and driving economic growth across North America while delivering significant environmental benefits.
We're excited to reach this milestone on the path toward creating this unique truly North American railroad.
