Has the DM&E found a back door to the Powder River Basin?

Question

A report from "Railway Age" stated yesterday that Cedar American Railholdings - the parent of both DME and ICE - has assembled a group of possible investors to obtain financing for its propesed Powder River Basin project. This group of 10 consortiums includes both Canadian Pacific (my employer) as well as rival Canadian National plus some undisclosed short line. It sounds like Cedar American may be willing to auction off all or part of DME and sister road ICE from what I read. Anybody want to take a stab and guess how this all may shake out?

Answer 1

good answer but i think that if Cedar American is willing to lose control of their railroad to get into the PRB then i really believe it's not about the railroad at all.  it's about "how much money can I make;  how quickly can I make it, and the railroad be damned"

Answer 2

It is unlikely any of the major Class Is will take outright ownership of DM&E, according to the Trains Magazine report, as they do none want it:

"...Trains learned that from those 30 interested bidders, approximately 10 consortia were invited to hear presentations by Kevin V. Schieffer, president and chief executive officer, during the past two weeks. Three railroad companies are reportedly among the 10 semifinalists: Canadian National, Canadian Pacific, and an unnamed shortline company. Each of the three rail companies is partnering with private equity groups or other deep-pocket entities to avoid the issue of controlling ownership of DM&E. Canadian Pacific's Twin Cities-Chicago main line connects directly with DM&E at Winona. Canadian National connects at Dubuque with the IC&E, a sister railroad to DM&E. The 1,400-mile IC&E, made up of former Milwaukee Road lines, was brought under the DM&E umbrella in 2002..."

To be honest it's tough to say exactly what the outcome will be but one thing is for sure, Cedar American is determined to find some way into reaching the PRB, ironically even if it means losing control of the DM&E.  This seems a bit odd but perhaps they feel it is the only way to ensure the long-term survival and growth of the regional...