Railmark Holdings, a Henderson, Kentucky-based rail services company, has acquired Katahdin Railcar Services LLC, an Association of American Railroads (AAR)-certified tank car repair operation based in Derby, Maine. Financial terms were not disclosed. The acquisition brings Railmark to 13 operating locations across 11 states, three of which are shortline railroads.
Katahdin Railcar Services holds AAR M-1002 and M-1003 certifications covering railcar and tank car repair, and operates mobile repair service teams that serve customers throughout New England. The Derby facility has historically served the New England region and the CPKC rail line. Among its more distinctive assets is what Railmark describes as North America’s only robotic tank car cleaning system.
Railmark intends to use the Katahdin acquisition as a platform for broader geographic expansion of its tank car repair capabilities. Plans include extending the KRS brand to additional U.S. locations where demand for that service is growing, and expanding mobile repair operations into the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec through Railmark’s existing subsidiary, Railmark Canada Limited.
Founded in 1998, Railmark provides integrated rail services, products, and solutions to the North American railroad industry, rail transportation users, transit agencies, and governments. Its operating subsidiaries span track works, rail services, industrial railway operations, and shortline railroad management, and the company markets the railroad industry’s only EPA-approved and USDA-designated biobased rail lubricants under its ECORail product line.
Support: BMO Capital Markets acted as exclusive financial advisor to Railmark on the transaction.
KEY QUOTES:
“Katahdin brings Railmark a skilled team and an AAR-certified facility with real depth in tank car repair. Combined with Railmark’s existing locations, it is a strong strategic fit. This facility gives Railmark a base from which to grow its tank car repair capability across North America, well beyond Maine. And with Railmark’s business model, Katahdin will be increasing its footprint in Maine and the surrounding area.”
B. Allen Brown II, President and Chief Executive Officer, Railmark Holdings
