Sydney Coal Railway
Encyclopedia
The Sydney Coal Railway is a Canadian
short-line railway operating in the eastern part of Cape Breton County
, Nova Scotia
.
SCR operates from the international coaling piers on Sydney Harbour in Sydney
to the Lingan Generating Station
, a coal
-fired electrical generating station near New Waterford
. The railway's trackage, the piers, and the generating station are owned by Nova Scotia Power
, a subsidiary of Emera
Inc.
. The trackage was organized as the appropriately named Sydney and Louisburg Railway
(S&L) in 1910.
The S&L, along with other assets of the corporate successor to DOMCO, Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
(DOSCO), were expropriated by the Cape Breton Development Corporation
(DEVCO) on March 30, 1968. DEVCO operated the railway as an unincorporated department of its Coal Division, however it was informally known as the Devco Railway
. DEVCO built a coal preparation and coal wash plant and storage facility, along with new locomotive shops at Victoria Junction
, a location midway between Sydney and the Lingan Generating Station near New Waterford.
On November 23, 2001, DEVCO closed its last underground coal mine, the Prince colliery, after the company failed to entice any private sector investors to purchase the mine. DEVCO was out of the coal mining business, however for a period of approximately 1 month, it was in the coal importation business, with trains operating from the international coaling piers to the storage facility and on to the Lingan Generating Station.
The federal government moved swiftly to sell off assets, transferring the mine properties and mineral rights back to the provincial Department of Natural Resources. DEVCO subsequently decommissioned the Victoria Junction coal wash plant and began to immediately prepare remediation of the mine sites.
On December 18, 2001 DEVCO sold all surface assets, including the international shipping piers, railway track, railway rights-of-way, locomotives and rolling stock, and a coal storage facility and locomotive shops at Victoria Junction
to 510845 New Brunswick Incorporated, a wholly owned subsidiary of Emera, the holding company which owns Nova Scotia Power and operator of the Lingan Generating Station
.
Emera subsequently contracted the operation of its newly-acquired DEVCO surface assets to Logistec Corporation. Logistec sub-contracted operation of the railway to the Société des chemins de fer du Québec (Quebec Railway Corporation), a Quebec-based railway holding company and short-line operating company. The new railway was called Sydney Coal Railway, although ownership of the track and other assets remains with Emera's subsidiary, 510845 New Brunswick Inc.
Despite SCR having been created by SCFQ as an operating company in December 2001, the railway itself was actually legally chartered to 510845 N.B. Inc. until January 1, 2003, when the Sydney Coal Railway was formally recognized by the federal government.
On 3 November 2008 Logistec announced that it was purchasing the SCR from Quebec Railway Corporation.
from the United States
and South America
. Coal is transported to the Victoria Junction storage facility and then delivered continuously to the Lingan Generating Station. SCR also maintains an interchange connection with the North American railway network at Sydney where it connects to the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
short-line railway operating in the eastern part of Cape Breton County
Cape Breton County, Nova Scotia
Cape Breton County, officially, County Cape Breton, is a county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, on Cape Breton Island.Taking its name from Cape Breton, the most easterly point of the island which was called after the Bretons of Brittany, this municipality has what is probably the oldest...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
.
SCR operates from the international coaling piers on Sydney Harbour in Sydney
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
to the Lingan Generating Station
Lingan Generating Station
The Lingan Generating Station is a 600 MW Canadian electrical generating station located in the community of Lingan in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
, a coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
-fired electrical generating station near New Waterford
New Waterford, Nova Scotia
New Waterford is a Canadian urban community in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Regional Municipality.-Geography:New Waterford is located north of Sydney and northwest of Glace Bay. It is named after the city of Waterford, in Ireland. It is located near the ocean and is bordered on one side by cliffs...
. The railway's trackage, the piers, and the generating station are owned by Nova Scotia Power
Nova Scotia Power
Nova Scotia Power Inc. is a power generating and delivery company in Nova Scotia. It is privately owned by Emera and regulated by the provincial government via the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board .-History:...
, a subsidiary of Emera
Emera
Emera Incorporated is a Halifax, Nova Scotia based energy and services company with 570,000 customers.It operates three utility subsidiaries:* Nova Scotia Power* Bangor Hydro Electric Company* Saint Lucia Electricity Services Limited...
Inc.
History
The railway line was completed in 1895 by the Dominion Coal Company (DOMCO) between Sydney and LouisbourgLouisbourg, Nova Scotia
Louisbourg is a community in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Regional Municipality.-History:The town's name was given by French military forces who founded the Fortress of Louisbourg and its fortified seaport on the southwest part of the harbour, in honour of Louis XV...
. The trackage was organized as the appropriately named Sydney and Louisburg Railway
Sydney and Louisburg Railway
The Sydney and Louisburg Railway is a historic Canadian railway. Built to transport coal from various mines to the ports of Sydney and Louisbourg, the S&L operated in the eastern part of Cape Breton County, Nova Scotia...
(S&L) in 1910.
The S&L, along with other assets of the corporate successor to DOMCO, Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
The Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation was a Canadian coal mining and steel manufacturing company.Incorporated in 1928 and operational in 1930, DOSCO was predated by the British Empire Steel Corporation which was a merger of the Dominion Coal Company, the Dominion Iron and Steel Company and the...
(DOSCO), were expropriated by the Cape Breton Development Corporation
Cape Breton Development Corporation
The Cape Breton Development Corporation, or DEVCO, was a Canadian federal government Crown corporation. It ceased operation on December 31, 2009, after being amalgamated with Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation ....
(DEVCO) on March 30, 1968. DEVCO operated the railway as an unincorporated department of its Coal Division, however it was informally known as the Devco Railway
Devco Railway
The Devco Railway was a Canadian railway. Devco Railway operated as an unincorporated department within the Coal Division of the Cape Breton Development Corporation, also known as DEVCO; as such there is no formally incorporated entity named "Devco Railway"...
. DEVCO built a coal preparation and coal wash plant and storage facility, along with new locomotive shops at Victoria Junction
Victoria Junction, Nova Scotia
Victoria Junction is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality.It is located approximately east of Sydney. The community developed as a result of the operations of the Sydney and Louisburg Railway where a junction existed a branch line...
, a location midway between Sydney and the Lingan Generating Station near New Waterford.
On November 23, 2001, DEVCO closed its last underground coal mine, the Prince colliery, after the company failed to entice any private sector investors to purchase the mine. DEVCO was out of the coal mining business, however for a period of approximately 1 month, it was in the coal importation business, with trains operating from the international coaling piers to the storage facility and on to the Lingan Generating Station.
On December 18, 2001 DEVCO sold all surface assets, including the international shipping piers, railway track, railway rights-of-way, locomotives and rolling stock, and a coal storage facility and locomotive shops at Victoria Junction
Victoria Junction, Nova Scotia
Victoria Junction is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality.It is located approximately east of Sydney. The community developed as a result of the operations of the Sydney and Louisburg Railway where a junction existed a branch line...
to 510845 New Brunswick Incorporated, a wholly owned subsidiary of Emera, the holding company which owns Nova Scotia Power and operator of the Lingan Generating Station
Lingan Generating Station
The Lingan Generating Station is a 600 MW Canadian electrical generating station located in the community of Lingan in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
.
Emera subsequently contracted the operation of its newly-acquired DEVCO surface assets to Logistec Corporation. Logistec sub-contracted operation of the railway to the Société des chemins de fer du Québec (Quebec Railway Corporation), a Quebec-based railway holding company and short-line operating company. The new railway was called Sydney Coal Railway, although ownership of the track and other assets remains with Emera's subsidiary, 510845 New Brunswick Inc.
Despite SCR having been created by SCFQ as an operating company in December 2001, the railway itself was actually legally chartered to 510845 N.B. Inc. until January 1, 2003, when the Sydney Coal Railway was formally recognized by the federal government.
On 3 November 2008 Logistec announced that it was purchasing the SCR from Quebec Railway Corporation.
Current operations
Current SCR operations consist of running coal imports which arrive at the international coaling piers on Sydney Harbour by bulk carrierBulk carrier
A bulk carrier, bulk freighter, or bulker is a merchant ship specially designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo, such as grains, coal, ore, and cement in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrier was built in 1852, economic forces have fueled the development of these ships,...
from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. Coal is transported to the Victoria Junction storage facility and then delivered continuously to the Lingan Generating Station. SCR also maintains an interchange connection with the North American railway network at Sydney where it connects to the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway
Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway
The Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway is a railway operating in Nova Scotia between Sydney and Truro with spurs at Sydney, Point Tupper, Trenton and Stellarton....
.