Big Sky

Company History: Big Sky Rail (reporting mark BGS) is a short line railway operating in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada.

This 400 km shortline railroad was formed in 2011 as a subsidiary of Mobil Grain, a Saskatchewan-based agricultural processor and exporter. The Big Sky Rail network has three separate subdivisions. The first is the Conquest subdivision which interchanges with CN at Delisle and runs south to Beechy. The second is the Elrose subdivision which runs from near Macrorie west to Laporte. The third (and smallest) is the Matador subdivision which runs south from Wartime to Kyle.

Big Sky Rail operates with running rights into CN Chappell Yard in Saskatoon and also to the Last Mountain Railway at Davidson. All locomotives used on BGS are owned by Mobil Grain (MGLX) and are utilized on their sister company, Last Mountain Railway.

Big Sky Rail was purchased by AGT Food and Ingredients Inc., for $57.5 million Canadian in the fall of 2015. AGT Food and Ingredients Inc. purchased the railroad, and other short lines in Saskatchewan, in order to increase its logistics capacities

Successor/Parent History: Following in the footsteps of their father, Lavern and Sheldon Affleck successfully farmed, processed, and marketed their crops. On the side, they developed and sold automation systems and color sorting technology to enhance crops. After many years on the farm, the brothers decided to focus more on the processing and marketing aspect of the industry...and the idea of a transportable grain terminal was born. The design criterion was based around the plan to have flexibility to be able to easily adapt to the ever-changing face of agriculture. In 2005, Mobil Grain's first operation site was set up in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. A year later, making use of its transportability feature, Mobil Grain was relocated to Meyronne, Saskatchewan where they developed a great relationship with the Great Western Railway shortline. Both Sheldon and Lavern were impressed with the unexpected benefits of a private railcar operation.

Brief History: Canada is a North American country stretching from the U.S. in the south to the Arctic Circle in the north. Major cities include massive Toronto, west coast film centre Vancouver, French-speaking Montréal and Québec City, and capital city Ottawa. Canada's vast swaths of wilderness include lake-filled Banff National Park in the Rocky Mountains. It's also home to Niagara Falls, a famous group of massive waterfalls.