Eastern Railroad Discussion > Canadian Aluminum

Now that the USA has upped the tariffs with Canada, how will that affect Canadian National rail traffic with aluminum imports-?  Photo shows CN 8922, SD70ACe, on train 450 with 139 cars east of Power, Michigan on 12 September 2024 - plenty of Canadian products being imported into the USA>

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That's a nice catch.
JB

Arconic Mill Products in Lancaster Pa is receiving Canadian aluminum ingots.

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Ingot traffic on the NS cross-border trains 930/931 has been erratic as can be. Some days nothing, some days the train is 50% aluminum. 

During a previous round of bloviation last winter, somebody got a bunch across the border on one train. 

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Fun fact: the reason Canada produces so much aluminum is because of abundant hydroelectric resources. The bauxite/alumina is all imported.

Ray

Canada has abundant resources of hydroelectric, fresh water, potash, nickel, aluminum, crude oil, natural gas, etc


Good trading partner.

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march_hare Wrote:
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> During a previous round of bloviation last winter,
> somebody got a bunch across the border on one
> train. 

Fantastic photograph!

Ray_Murphy Wrote:
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> Fun fact: the reason Canada produces so much
> aluminum is because of abundant hydroelectric
> resources. The bauxite/alumina is all imported.
>
> Ray
Cheap electricity is important as aluminum smelting uses copious amounts of electricity. One smelter uses in a year about as much as Boston does.

It's a bit of a quandary, this aluminum biz. 

Bauxite, the principal ore of aluminum, is basically very heavily weathered dirt. If you expose just about any old rock to millions of years' worth of intense, tropical weathering, you will find that practically anything that can be leached out of your rock will have leached, and will have been been carried away. What's left will be the most insoluble remnants of the original rock:  namely, aluminum oxide and hydroxide , commonly known as bauxite. 

But you can't make a beer can out of bauxite. 

Making metallic aluminum from bauxite is one of the most energy intensive industrial operations in the world. So the industry moves to places with ultra cheap electricity. Mostly circum-polar countries like Norway, Canada, and Russia. 

There is no country on earth that is both a major producer of bauxite, and a producer of aluminum metal as well. They're totally different businesses. 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/26 17:42 by march_hare.

Aluminum is also highly recyclable.

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KY_Railfan Wrote:
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> Ray_Murphy Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Fun fact: the reason Canada produces so much
> > aluminum is because of abundant hydroelectric
> > resources. The bauxite/alumina is all imported.
> >
> > Ray
> Cheap electricity is important as aluminum
> smelting uses copious amounts of electricity. One
> smelter uses in a year about as much as Boston
> does.

The Pacific Northwest used to have at least 10 aluminum smelters as late as the 1990's because of abundant hydro-power, now there are none.

CN delivers4-6 cars of Aluminum ingots to NS at Detroit.  Cars  than go to Alabama.  It is a very stupid decision on our Governmants part.  Canada does not pay sub-standard wages, they provide health care for its citizens unlike Mexico that pays sbu-standard wages and no health care.  They also purchase many of our products.
  Lake Ontario will alwas be Lake Ontario.  The Provence was named for the lake not the other way around.

The tariffs are the result of a temper tantrum from a senile, petty man who doesn’t understand Aluminum is one of many products that we get from Canada because we don’t have the domestic production capacity to make enough for our own needs. He also doesn’t recognize that the Canadians are our stalwart friends and neighbors but this crooked imbecile doesn’t value anyone who isn’t lining his pockets. It’s embarrassing.

But to answer the question the aluminum shipments and shipments of most Canadian products will continue unabated because our economies are inextricably linked, and the costs of the tariffs will continue to be passed on to the American consumers in what amounts to a tax on our spending. So. Much. winning.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/28/26 04:10 by DJ-12.

Railroads have been inextricably linked to NAFTA USMCA and other developments of the past 34 years. It takes time to build factories, suppliers, skilled workers, etc.

Canadian grain and oil, US auto parts and aircraft, we are joined at the hip.

And NS CPKC CN BNSF etc can all make jobs and money serving that market.

Posted from Android

This.

Victor Baird

DJ-12 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The tariffs are the result of a temper tantrum
> from a senile, petty man who doesn’t understand
> Aluminum is one of many products that we get from
> Canada because we don’t have the domestic
> production capacity to make enough for our own
> needs. He also doesn’t recognize that the
> Canadians are our stalwart friends and neighbors
> but this crooked imbecile doesn’t value anyone
> who isn’t lining his pockets. It’s
> embarrassing.
>
> But to answer the question the aluminum shipments
> and shipments of most Canadian products will
> continue unabated because our economies are
> inextricably linked, and the costs of the tariffs
> will continue to be passed on to the American
> consumers in what amounts to a tax on our
> spending. So. Much. winning.
>
> Posted from iPhone

Interesting Q&A on the Canadian Broadcast Channel Website, both the Reporter and the USA Trade Representative seem to be 'not holding back 'during the discussion but remain professional and civilized.

Most of the Media I"ve been seeing has been supporting an opinion, this seems to be the exception although the who is on which side is pretty obvious. Be ready for the full 17 minutes.

https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7321847



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/28/26 09:00 by TCnR.

Some observers believe that a higher % of Canadian workers depend on export related jobs than comparable American workers.

The USMCA trade agreement was described as a great trade deal. Fair, made by a great deal maker.

The CPKC merger was predicated on this deal and the benefits all three countries derived from it.

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