$10m Upgrade to CHS Minnesota Fertilizer Will Make it “Bigger” and “Faster”

26 Aug 2016 --- CHS, the farmers’ cooperative, has hailed the upgrade of its Minnesota fertilizer terminal as making it "bigger" and "faster" following its $10m investment.

The 78-year-old fertilizer terminal, located in St Paul, Minnesota, has been rebuilt from the ground up, as CHS looks to make it more efficient for its customers.

As part of the upgrade, It will now have enhanced storage capacity of 21,000 tons and faster load times, as well as now allowing drivers to verify their load numbers without leaving their trucks.

“The St. Paul terminal now turns more loads and executes shipments efficiently and safely through its 400-tons-per hour capacity. We can load trucks in six minutes and railcars in less than 20 minutes,” said Rick Dusek, CHS vice president, Agronomy. “It’s bigger and faster for our customers, and safer for our employees and the adjacent river ecosystem.”

Further improvements include wider conveyor belts, a new excavator bucket that holds three yards of material, double the previous terminal’s storage capacity, a newly rebuilt dock, and a new winch system. These improvement help push speed barge unloading times to under six hours, CHS said.

Dusek said the multi-million dollar renovation will benefit CHS's customers.

He said “Through our strong partnerships, asset expansion and exceptional logistics system, we can dependably deliver essential products that help our customers grow their businesses.”

The fertilizer terminal serves customers in a number of northern states, including Minnesota, Wisconsin, South and North Dakota, as well as some parts of Canada.