WASHINGTON — The 13-mile San Luis Central Railroad will be acquired by the owner of connecting short line Colorado Pacific Rio Grande Railroad, according to regulatory filings.
Colorado Pacific San Luis Railroad LLC (CXSL), a non-carrier, has filed a notice of exemption to acquire and operate the San Luis Central from milepost 2.0 at Sugar Junction near Monte Vista, Colo., to the end of track at milepost 15.0 near Center, Colo.
CXSL is the assignee of an asset purchase agreement between the San Luis Central and Soloviev Investors, LLC.
Stefan Soloviev, who controls the 150-mile Colorado Pacific Rio Grande and the 120-mile Colorado Pacific in Eastern Colorado and Western Kansas, has extensive land holdings in the West totaling more than 350,000 acres, including cropland in Colorado, Kansas, and New Mexico. His companies, which operate under the name Crossroads Agriculture, own grain elevators in eastern Colorado and western Kansas, as well as holdings elsewhere in the U.S. and Canada.
The transaction is expected to close in 30 days, assuming the deal is exempt from Surface Transportation Board review, as is common for shortline railroad acquisitions.
The San Luis Central has been embargoed since late May because of the collapse of a culvert carrying its main line across the Empire Irrigation Canal [see “Colorado’s San Luis Central shut down …,” Trains News Wire, June 9, 2024].
Stefan Soloviev is on the scene!