Federal regulators on Thursday accepted the merger application submitted by Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern, on the condition that the railroads submit more information for review by July 27.
Much of that information concerns the environmental impact of the merger.
Shares of the companies were down about 5% on the news.
The STB’s 42-page decision (PDF) comes after UP (NYSE: UNP) and NS (NYSE: NSC) in April filed a revised application following the agency’s rejection of the initial paperwork in January.
“We are confident this merger will deliver more reliable and lower-cost transportation options for American businesses,” said Union Pacific Chief Executive Jim Vena, in a statement. “We submitted a comprehensive, data-driven application backed by a detailed plan for seamless integration. We look forward to the opportunity to show the facts and demonstrate the benefits for our customers, employees and America.”
The companies say the proposed transcontinental railroad will speed up the movement of freight by eliminating handoffs between railroads, convert 2.1 million truckloads to rail annually, and kickstart reindustrialization across a 53,000-mile network.
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Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.
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