The five Eastern Washington companies behind the HighLine Grain shuttle loading facility in Four Lakes, Wash. decided to merge for forming HighLine Grain Growers Inc. in April. This merger will allow the companies to address business costs and aging infrastructure. 

Central Washington Grain Growers Inc. of Waterville, Davenport Union Warehouse Co., Odessa Union Warehouse Co-Op and Reardan Grain Growers Inc. will all merge on April 1. According to the Capital Press, they will purchase Almira Farmers Warehouse Co. to form HighLine Grain Growers Inc. “HighLine Grain focuses on delivering value to our patrons through the products and services we provide while delivering competitive market access and opportunities for the crops they produce,” Paul Katovich, CEO of HighLine Grain LLC and general manager of Central Washington Grain Growers Inc., said to the Capital Press. In response to a BNSF Railway request, the five companies in July 2012 began work on a $30 million facility to load grain onto 110-car trains to maintain their rate structure. They formed HighLine Grain LLC to combine trading operations and logistics. “HighLine will streamline harvest by managing speed and space in ways that were unavailable to the individual partners. Economies of scale will allow us to compartmentalize tasks, increase our buying and selling power and provide research that concentrates on our region.” Katovich stated.