CN secures support of mining companies for feasibility study of proposed rail line in Quebec/Labrador iron ore range

MONTREAL, Aug. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - CN (TSX: CNR) (NYSE:CNI) announced today that a customer group of mining companies - Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) (Paris: CLF), Labrador Iron Mines Holdings Ltd. (TSX: LIM), New Millennium Iron Corp. (TSX: NML), Cap-Ex Ventures Ltd. (TSX-V: CEV) (Frankfurt: X0V) (OTCQX: CPXVF), and Alderon Iron Ore Corp. (TSX: ADV) (NYSE MKT: AXX) - has committed to work with CN on a feasibility study into the construction of a proposed rail line and terminal handling facility to serve the Quebec/Labrador iron ore range.

CN, its partner in the venture -- La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec -- and the customer group of mining companies will proceed immediately to fund a feasibility study to progress the cost and engineering parameters of the proposed rail network and its associated infrastructure.

Claude Mongeau, president and chief executive officer of CN, said: "CN will work closely with mining companies in the group and the Caisse to determine the best design and right timing for the development of rail infrastructure to tap the significant iron ore production potential of the Labrador Trough in northern Quebec and Labrador. As North America's largest hauler of iron ore pellets, CN is well positioned to respond effectively to the needs of our customers in this market and to do so in a sustainable and economically viable way."

To advance the process as quickly as possible, CN in the coming days will coordinate the application to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency for required permits for the project. This will allow the feasibility study to be launched along with the appropriate consultations with all relevant stakeholders, including First Nations.

CN - Canadian National Railway Company and its operating railway subsidiaries - spans Canada and mid-America, from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to the Gulf of Mexico, serving the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the key metropolitan areas of Toronto, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., Green Bay, Wis., Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America. For more information on CN, visit the company's website at www.cn.ca.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information included in this news release constitutes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and under Canadian securities laws. CN cautions that, by their nature, these forward-looking statements, including statements about a feasibility study into the construction of a rail line and terminal handling facility to serve the Quebec/Labrador iron range, involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions.  The Company cautions that its assumptions may not materialize and that current economic conditions render such assumptions, although reasonable at the time they were made, subject to greater uncertainty. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results or performance of the Company or the rail industry to be materially different from the outlook or any future results or performance implied by such statements. Important factors that could affect the above forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the effects of general economic and business conditions, industry competition, inflation, currency and interest rate fluctuations, changes in fuel prices, legislative and/or regulatory developments, compliance with environmental laws and regulations, actions by regulators, various events which could disrupt operations, including natural events such as severe weather, droughts, floods and earthquakes, labor negotiations and disruptions, environmental claims, uncertainties of investigations, proceedings or other types of claims and litigation, risks and liabilities arising from derailments, and other risks detailed from time to time in reports filed by CN with securities regulators in Canada and the United States. Reference should be made to "Management's Discussion and Analysis" in CN's annual and interim reports, Annual Information Form and Form 40-F filed with Canadian and U.S. securities regulators, available on CN's website, for a summary of major risks.

CN assumes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect future events, changes in circumstances, or changes in beliefs, unless required by applicable Canadian securities laws. In the event CN does update any forward-looking statement, no inference should be made that CN will make additional updates with respect to that statement, related matters, or any other forward-looking statement.

SOURCE CN

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