WALLULA, Wash., Jan. 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Tiger Cool Express has signed a lease/purchase agreement to acquire the former Cold Connect warehouse and property, with plans to develop an adjacent intermodal ramp in Wallula, WA.
Tiger Cool Express signed the lease/purchase agreement on December 27, 2022, with Union Pacific Railroad.
The envisioned Tiger Tri-Cities Logistics Center will benefit the entire agricultural and manufacturing community in the three-state region by providing cost-effective and environmentally benign transportation capacity. Initially, service is intended to be offered between: Wallula and the Northwest Seaport Alliance on-dock facilities for dry imports and exports (in ISO equipment) as well as between Wallula and Chicago (and beyond) with Tiger Cool Express refrigerated domestic containers. Service scope is expected to eventually expand into other markets, such as the I-5 corridor and Mexico.
“Despite our continued growth and fleet expansion, we realize that the Pacific Northwest offers transformational potential for our company,” said Steve Van Kirk, Tiger Cool Express’s Chief Executive Officer. “With a private intermodal ramp, we can build on our own domestic customer base with their ISO shipping requirements at the same time we expand services to an entirely new community of stakeholders.”
“We are enthusiastic about Tiger Cool Express advancing an initiative that will remove thousands of trucks and millions of truck miles from the highway. This is a region that continues to grow in logistical importance, and our network can support envisioned growth,” said Kari Kirchhoefer, Vice President – Premium, Marketing and Sales for Union Pacific.
Theodore Prince, Tiger’s Chief Strategy Officer and Co-founder observed that “This facility has the potential to be a “triple threat.” Beyond supporting our existing domestic business and agricultural exports, the Tri-Cities has land, labor, water and electricity that could make it a global logistics hub. Since the other import “corners” (southwest, northeast and southeast) lack adjacent land, this northwest facility could offer an environmentally benign and economically efficient transloading locus. It looks like the Inland Empire 30 years ago.”
About Tiger Cool Express
Tiger Cool Express provides time-definite intermodal services with sustainable capacity across North America. The company believes that being green means having smarter logistics versus over-the-road trucking. Not only can customers significantly reduce their carbon footprint by going intermodal, but Tiger Cool was an early surface freight provider to offer a carbon-free load opportunity. More information about Tiger Cool Express is available at www.tigercoolexpress.com.
SOURCE Tiger Cool Express
