The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) has announced its determination of the Volume-Related Composite Price Index (VRCPI) for the Canadian National Railway Company (CN) at 1.9281 and the Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) at 1.8760 for the 2024-2025 crop year beginning August 1st. This is an increase in the VRCPI over the last crop year of 5.39% for CN and 6.49% for CPKC.
The determination of the VRCPIs is based on detailed submissions from CN and CPKC on their historical price information for railway inputs involving labour, fuel, material, and other capital items as well as forecasted future changes in these railway price components.
These indices will be used in determining CN's and CPKC's Maximum Revenue Entitlement for the movement of western grain in the 2024-2025 crop year. The Maximum Revenue Entitlement limits the overall revenue earned by CN and CPKC for shipping regulated grain.
What is the VRCPI?
The VRCPI is an inflation factor. It reflects a composite of the forecasted prices for railway labour, fuel, material and capital purchases. As part of the process of determining the annual VRCPI, the CTA examines and verifies detailed railway submissions.
The VRCPI will be applied when the CTA makes its Maximum Revenue Entitlement determinations by December 31, 2025, for the 2024-2025 crop year.
