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Canadian Oil Shippers Find Rail Space Is Scarce as Prices Slide

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  • Rail carriers trying to clear grain shipment backlog
  • Canadian National takes ‘growth pause’ on crude by rail
A Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. train transporting oil in Alberta, Canada.

A Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. train transporting oil in Alberta, Canada.

Photographer: Brett Gundlock/Bloomberg

The trains are running late for Canada’s oil producers just when they need them the most.

After a two-week shutdown of one of the largest export pipelines to the U.S. caused oil to back up in Alberta tank farms, Canadian railroad companies struggling to fulfill commitments to ship other commodities aren’t able to help ease the oil glut.