LUBBOCK, TX – BNSF Railway will significantly reduce soybean shuttle tariff rates to the U.S.-Mexico border and Texas Gulf export terminals for marketing year (MY) 2025/26, while leaving Pacific Northwest (PNW) rates unchanged. The changes take effect in September.
Shipments to the Texas Gulf will see the largest cut—$1,500 per car, or about $0.41 per bushel—representing a 25 to 32 percent reduction for most elevators on BNSF’s network. Rates to Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas, the primary gateways for soybean exports to Mexico, will drop by $1,000 per car, or $0.27 per bushel.
With the cuts, all BNSF elevators will have lower rates to Mexico than to the PNW, with spreads ranging from $200 to $2,300 per car. Texas Gulf spreads will be even wider, up to $3,000 per car.
The rate changes reflect shifting soybean demand, with USDA projecting record domestic crushing of 69.1 million metric tons in MY 2025/26 to meet biofuel needs, and lower projected exports of 47.5 million metric tons. China has yet to book any purchases for the new marketing year, leaving Mexico and Pakistan among the largest buyers so far.