OMAHA — The Scoular Co. has signed an agreement with the Port of Walla Walla to lease an over-the-bank barge loading facility in Burbank, Wash.
“While the Scoular name may not be familiar to all farmers in the area, the company has a long and deep history in the grain business,” said Todd McQueen, senior vice-president at Scoular. “We’ve been around for more than 120 years, trading in this geography and operating grain elevators in the Intermountain region for more than 25 years. With the lease of this facility, we can expand our service to area farmers and grain dealers, putting our trading know-how and operations expertise to work in Burbank.”
The company plans to open its doors in July ahead of the start of the 2014 grain harvest. Mr. McQueen said Scoular plans to make substantial capital improvements to the facility before opening for business.
“This facility hasn’t been operated for some time, so we’ll be investing in repairs and upgrades to make sure we can operate safely and efficiently,” he said.
The Burbank facility is located on the Snake river, one mile from the Columbia river. Grain trucked to the facility will be loaded onto barges headed to Portland for export, Scoular said. In addition to operations personnel, Scoular plans to staff a grain merchandiser on-site as well.
