80 FR 68899 - SteelRiver Infrastructure Fund North America LP; SteelRiver Devco Holdings LLC; and SR Transportation Holdings LLC-Continuance in Control Exemption-West Belt Railway LLC

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 215 (November 6, 2015)

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 215 (Friday, November 6, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68899-68900]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-28335]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[Docket No. FD 35973]


SteelRiver Infrastructure Fund North America LP; SteelRiver Devco 
Holdings LLC; and SR Transportation Holdings LLC--Continuance in 
Control Exemption--West Belt Railway LLC

    SteelRiver Infrastructure Fund North America LP (SteelRiver), 
SteelRiver Devco Holdings LLC (Devco), and SR Transportation Holdings 
LLC (SRTH) (collectively, Applicants), all noncarriers, have jointly 
filed a verified notice of exemption pursuant to 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2) to 
continue in control of West Belt Railway LLC (WBRY), upon WBRY's 
becoming a Class III rail carrier.
    This transaction is related to a concurrently filed verified notice 
of exemption in West Belt Railway--Lease & Operation Exemption 
Including Interchange Commitment--Terminal Railroad Association of St. 
Louis, Docket No. FD 35972, in which WBRY seeks Board approval to lease 
from Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis, and to operate, 
approximately 9.66 miles of rail line consisting of the following two 
segments: (1) The West Belt Industry Lead (WBIL), from milepost 1.07 at 
Adelaide Avenue to the end of the track at milepost 9.54; and (2) the 
Central Belt Industrial Lead, from the point of connection with the 
WBIL at milepost 9.54 to the end of the track, all located in the City 
of St. Louis, St. Louis County, Mo.
    This transaction may be consummated on November 21, 2015, the 
effective date of the exemption (30 days after the verified notice of 
exemption was filed).

[[Page 68900]]

    WBRY is owned by Devco. Devco is owned by SteelRiver. Devco and 
SRTH do not control any carriers. SteelRiver is owned by a diverse 
group of U.S. and foreign pension funds, insurance companies, and other 
investors. SteelRiver controls PRC Funding LLC, a noncarrier, which 
controls Patriot Funding LLC, a noncarrier, which controls PRC Holdings 
LLC, a noncarrier, which controls PRC Midco LLC, a noncarrier, which 
controls Patriot Rail Company LLC, (Patriot), a noncarrier. Patriot 
controls 13 Class III railroads. For a complete list of these rail 
carriers, and the states in which they operate, see the notice of 
exemption filed on October 22, 2015, in this proceeding. The notice is 
available on the Board's Web site at WWW.STB.DOT.GOV. The notice 
therefore seeks exemption for Devco and SRTH to continue in control of 
WBRY, and for SteelRiver to continue indirect control of WBRY when WBRY 
becomes a Class III rail carrier.
    Applicants state that: (1) WBRY does not connect with any of the 
rail carriers controlled by Patriot; (2) the proposed transaction is 
not part of a series of anticipated transactions that would connect 
WBRY with each other or with any rail carriers controlled by Patriot; 
and (3) the proposed transaction does not involve a Class I rail 
carrier. The proposed transaction is therefore exempt from the prior 
approval requirements of 49 U.S.C. 11323 pursuant to 49 CFR 
1180.2(d)(2).
    Applicants state that the proposed transaction is intended to 
promote the investment objectives of Applicants and to improve the 
efficiency, financial strength, and ability of WBRY to meet the needs 
of shippers.
    Under 49 U.S.C. 10502(g), the Board may not use its exemption 
authority to relieve a rail carrier of its statutory obligation to 
protect the interests of its employees. Section 11326(c), however, does 
not provide for labor protection for transactions under Sec. Sec.  
11324 and 11325 that involve only Class III rail carriers. Accordingly, 
the Board may not impose labor protective conditions here, because all 
of the carriers involved are Class III carriers.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemption is void ab initio. Petitions to revoke the exemption 
under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) may be filed at any time. The filing of a 
petition to revoke will not automatically stay the effectiveness of the 
exemption. Petitions to stay must be filed by November 13, 2015 (at 
least seven days before the exemption becomes effective).
    An original and 10 copies of all pleadings, referring to Docket No. 
FD 35973 must be filed with the Surface Transportation Board, 395 E 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20423-0001. In addition, a copy of each 
pleading must be served on: Thomas F. McFarland, Thomas F. McFarland, 
P.C., 208 South LaSalle Street, Suite 1890, Chicago, IL 60604.
    Board decisions and notices are available on our Web site at: 
WWW.STB.DOT.GOV.

    Decided: November 3, 2015.

    By the Board, Joseph H. Dettmar, Acting Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Tia Delano,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2015-28335 Filed 11-5-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P