CP loses intermodal customer to CN

   Calgary-based Canadian Pacific has lost a contract with liner carrier OOCL, one of its two major intermodal agreements, to Canadian National, according to an update by analyst Cowen and Co.
   The deal was up for renewal at the end of the year. Cowen estimates the gain for CN to be around $105 million in 2014 intermodal revenue.
   Cowen points out that some customers may see the loss as indicative of larger problems under the surface, but company officials don’t think that’s the case.
   “Under its ongoing operational turnaround plan, CP has been producing solid improvements to its operating metrics,” the company wrote in an email. “However, a number of derailments in recent months and the aforementioned intermodal loss have some investors concerned that some of the efficiency and productivity gains may have occurred in part at the expense of customer service. While such concerns may be valid, we believe that CP’s management should be able to find the right approach to improve operations without significant revenue losses.
   CP still has an intermodal agreement with Hapag Lloyd.