InfraRed Capital Partners Takes Majority Stake in Intermodal Firm Rail Modal Group

InfraRed Capital Takes a Majority Stake in Rail Modal Group

London-based infrastructure asset manager InfraRed Capital Partners announced that one of its value-added funds has acquired a majority stake in Rail Modal Group (RMG), an Albany, N.Y.-based operator of inland intermodal terminals. RMG was founded in 2018 by Greg Oberting, who remains chief executive and retains an ownership interest in the company. Financial terms of the transaction were not part of the announcement.

RMG runs a network of privately operated inland intermodal terminals that serve U.S. producers and processors shipping containerized exports, with a particular focus on agricultural commodities. The company consolidates export freight onto full-length unit trains of 100 or more railcars and delivers it with on-dock service to West Coast ports, working in partnership with freight railroads such as BNSF Railway and with ocean carriers. Since its founding in 2018, RMG says it has shipped more than 1,200 unit trains, the equivalent of roughly 200 million truck miles.

Looking ahead, RMG said it will focus on continued growth, including expanding capacity and resilience at existing terminals, broadening service capabilities and developing additional locations. Oberting will continue to lead the company, while InfraRed is set to provide capital, infrastructure expertise and operational resources. Filip Guz, Partner and Head of Americas Investments at InfraRed, described RMG as an established, asset-backed platform with a differentiated network, strong customer relationships and a compelling growth pipeline.

Why InfraRed Bought Into RMG's Inland Export Model

An Infrastructure Investor's Bet on the 'Inland Port' Model

InfraRed's value-added fund is buying into a business built on a structural quirk of U.S. container trade. The United States imports roughly twice as many containers as it exports, leaving empties clustered in interior hubs such as Chicago and Dallas. RMG's model collects those containers, moves them to inland terminals it operates — often within five to 20 miles of where export cargo is loaded — and consolidates them into unit trains bound for West Coast ports. For railroads and ocean carriers, the service fills capacity that would otherwise move back empty; for agricultural shippers, it creates export access without a long overland truck haul to the coast. That alignment of incentives is a large part of what makes the platform attractive to long-duration infrastructure capital.

What InfraRed Is Paying For — and What RMG Gets

Guz described RMG's appeal in terms of scale: an established network, deep customer relationships and a pipeline of growth opportunities. The practical shape of that thesis is expansion — RMG says it will invest in capacity and resilience at existing terminals, broaden services and add new locations. For InfraRed, the draw is a young but proven operator: roughly 1,200 unit trains in the seven-plus years since 2018, a repeatable playbook, and a founder who stays on as CEO with his own capital still in the business. Oberting's retention is not incidental. His nearly three decades in agricultural commodity trading shaped the model, and his continued investment keeps founder incentives aligned with the new owner's growth agenda.

The Industry Context Behind the Deal

The transaction lands on tailwinds that RMG itself cites: intermodal rail transloading handles more than 20 million containers annually, more than 40% of U.S. long-distance freight moves by rail, and a large share of the $1.5 trillion U.S. agriculture sector is located far from marine export terminals and major inland intermodal hubs. The purchase is also a further sign that infrastructure investors increasingly treat freight-adjacent assets as core infrastructure rather than cyclical transport — a view that gives asset-backed logistics platforms easier access to long-term capital.

What Changes — and What Doesn't

Day-to-day operations remain in Oberting's hands, and the partnership with BNSF and ocean carriers is unchanged by the announcement. The near-term difference is balance-sheet depth: RMG gains capital and operating expertise to fund a build-out it might otherwise have had to finance more slowly. The open questions — where new terminals will be located, whether railroad and carrier partnerships extend as volumes grow, and whether expansion alters pricing or service commitments for shippers — are not answered by the deal announcement. Those details will matter more than the ownership headline.

What the InfraRed-RMG Deal Means for Shippers and Rivals

• Agricultural exporters that use or are considering RMG's terminals should expect the expansion program to start at existing sites, where RMG plans to add capacity and resilience; the near-term benefit is likely more unit-train slots in established locations before any new terminal is announced.
• BNSF Railway and the ocean carriers that partner with RMG face a better-capitalized counterparty. Volume growth is plausible given RMG's stated plans to broaden services and add locations, but commercial terms may come under review as the new owner pushes its growth agenda.
• Competing intermodal and transload operators should watch for RMG's next terminal announcements: a better-funded RMG is a stronger bidder for inland sites, container flows and rail capacity.
• Infrastructure investors tracking the sector can use this deal as a benchmark: a value-added fund paying for control of an asset-backed freight platform founded only in 2018, with the founder retained as CEO — evidence that long-duration capital continues to flow into export supply-chain infrastructure.