Greenbrier Announces New Orders For 5,400 Rail-Cars Valued at $575 Million

The Greenbrier Companies, Inc. (NYSE: GBX) announced today that it received new orders in January, February, and March for 5,400 railcar units valued at approximately $575 million.These orders are broad-based across a range of railcar types includingautomotive-related rail products, tank cars, double-stack intermodalplatforms, boxcars and various types of covered hopper cars. Continuedstrength in energy and industrial chemical markets led to orders for nearly2,700 of Greenbrier's higher margin tank cars. The Company also receivedorders for over 700 automotive-related rail products including 89-footflatcars and the Company's proprietary Multi-Max(TM) auto racks in NorthAmerica, and for open and closed car carriers in Europe. The remainingorders are for double-stack intermodal platforms, boxcars, mill gondola carsand covered hopper cars, including an initial order for the Company's newplastic pellet car. The new orders are in addition to the orders for 4,200 railcars valued at$430 million reported in Greenbrier's press release dated January 7, 2013.Since September 1, 2012, the beginning of the fiscal year, Greenbrier hasreceived orders for nearly 9,600 railcars in North America and Europe valuedat over $1 billion, consisting of approximately 4,000 tank cars, 2,100automotive-related flatcars or racks, and with the balance across a broadrange of other railcar types. William A. Furman, president and chief executive officer of Greenbrier said,"Our railcar manufacturing strategy is to diversify our new railcar productofferings, to reduce reliance on a single commodity or railcar type at anygiven time and to benefit from growth in demand for various railcar types,including tank cars, frac sand cars, and plastic pellet cars for the rapidlyexpanding North American energy and chemicals markets. This strategycontinues to bear fruit. As these orders demonstrate, we are able toflexibly and nimbly respond to emerging trends and to our customers' variedrailcar needs with a flexible and geographically diverse manufacturingfootprint." TANK CARS Furman also noted, "The strength in the energy markets continues to producestrong demand for our higher margin tank cars. Industry forecasts indicatetank car demand is expected to continue to be robust through 2015, and thensettle back to baseline levels. We continue to ramp up our tank carproduction to meet this demand. By the end of calendar year 2013, we expectto be at an annual production rate of about 3,800 tank cars, nearly fourtimes our fiscal 2012 production. Industry forecasts also indicate therebounding economy and independent growth in certain commodities willcontinue to drive increasing demand for non-energy related railcarsincluding intermodal, forest products, automotive, covered hopper and othercar types where Greenbrier has been historically strong." AUTOMOTIVE "Automotive is an especially exciting part of our business today. Railroadscarry approximately 70% of all new vehicles manufactured in North America.Over the next three years, independent industry forecasts project thatdeliveries of automotive-related railcars will exceed 10,000 units in NorthAmerica, with an equivalent number of racks being built. This demand isbeing driven by growth in automotive traffic by rail as a result of growingauto sales and a geographic shift in production of autos. Simultaneously,an aging fleet of automotive carrying railcars with an average age ofapproximately 20 years, and a 10% reduction in size of the automotivecarrying railcar fleet in North America since 2009, is driving a railcarreplacement cycle. This fleet of automotive equipment consists of about50,000 railcars, each equipped with racks, either unitized with the flatcar,as in the case of Auto-Max(R), or with fully-enclosed, detachable racks.Most conventional 89' cars for automotive service are owned by TTX, thenational railroad-owned freight car pool operator. Racks are ownedpredominantly by railroads, shippers or leasing companies," Furmancontinued. Furman added, "Greenbrier is well-positioned to meet this growing demand.We have the most comprehensive line of products for transport of finishedvehicles by rail, with three distinct designs in North America: Auto-Max,an articulated, fully integrated 2-unit railcar with flexible bi-level andtri-level configurations; Multi-Max, a new proprietary automotive rack withflexible bi-level and tri-level configurations; and a standard 89' flatcarfor bi-level or tri-level rack service capable of taking either aconventional rack or Multi-Max. Both Auto-Max and Multi-Max utilizeimportant features of our innovative double-stack technology that offerssuperior versatility, flexibility, and increased load capacity. Both alsofeature a proprietary sealed end-door that offers industry-leading cargosecurity and enhanced loading door edges for unmatched vehicle safety andprotection in long-distance transit. This is particularly important forservice in Mexico. We are pleased with our position in Europe, as well,where we are the leading automotive rail manufacturer from our Polishfacility, having produced over 1,800 automotive railcars in the last fiveyears." Furman stated, "U.S. light vehicle sales increased by 13% in 2012 from 2011. For the first time in five years, sales are forecast to exceed 15 millionlight vehicles in 2013, with continued sales growth forecast through 2016.Mexico recently surpassed Japan as the largest exporter of light vehicles tothe United States and is forecast to increase its share of North Americanlight vehicle production substantially over the next decade. Thisdemographic shift will further support growth in automotive rail loadings,with rail as the preferred transportation method of light vehiclesmanufactured in Mexico. Greenbrier's automotive line of products is alsomanufactured in Mexico, and we are uniquely equipped at our low-cost andflexible facilities to take advantage of this geographic shift. At the sametime, automotive rail loadings are up 16% from 2011 to 2012 in the UnitedStates and are forecast to increase in each of the next three years, allhelping fuel demand for our automotive products." ROBUST CAR LOADINGS TO DRIVE DEMAND FOR DIVERSIFIED PRODUCT OFFERINGS Furman concluded by saying, "North American railroad loadings, excludingcoal and agriculture and including intermodal, are up nearly 6% for the 11weeks ending March 16, 2013 compared to the same period in 2012. A numberof sectors which Greenbrier serves, beyond automotive, are exhibiting robusttraffic growth. Chemical loadings which drive demand for tank cars andlarge covered hoppers increased 13% in the same period. Loadings ofnon-metallic minerals and products, transported by small covered hoppers,were up 6% in the period. Finally, 8% growth in intermodal containerloadings, which drives demand for double-stack intermodal platforms, led toan order for double-stack wells. Current rail traffic trends are favoringour strategy to be a supplier of diverse railcar types through an efficientand flexible manufacturing footprint." Mark Rittenbaum, chief financial officer noted, "We remain keenly focused onexecuting the core aspects of our integrated business model. As managementhas previously stated, on April 4, 2013, concurrent with the release of oursecond quarter financial results, we expect to outline actions intended toimprove gross margins and capital efficiency, with a view towards improvingGreenbrier's return on invested capital and enhancing shareholder value." Certain orders referenced in this release are subject to customarydocumentation and completion of terms.