MORE grain could be leaving Boort by train next year with a rail siding upgrade expected to be finished within weeks.
Boort Grain Co-op has been in talks with V/Line for two years on track improvements and access to the line.
The co-op of district farmers is now assessing logistics to load grain onto trains.
Board chairman Neil Beattie said: “How much use will depend on logistics and cost benefits.”
“There could be between 2.5 and three tonnes a train ... that would take a lot of truck movements at the co-op out of play,” he said.
V/Line said crews were working on the $2.6 million upgrade to extend the Boort Grain Co-Op siding length to 840 metres and to build a new 400 metre siding, which will allow access and storage for longer and heavier 50- wagon freight trains.
Along with the siding works, V/Line is also upgrading three culverts under the tracks as part of annual program maintenance works on key freight lines in north-west Victoria.
A spokesperson said: “Work is progressing to upgrade and lengthen the siding at Boort Grain Co-Op, with the project expected to be completed in the coming weeks. 
“This upgrade will increase freight capacity, allowing longer trains and more grain wagons to be loaded and carried to the port for export.”
Mr Beattie said receivals at the co-op this season had been a record 240,000 tonnes.
“When we started 12 years ago it was 35,000 tonnes to make the venture viable,” he said.
Mr Beattie said new crop varieties and methods had helped drive harvest growth in the region. ‘The last six seasons have been unbelievable,” he said.
Boort Grain Co-op was established in 2011 by 35 local producers. Today, there are 40 shareholders and more than 100 grower entities delivering to the site.