Florida East Coast Railway names Asplund president, CEO

Nate Asplund has succeeded James Hertwig as president and chief executive officer of Florida East Coast Railway.

Asplund, who assumed his new role on Jan. 8, most recently served as president and CEO of the Red River Valley and Western Railroad (RRVW), a regional railroad serving North Dakota and Minnesota, FEC Railway officials said in a post on the company's website.

During Asplund's tenure at RRVW, the regional railroad achieved record volume for rail transportation and car repair, sited three additional grain shuttle facilities, built a wind project distribution terminal and attracted customer investments approaching $90 million.

From 2010 to 2015, Asplund served as assistant vice president, Mexico, for BNSF Railway Co. During that time, he led a U.S.- and Mexico-based team focused on rail and intermodal transportation via five gateways accessed by BNSF and its partner railroads in Mexico.

Asplund also served stints at Crowley Maritime Corp. and Burlington Northern Railroad, a BNSF predecessor.

Hertwig retired on Dec. 31. He became FEC Railway's president and CEO in July 2010. Prior to that, Hertwig was president of CSX Intermodal.