Property, Plant and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

The components of property, plant and equipment are as follows:



	December 31,
(in thousands)	2018		2017
Land	$	29,739	$	22,388
Land improvements and leasehold improvements	68,826		69,127
Buildings and storage facilities	284,998		284,820
Machinery and equipment	393,640		373,127
Construction in progress	102,394		7,502
	879,597		756,964
Less: accumulated depreciation	402,886		372,287
	$	476,711	$	384,677

Capitalized interest totaled $1.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2018.

Depreciation expense on property, plant and equipment amounted to $46.5 million, $48.3 million and $48.9 million for the years ended 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

In June 2018, the Company recorded charges totaling $1.6 million for impairment of property, plant and equipment in the Grain segment related to assets that were reclassified as assets held for sale at June 30, 2018 and were sold in the third quarter.

In December 2017, the Company recorded charges totaling $10.9 million for impairment of property, plant and equipment in the Grain segment, of which $5.6 million relates to assets that were deemed held and used and $5.3 million related to assets that had been reclassified as assets held for sale at December 31, 2017. These assets were then sold during 2018.

In December 2016, the Company recorded charges totaling $6.0 million for impairment of property, plant and equipment in the Retail segment. This does not include $0.5 million of impairment charges related to software. The Company also recorded charges totaling $2.3 million for impairment of property, plant and equipment in the Plant Nutrient segment due to the closing of a cob facility.

Rail Group Assets

The components of the Rail Group assets leased to others are as follows:



	December 31,
(in thousands)	2018		2017
Rail Group assets leased to others	$	640,349	$	531,391
Less: accumulated depreciation	118,564		107,948
	$	521,785	$	423,443

Depreciation expense on Rail Group assets leased to others amounted to $24.7 million, $20.0 million and $18.6 million for the years ended 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

In June 2018, the Company recorded charges totaling $4.7 million for impairment of Rail Group assets leased to others that had been reclassified as assets held for sale at June 30, 2018. These assets were sold during the second half of 2018.Sale of Assets

The Company sold its grain elevators in Humboldt, Kenton and Dyer, Tennessee for $19.5 million plus working capital during the second quarter of 2018 and its Como location for $1.3 million plus working capital during the third quarter of 2018. During the third quarter of 2018, the Company also sold one of its convertible preferred security investments for $6.4 million and recorded a pre-tax gain of $3.9 million in Other income, net. The Company also sold fifty barge vessels for $26.9 million and recorded a pre-tax gain of $2.4 million in Other income, net. During the fourth quarter of 2018, the Company sold its final retail property for $4.9 million and recorded a nominal gain.

During 2017, the Company sold three of its retail properties for $14.7 million and recorded a $8.6 million gain in Other income, net. Additionally, the Company recorded a $1.2 million gain in Other income, net for the sales of fixtures. The Company also sold four farm center locations in Florida for $17.4 million and recorded a $4.7 million gain, net of transaction costs in Other income, net.

In 2016 the Company sold eight grain and agronomy locations in Iowa for $54.3 million and recorded a nominal gain.