Union Pacific Railroad on Wednesday held a grand-opening ceremony for its newest facility in its network.

The 2,200 acre site in Santa Teresa, N.M., which officially opened to truck traffic in April, is along the company’s critical Sunset Route, the rail line running 760 miles from El Paso, Texas, to Los Angeles.

Located just west of the Santa Teresa Airport, the facility includes an intermodal ramp with an annual lift capacity of around 225,000 containers. The southern region of New Mexico is now a strategic focal point where shippers can leverage the economic and environmental benefits of shipping freight by rail, according to Union Pacific.

"Our new rail facility in New Mexico is a key part of our relentless effort to create value for our customers through safety, service and efficiency," said Union Pacific Chairman and CEO Jack Koralesk. "Union Pacific's $400 million investment in New Mexico will improve the fluidity and efficiency of the Union Pacific network and will have a positive long-term economic impact in the region."

The hub is reportedly one of the largest of its kind in the U.S. It has been designated a foreign trade zone, meaning freight from overseas can be loaded directly onto trains from West Coast ports for processing and shipment to Mexican factories and for distribution by rail across the U.S.