November 4, 2012 [OPIS] - Rapidly expanding independent terminal owner, Arc Terminals, is building a crude unloading facility in Mobile, Alabama, in cooperation with Canadian National Railway, John Blanchard, President of Arc Terminals, told OPIS in an interview on Friday.
The rail facility, which will have a maximum crude handling capacity of approximately 75,000 b/d or up to 120 rail cars, is scheduled for first operation by June 30, 2013.
Depending on crude demand, the rail facility may kick off with an initial volume of 40 rail cars, and that volume could increase later.
The new rail facility will be the first crude unloading terminal in Alabama.
“The Mobile location allows for a quick turnaround of rail cars, unlike the congestion problems that are occurring in other locations,” Blanchard said in response to a query about the problem of limited rail car supply plaguing the crude logistics industry.
“The new rail facility will allow the use of both general purpose tank cars and heated cars as compared to other heated car only facilities,” said Darrell Brock, Director of Business Development at Arc Terminals.
The new rail facility will receive mainly heavy crude oil from Canada and light sweet crude oil from both Canada and the Bakken basin via a single-line haul on CN rail.
A single-line haul is more efficient logistically and less expensive for Arc’s customers compared with dual-line haul or multiple switches on rail tracks.
Arc Terminals does not buy or store any of its own product and as such aims to provide the service to suppliers, marketers and refiners looking to bring the price-advantaged crude from the Mid-Con to the gulf coast.
Once the product reaches Arc’s terminal facilities, the crude oil can be economically delivered to customers in the Gulf Coast via pipeline or by water as far as Corpus Christi, Texas.
Arc has also received inquiries from customers interested in delivering crude oil to the Northeast.
The new rail facility will also have the ability to deliver condensate from Arc’s tankage back to the railcars for delivery back to the Canadian Oil producers.
The rail facility will be connected to Arc Terminals’ Blakeley tank farm via a new pipeline.
The Blakeley terminal, which is also located in Mobile, has a total storage capacity of 700,000 bbls that is capable of storing crude oil, fuel oil and asphalt.
The terminal’s capacity could be expanded to well above 1 million bbls to meet potential future demand increase.
Meanwhile, OPIS reported in summer that Shell’s 80,000-b/d Saraland refinery in Alabama is receiving some Mid-Con crude from a newly opened Florida crude gathering terminal at Walnut Hill, which is located in the Northwest tip of Florida.
