According to the Pipeline and Gas Journal, “Rail transportation is quick and the movement of product to market can bring cash much quicker. Crude mving from the Bakken area, is an example. Moving oil from the Bakken by rail to Gulf Coast refineries takes five to seven days. Pipelines take about 40 days.”
“Cost of rail shipment of crude is two to three times the typical pipeline cost of $5/bbl. to move oil. But the advantages outweigh the additional cost. The economics for everyone, porducer and shipper, far outweigh the increase. Maybe the most important advantage is the variabiility of markets available because of rail. Markets paying the highest prices for crude can be slected at the time.”
“…railroads’ revenue for moving crude has risen from $25.5 million in 2008 to $2.15 billion in 2013.”
“A recent sudy, sponsored by the north Dakota Petroleum Council (NDPC), found no major differences between Bakken crude and other U.S. crudes.”
William Kiesel: Seems that you have pointed out a pretty potent economic lesson ! The figures seem to be pretty impressive. Thanks for posting the link to the article.
FTL: [snipped] “…Markets paying the highest prices for crude can be slected at the time.”
“…railroads’ revenue for moving crude has risen from $25.5 million in 2008 to $2.15 billion in 2013.”
"A recent sudy, sponsored by the north Dakota Petroleum Council (NDPC), found no major differences
Note the anchorwoman and the “expert” strolling (read “trespassing”) down the middle of the CP mainline track (nice, shiny 136 lb. rail) without any protective gear.
Chuck, I would make that “responsible” journalism. Both of those people, even as they deplore the, to them, lack of safety in the shipping of oil by rail show great ignorance of safe practices when near a railroad.
That type of thing has been known to happen. A California fire inspector got nailed by CalOSHA when a picture of him standing on a roof, without fall protection gear, appeared in a newspaper…
We already have the thread about discipline getting assessed to rail employees from admissions in social media - this is no different except the ‘miscreants’ are incriminating themselves on public media.
The politics of cheap oil and domestic pipe line permits.
Greens who want President Barack Obama to kill the Keystone XL pipeline are adding a new weapon to their arsenal of protests and lawsuits — the world’s glut of cheap oil.
If Canada can’t find the political will to build any of the 3 proposed heavy oil pipelines within their borders, then I don’t think the US should volunteer to accommodate Keystone.
Also, Canada and/or the provinces have monkeywrenched so many North Dakota water projects, I don’t really care what happens to their Keystone pipeline. (Aside from finding myself on the same side as Obama and the greenies.)