Crude-by-Rail (CBR) Increasing -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Link here.

As the volume of crude oil pumped out of the Bakken continues to set records, oil companies are increasingly investing in rail facilities to move their product to market.

Since EOG Resources went online with a crude-to-rail transfer facility near Stanley in December 2009, several other facilities have been built and more are under construction or in the planning stage.

The capacity of rail terminals in the state is expected to reach 300,000 barrels a day by the end of this year. Terminals are projected to have capacity for 750,000 barrels a day by the end of next year and more than 800,000 barrels a day by 2013, according to the N.D. Pipeline Authority.

I noticed the same thing: a lot more rail activity than I would have expected.

The general consensus is that there is excess takeaway capacity (pipeline, truck, and rail) but with the amount of activity in CBR oil-loading facilities, one really wonders how much oil the Bakken is capable of giving up. If the CBR is any indication of the potential, Statoil's deal for BEXP is quite a coup.

The article says there are terminals in Minot, Stampede, Donnybrook, Ross, Stanley, New Town, Zap and Dore. In addition, there are two new terminals being built, one each at Epping, ND, and one at Trenton, ND, both in Williams County. Also, there are two terminals being built southwest of Zap: west of Dickinson and Fryburg, just outside the south unit of the national park.