Updates
September 12, 2012: wow, some folks are good at finding things and reading quickly. "Anon 1" found this bit of information regarding a new public-private project at the Port of Beaumont, paid for in part by Hurricane Ike funds, see comments. The description of the project is on page 5. As part of the project:
The Company anticipates that the Project will provide shippers, traders and refineries theopportunity to transport diesel fuel received by truck and barge for shipment by unit trains headed north, thereby creating a demand for emptied rail cars headed north. Diesel is used to provide power to drilling operations at the exporting oil fields. Likewise, crude oil from Canada is very heavy and does not flow through the pipeline without first being diluted. Diluents, which are essentially raw naphtha and comprise about 30% of the crude barrel assay, can be transloaded from truck or barge to the unit trains and delivered to the producers in the Canadian oil fields. Management does note that pipelines are one-directional, north to south, and do not present competition to rail for this part of the Business Plan. This comes from a pdf file, and this might be the link but if it doesn't work, google beaumont trainload; the pdf link will be near the top.
Later, 9:20 pm: I haven't seen a specific answer to "anon 1's" question on whether Bakken CBR trains are returning with diluent, but it certainly sounds like it is very likely.
Later, 9:20 pm: here's a long press release; posted July 9, 2012; buried in the press release is this one-liner:
In addition, Southern Pacific has the opportunity to utilize its empty rail cars to transport lower priced diluent from the Gulf Coast on their return to Canada.And another press release here:
Rail shipment requires about 33% less process diluent than what is necessary to meet pipeline specifications, Southern Pacific said. And return-trip rail cars can supply the project with low-cost Gulf Coast diluent.Later, 6:30 pm: comments are starting to come in. Here is one. And then there is one below in the comments.
I'm in a hurry; can't comment much, but I remember the comment that said "railroads were the method of last resort for shipping oil." Isn't this an interesting turn of events; whether you ship oil south and then bring diluent north, or bring diluent north and then ship oil south, the results are the same. This is very, very interesting. I love capitalism; no central planning on this one.
Original Post
Comment at Peters: http://extras.newswire.ca/peters20120911/
Crude-by-rail cars return with condensate - free backhaul for diluent to mix with heavy oil.
That is important. A very big deal.
Does anyone know: How much is happening? Is Bakken CBR involved?
