Saturday, December 25, 2010
Christmas Day: Out-Of-State Workers in the Oil Patch
Nice human interest story about the out-of-state workers in the oil patch, in the Bismarck Tribune on Christmas Day.
Re-Financing in the State of Fruits and Nuts -- This is NOT a Bakken Story
First some data points / background (some of the data points are direct quotes from today's story in the LA Times):
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach (two separate ports located right next to each other) are the busiest container ports in the United States. The ports handle almost twenty (20) percent of the nation's Asian imports. The ports are now the nation's busiest gateway for international trade in part because of something called the Alameda Corridor.
The Alameda Corridor takes freight trains from the Los Angeles - Long Beach Ports to connect with transcontinental rails: The $2.4-billion Alameda Corridor enables freight trains to travel from the ports to the transcontinental yards near downtown Los Angeles in 30 minutes, down from four hours on the meandering track they previously used.
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are celebrating one of their biggest one-year increases in trade in the last 25 years. That means it's also a good year for the Alameda Corridor, a 20-mile express route built to speed the flow of cargo from the ports to the region's railroad hub and on to retail shelves across the U.S.
Moody's has cut Alameda Corridor's debt rating despite a very, very strong year due to heavy debt load that needs refinancing. This puts the corridor in a bind: Its bonds were downgraded in part because it hadn't yet refinanced its debt, and now refinancing is complicated by the downgrade.
The Corridor has several places to obtain new financing, but the Corridor authority's governing board had hoped to refinance its debt by the end of the year through a Federal Rail Administration loan. But on Dec. 14, federal officials said a decision had been postponed pending "further discussions ... concerning the terms of the proposed loan."
Comment:
Okay, this is the same government / administration that just called in twenty CEOs to discuss ways of putting folks back to work and to chastise American corporations for not putting their huge piles of cash to work. This is the same government that has bailed out the banks on Wall Street, General Motors, and state pension plans across the country.
And now, when offered an opportunity to re-finance one of the most important transportation hubs in the US, it balks, it delays, it ... And it's not a bailout. The government will be getting a great return on its money. I am flabbergasted this has even become a story. It was the lead story in the business section in today's LA Times. The second story was the huge liability costs for Toyota following recalls and acceleration problems in their coal-powered cars.
Anyway, I find this incredible. The refinancing is not simply to refinance debt for a better rate, but the money will go toward major improvements in the corridor, making the Corridor better and putting more people to work. It might help if "they" said this was a "green energy" project. It might help to bring in Steven Spielberg to re-brand the corridor.
I can't make this stuff up.
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach (two separate ports located right next to each other) are the busiest container ports in the United States. The ports handle almost twenty (20) percent of the nation's Asian imports. The ports are now the nation's busiest gateway for international trade in part because of something called the Alameda Corridor.
The Alameda Corridor takes freight trains from the Los Angeles - Long Beach Ports to connect with transcontinental rails: The $2.4-billion Alameda Corridor enables freight trains to travel from the ports to the transcontinental yards near downtown Los Angeles in 30 minutes, down from four hours on the meandering track they previously used.
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are celebrating one of their biggest one-year increases in trade in the last 25 years. That means it's also a good year for the Alameda Corridor, a 20-mile express route built to speed the flow of cargo from the ports to the region's railroad hub and on to retail shelves across the U.S.
Moody's has cut Alameda Corridor's debt rating despite a very, very strong year due to heavy debt load that needs refinancing. This puts the corridor in a bind: Its bonds were downgraded in part because it hadn't yet refinanced its debt, and now refinancing is complicated by the downgrade.
The Corridor has several places to obtain new financing, but the Corridor authority's governing board had hoped to refinance its debt by the end of the year through a Federal Rail Administration loan. But on Dec. 14, federal officials said a decision had been postponed pending "further discussions ... concerning the terms of the proposed loan."
Comment:
Okay, this is the same government / administration that just called in twenty CEOs to discuss ways of putting folks back to work and to chastise American corporations for not putting their huge piles of cash to work. This is the same government that has bailed out the banks on Wall Street, General Motors, and state pension plans across the country.
And now, when offered an opportunity to re-finance one of the most important transportation hubs in the US, it balks, it delays, it ... And it's not a bailout. The government will be getting a great return on its money. I am flabbergasted this has even become a story. It was the lead story in the business section in today's LA Times. The second story was the huge liability costs for Toyota following recalls and acceleration problems in their coal-powered cars.
Anyway, I find this incredible. The refinancing is not simply to refinance debt for a better rate, but the money will go toward major improvements in the corridor, making the Corridor better and putting more people to work. It might help if "they" said this was a "green energy" project. It might help to bring in Steven Spielberg to re-brand the corridor.
I can't make this stuff up.
EOG: Not Hitting On All Cylinders
Link here.
But I would never bet against them; could be a great investment opportunity.
So, Merry Christmas to all.
Rambling.
I love it when Christmas falls on a Saturday.
Thursday, one last push, visiting stores, family, restaurant overlooking the Pacific.
Friday, a great movie, "True Grit," and here in south Los Angeles, $5/ticket for seniors in brand new theater. Wife made duck for Christmas Eve dinner; annual tradition. Opened some gifts last night; more this a.m. I got lots of new socks and V-neck t-shirts.
This a.m., in bed watching Chicago parade; opening gifts (socks, t-shirts) in bed; surfing the net on the iPad; taking and making phone calls to family. Missed a phone call from area code "496" which doesn't exist in the US. Russia as a "496" area code.
Family for dinner this afternoon.
And then, we still have one more day. Boxing Day tomorrow.
And then, it starts all over again, this next weekend -- New Year's Eve and Day.
We are very fortunate. What a great country. Oh, did I mention? Lots of socks and V-neck t-shirts.
And never a day without thoughts and prayers for the men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan, missing another Christmas with their families, most on one-year deployments, and many on their second or third tours of same.
But I would never bet against them; could be a great investment opportunity.
So, Merry Christmas to all.
Rambling.
I love it when Christmas falls on a Saturday.
Thursday, one last push, visiting stores, family, restaurant overlooking the Pacific.
Friday, a great movie, "True Grit," and here in south Los Angeles, $5/ticket for seniors in brand new theater. Wife made duck for Christmas Eve dinner; annual tradition. Opened some gifts last night; more this a.m. I got lots of new socks and V-neck t-shirts.
This a.m., in bed watching Chicago parade; opening gifts (socks, t-shirts) in bed; surfing the net on the iPad; taking and making phone calls to family. Missed a phone call from area code "496" which doesn't exist in the US. Russia as a "496" area code.
Family for dinner this afternoon.
And then, we still have one more day. Boxing Day tomorrow.
And then, it starts all over again, this next weekend -- New Year's Eve and Day.
We are very fortunate. What a great country. Oh, did I mention? Lots of socks and V-neck t-shirts.
And never a day without thoughts and prayers for the men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan, missing another Christmas with their families, most on one-year deployments, and many on their second or third tours of same.
Largest FedEx Feeder Operation in the US: Grand Forks, ND -- Not a Bakken Story
Another great North Dakota human interest story.
It is incredible what the free market system can develop.
By the way, I have become very impressed with the US Postal Service over the years, also. I don't think I've ever lost a package or a letter, and the smoothness in forwarding mail for up to six months while I'm traveling is awesome.
It is incredible what the free market system can develop.
By the way, I have become very impressed with the US Postal Service over the years, also. I don't think I've ever lost a package or a letter, and the smoothness in forwarding mail for up to six months while I'm traveling is awesome.
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