So Many Story Lines -- "CBR Shift" Squeezes Pipeline Companies

The Financial Post is reporting:

The tug-of-war between railroads and pipelines in North American oilfields is only just getting started.

In recent months, the popularity of moving crude on tracks has sapped commercial support for new pipelines from oil fields in West Texas to North Dakota’s Bakken. Now it’s raising questions about the importance of Keystone XL, TransCanada Corp.’s controversial project designed to connect Alberta’s booming oil sands to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

The assessment reflects moves by companies such as Gibson Energy Inc., Keyera Corp. and others, which have committed a combined $1-billion this year and next to build rail terminal infrastructure in Western Canada. Another $4-billion to $5-billion is earmarked for new railcars that are on back order, Peters said in the report.

As regular readers know, I enjoy tweaking active environmentalists who often act before they think.

Look at the photographs that accompany the linked story and tell me what makes more sense environmentally:

• shipping oil by pipeline
• crude-by-rail
• trucking oil (LOL) 

So, next time you are sitting at a railroad crossing watching 110 oil tankers pass you by at 5 mph, thank the folks who killed the Keystone XL. 

For investors, it's a huge win-win no matter how you bet (rail vs pipeline).

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment decisions based on anything you read here or think you might have read here.