Bakken LNG By Rail -- October 1, 2016

Updates

Later, 10:35 a.m. Central Time: from a reader (thank you); an article from over a year ago: Union Pacific first railroad to haul LNG.
 

Original Post

 

I'll come back to this later, but I'm curious if anyone knows whether "they" are shipping LNG out of the Bakken by rail. The reason I'm asking:

On Thursday, a couple of days ago, a reader noted an east-bound freight train rolling through Fargo with LNG cars among the various other freight cars. The reader was wondering whether the LNG was coming out of the Bakken or elsewhere. 

The only two locations I can imagine would be the Niobrara (northeastern Colorado/southeastern Wyoming) or Canada.

A google search certainly suggests this is LNG from the Bakken but I could find no specific sources.

This press release from 2014 suggested that it might be LNG by rail from the Bakken but not specifically stated.

A reminder: the first time I used the LNGBR tag was with this story.

They Said It Couldn't Be Done -- LNG By Rail -- September 19, 2016

This one was certainly off my radar scope. A huge "thanks" to a reader for sending it may way. From KTOO.org dated today:

Standing next to a massive cylindrical rail car at the Anchorage Railroad Yard, Alaska Railroad Mechanical Supervisor Josh Cappel asked a fireman to test out the car’s hand-operated braking system.

“Go ahead and fire that thing up tight. Come on, a little tighter than that — there you go!” Cappel joked, drawing laughs from the crowd of about 16 other members of the Anchorage Fire Department.

Starting tomorrow, the Alaska Railroad will be the first in the nation to carry liquefied natural gas by rail. With the Federal Rail Administration’s blessing, LNG will travel the tracks from Anchorage to Fairbanks.

As with any new venture, safety is always a topic of discussion. Cappel said he’s training the Anchorage Fire Department in case the worst happens.

“It’s very important for everyone to understand how rail cars work, especially the fire department,” said Cappel. “If they are responding to any kind of disaster they need to know how these cars work so they don’t get hurt and the people they are rescuing don’t get hurt.”

A new tag: LNGBR.

Video here with some great footage. 

Wow, I love the blog.