A lot of oil is moving by rail. This will increase congestion on rail lines. And a lot of it is now moving on unit trains of 80-120 cars, and unloading in unit train terminals instead of car-by-car on manifest trains. It’s the first time over 50% has moved by rail.
EIA: East Coast refineries got 52% of crude by rail in February – Oil & Gas Journal.
Change coming to the STB? Faster attention to rate cases would help shippers. The new rules would allow offline nonpublic discussion.
This set of issues was first pointed out to me by a group of students who did a project on the energy boom and its logistics impact. here is another take on infrastructure challenges transporting oil and gas. They cover the economy!
Recent CSIS report outlines main US oil infrastructure challenges – Oil & Gas Journal.
Supply Chain Digest Port Technology International Marine Link
Supply Chain and Logistics 