Plains to expand Louisiana crude terminal in 2012
Plains All American Pipeline said it is proceeding with the fourth phase of an expansion at its terminal facility in St. James, Louisiana.
This expansion will include construction of an additional 1.2 million bbl of crude oil storage capacity and is targeted to be completed in the third quarter of 2012 at a cost of approximately $50 million.
The project is supported by multi-year contracts and throughput arrangements with third-party customers and is part of the company’s ongoing program to increase its cash flow contributions from fee-based activities, it said.
The St. James expansion represents Plains’ third facility expansion since its original completion in 2007, and will bring total storage capacity at St. James to 8.3 million bbl.
The St. James facility has a manifold and header system designed to allow receipts and deliveries with connecting pipelines at their maximum operating capacity.
Located adjacent to the Mississippi River, the St. James facility also contains a barge and ship dock, which receives crude oil and condensate from ships and inter-coastal barges.
Additionally, the dock will be capable of loading barges near the end of 2011.
The St. James facility is also directly connected with a crude oil rail terminal that has a current capacity to offload approximately 65,000 bpd, which will double to 130,000 bpd by the fourth quarter of 2011.
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