Repost from S&P Global Platts
[Editor: You can be sure that if Benicia hadn’t succeeded in stopping Valero Crude By Rail in 2016, we would be seeing these monstrous oil trains every day now.  Many thanks to all who contributed to our David & Goliath effort!  NOTE: “USGC” in this story refers to the US Gulf Coast.  – R.S.]

Valero looks north to replace Venezuelan heavy crude

New York — Valero Energy increased the volume of heavy Canadian crude processed in its refining system in the fourth quarter of 2018, including crude arriving by rail, a trend that is likely to continue as recent sanctions cut into shipments from Venezuela.

Valero CEO Joe Gorder said the company needs to replace Venezuelan crude at two of its US Gulf Coast refineries – the 215,000 b/d St. Charles facility in eastern Louisiana and the 335,000 b/d Port Arthur, Texas, complex.

Valero’s systemwide heavy crude throughput was 445,000 b/d in Q4 out of 3.0 million b/d overall. About 20% of that was from Venezuela, Gorder said on the Q4 results call.

Valero imported about 50,000 b/d of heavy Canadian crude in October for its USGC system, compared with 126,000 b/d of Venezuelan crude, US Energy Information Administration data showed.

“We did 43,000 b/d of heavy Canadian by rail in Port Arthur [in Q4] and those were very discounted barrels,” said Gorder. Continue reading Valero increased Canadian tar sands oil trains to and from Gulf Coast in 2018 →