ND Pioneer Project begins construction to expand transloading

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor
image description
A rendering of Pioneer Project double loop track

Dakota Plains Holdings, Inc., and joint-venture partner, Petroleum Transport Solutions, LLC, started construction for the Pioneer Project in North Dakota, an expansion of the New Town transloading facility located in the heart of the Williston Basin.

Crude oil supplying the facility is currently sourced primarily from the Bakken formation that underlies parts of Montana, North Dakota and Saskatchewan. The Pioneer Project provides a double loop track that will accommodate up to 120 tank car unit trains and will increase the throughput capacity from 30,000 barrels per day to up to 80,000 barrels per day. The partnership will deploy 180,000 barrels of storage to start, with the expansion to 270,000 barrels built into the initial design.

The crude oil will be transported on Canadian Pacific’s (CP) rail network, continuing a partnership between CP and Dakota Plains Holdings and World Fuel Services.

CP executive vice president and chief marketing officer, Jane O’Hagan, said, “Canadian Pacific is pleased to be the rail partner for Dakota Plains and World Fuels as they expand the New Town facility. Through CP’s North American network and rail connections, we offer direct service from the Bakken to key refining markets across North America. We look forward to leveraging this expansion and our network to increase the volume of crude moving efficiently into the marketplace and to provide a cost-effective way for inbound commodities to reach Bakken production areas.”

Completion of the Pioneer project is expected in December 2013; total cost is estimated to be $50 million and will be funded equally by Dakota Plains and World Fuel Services. The existing ladder tracks and Dakota Plains-owned land will be used for inbound delivery, storage and trucking logistics services for commodities such as sand, chemicals, diesel and pipe. Debt financing will be provided for the Dakota Plains portion of the Pioneer project cost.

Currently, the New Town facility is in its fourth year of midstream operations with three business segments comprising trucking, transloading and marketing of crude oil and related products originating within the Williston Basin of North Dakota.

Tags: