BNSF to serve new crude-by-rail terminal in Wyoming

CTRAN L.L.C., Cogent Energy Solutions L.L.C. and Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners have announced they secured all permits, funding and customers to begin construction on a crude-by-rail terminal adjacent to the Casper Natrona County International Airport in Casper, Wyo.

To be completed in spring 2014, the terminal will be served by BNSF Railway Co. and accommodate unit train and manifest loadings of both heavy and light crude, said officials of CTRAN — a Granite Peak Development/BDW Co. joint venture — in a press release. The facility will feature an initial storage capacity of 750,000 barrels of crude and can be expanded to eventually handle 2 million barrels, they said.

Rail provides oil producers with the flexibility to transport their crude to the optimal destination market, said Dave Garin, BNSF's group vice president-industrial products.

"We are excited to see the Casper Crude to Rail Terminal project move forward with this outstanding collaboration between Cogent and Granite Peak to bring additional crude loading capacity to Wyoming," he said.