Washington state port approves lease for crude oil handling facility

The Port of Vancouver USA's board yesterday approved a 10-year lease with the Tesoro-Savage Joint Venture (TSJV) for a proposed crude oil handling facility at the Washington state port.

Longtime port tenant Tesoro Corp. and logistics firm Savage Cos. plan to build the facility to receive crude oil by rail and transfer it to marine vessels for transport to refineries in Alaska, California and Washington. The Port of Vancouver USA is served by BNSF Railway Co. and Union Pacific Railroad.

About 42 acres of port property will be leased by TSJV to accommodate a rail unloading facility, storage tanks and a vessel loading area. The capital investment by TSJV is estimated at $100 million and the revenue to be received by the port over the 10-year lease period is expected to exceed $45 million.

The project now moves into the environmental permitting phase. Washington State's Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council will act as the lead agency for local and state permits.

The board's approval of the lease follows five workshops held by the port the past few months to review aspects of the proposed facility, including rail and marine safety, the permitting process, a project overview and elements of the lease.