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Commodity supply, trading and logistics firm Musket Corp. recently began expanding its crude-by-rail facility in Dore, N.D., which is served by BNSF Railway Co. through the Yellowstone Valley Railroad.

The expansion will enable the high-speed loading facility to move more unit trains of crude oil from the Bakken Shale/Williston Basin to markets across the country, Musket officials said in a prepared statement.

Planned additions include a loading rack for unit trains, fixed tanks and a pipeline connection to a crude oil gathering system in North Dakota. To be completed in first-quarter 2012, the project will boost the facility’s total outbound capacity to 70,000 barrels per day, according to Musket.

“We can provide any or all of the needs associated with rail loading, rail cars, supply chain management, price risk management and end markets,” said Musket General Manager of Crude Oil Dan House.

Meanwhile, NuStar Logistics, EOG Resources Rail Yard (Louisiana) L.L.C. and EOG Resources Marketing Inc. entered into an agreement to jointly develop a unit train offloading facility at NuStar's crude oil terminal in St. James, La. The project will accommodate the movement and storage of crude oil from the Bakken, Eagle Ford and other developing U.S. shales, the parties said in a joint statement.
 
The project calls for adding rail and unit train unloading facilities to handle 70,000 barrels per day, and constructing two storage tanks with a combined capacity of 360,000 barrels. The rail project is slated for completion in first-quarter 2012 and the tanks are scheduled to enter service in May 2012.

For more information on the Bakken Shale’s growing crude oil production and rail’s role in it, follow this link to read “Crude intentions,” an article published in Progressive Railroading’s May 2011 issue.