Washington panel votes to deny proposed Vancouver crude-oil terminal

The Washington Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to recommend that Gov. Jay Inslee deny the proposed Vancouver Energy crude-oil terminal project.

The project calls for Tesoro Savage Petroleum Terminal LLC, also known as Vancouver Energy, to construct and operate an energy distribution terminal at the Port of Vancouver, Washington, located on the Columbia River.

The council directed its staff to draft a final recommendation report, which the council will review Dec. 19. After that report is approved, the council will send its formal recommendation to Inslee on Dec. 29. The governor will have 60 days to make a final decision, according to a council press release.

At full operation, the project would be capable of receiving up to 360,000 barrels of crude oil per day that would be transported by rail to West Coast refineries. Crude oil would be delivered to the facility by rail in unit trains composed of up to 120 tank cars. An average of four unit trains per day would arrive at the terminal, according to the project's final environmental impact statement.