New Orleans Public Belt serves crude oil terminal at city's port

The New Orleans Public Belt Railroad Co. (NOPB) last month announced the new Gulf Gateway Terminal (GGT) at the Port of New Orleans has begun receiving unit trains of crude oil.

The GGT, which opened in the second quarter, was developed through a cooperative effort between Bulk Resources Inc. and Murex L.L.C. The terminal is designed to handle one unit train of crude oil per day and transfer crude from rail to barge at a rate of 10,000 barrels per hour.

The GGT is served by NOPB, which provides connections to six Class Is: BNSF Railway Co., CN, CSX Transportation, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern Railway and Union Pacific Railroad. Located on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, the terminal offers access to 12 refineries within 40 nautical miles, as well as other Gulf Coast refineries via the waterway, Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico, according to a press release posted on NOPB's website.

Future plans for the GGT include the construction of a 130,000 barrel tank (slated for completion by the fourth quarter), heated offloading facilities to accommodate Canadian bitumen and additional track to increase offloading capacity.

"The design of the terminal provides operational flexibility, optimizing the movement of crude oil from rail to barge," NOPB officials said.

Generating crude oil traffic is part of a growth strategy employed by NOPB General Manager Jeff Davis, who took the short line's reins on Jan. 2. For more details on Davis' strategy, follow this link to read a recent web exclusive article.