-Enbridge is moving forward with a $7 billion pipeline replacement program, which will nearly double the capacity of a section of its Enbridge Mainline system. The company will replace the 34-inch diameter pipeline with 36-inch high strength steel pipe, allowing the system to run at its maximum capacity. The system runs from Western Canada to the United States.
-BP will be processing 280,000 barrels per day (bpd) of heavy crude oil at its Whiting, Ind., refinery within the next few months, up from the current level of 160,000 bpd. The company has been aggressively ramping up heavy crude processing at the refinery in recent months.
-A New York Times piece from yesterday tells the story of how the domestic oil boom and its rejuvenating impact on refineries is breathing life into a small town outside San Antonio, Texas. Since Blue Dolphin Energy reopened the mothballed refinery in Nixon, sales taxes there have doubled and property values have quadrupled.
-Via FuelFix, Chevron CEO John Watson said at IHS Energy CERAWeek on Tuesday $100-per-barrel oil is the “new $20.” Watson said rising labor costs are built into oil prices, and that costs have caught up to revenues for many projects.
