Portland-Montreal Pipe Line
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The Portland Montreal Pipe Line is a series of underground pipes that carry crude oil from Portland, Maine to Montreal,Quebec.
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[edit] History
The Portland Montreal Pipe Line's history began during World War II, as oil shipments to Canada were largely disrupted by enemy naval forces. Portland offered a safe and secure port to unload the oil and thus the Portland Pipeline was built to transfer oil to the Canadian refineries. In 1941 the pipeline construction was completed and the transfer of oil began. The pipeline originally consisted of three separate pipes, which crossed through the same common right-of-way. Today only two pipes operate after they underwent renovation. The third and smallest pipe was properly decommissioned in 1982. Since it has been in service, the pipeline has pumped over 4 billion barrels (640,000,000 m³) of oil to Montreal refineries.[1] The pipeline is the reason that Portland is the largest oil port on the Eastern seaboard, as more than 200 tankers deliver oil to the port annually.[2]
[edit] Details
Oil is delivered via tanker ships to one of South Portland, Maine's marine terminals where it is pumped to an 100-acre (0.40 km²) tank farm, along South Portland's waterfront. The facility includes 23 oil tanks and a capacity of 3.5 million barrels (560,000 m³) of crude oil. The oil is then pumped through two separate pipelines, one which is 18 inches (460 mm) thick and another which is 24 inches (610 mm) thick.[3] The pipeline extends 236 miles (380 km), three feet beneath the surface and has several pump stations distributed throughout the line. The pipeline crosses into the mountains of New Hampshire and Vermont, eventually passing under the St. Lawrence River, extending into Montreal. From South Portland to Montreal, it takes between 36-43 hours for the oil to reach its destination where it is processed in one of two refineries.[4]
[edit] Expansion
In February 2008 the Portland Pipeline Corporation released that it seeks to study a proposition to pump crude oil from Canada to Portland, as more and more crude oil reserves are being utilized in Canada. The proposed plan would hope to open up international markets to Canadian petroleum and would cost an estimated 100 million dollars in modifications to the pipeline and South Portland facilities.[5]
[edit] References
[edit] Sources
http://www.enewsbuilder.net/aopl/e_article000338822.cfm?x=b11,0,w
