ILTA met with congressional and federal offices during its highly successful February 19 board of directors fly-in. Meetings included: the Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency; the American Association of Port Authorities; the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee; the House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment; and the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers.

ILTA, as part of an industry coalition, submitted comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency February 3 in response to the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding the addition of certain PFAS to the Toxic Release Inventory. 

President Trump on February 10 released his administration’s proposal for the 2021 federal budget. In the $4.8 trillion so-called “skinny budget,” the White House is proposing to Congress a slight increase in defense spending while requesting that non-defense spending, which includes welfare programs, foreign aid and environmental programs, be cut by 6%.

ILTA attended the 2020 Waterways Council (WCI) Washington D.C. Fly-In to advocate for the two organizations’ mutual interest in bolstering federal funding for the nation’s inland waterway infrastructure.

The Coast Guard published a notice in the Federal Register on February 24, “…requesting applications from persons interested in membership on the National Chemical Transportation Safety Advisory Committee.

The U.S. Department of Transportation in February announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity to apply for $225 million in discretionary grant funding through the Port Infrastructure Development Program.

 

A number of ILTA members were nominated under different categories of the 2020 Global Tank Storage Awards. Both DTN and Eddyfi Technologies are nominated for the Innovative Technology Award, Toptech Systems is nominated for the Terminal Optimization Award, and both Sprague and Royal Vopak are nominated for the Sustainable Impact Award.

BIC Magazine, Feb. 5, 2020
Kinder Morgan broke ground on several construction projects at its Pasadena Terminal and Jefferson Street Truck Rack sites along the Houston Ship Channel. The projects total $125m and are supported by a long-term agreement with a major refiner. Work is expected to be completed by the end of Q2 2020.

WFMZ-TV News, Feb. 21, 2020
Contanda LLC and BW Terminals announced last month that the two companies would merge operations and that industry veteran Michael (Mike) Suder will assume the role of CEO of the combined Contanda-BW Terminals organization.

North American Oil & Gas Pipelines, Feb. 6, 2020
Saddlehorn Pipeline Co. LLC announced last month that Black Diamond Gathering LLC, through its subsidiary Nobel Midstream Partners LP, had purchased a 20% membership interest in Saddlehorn for $155m. With increased commitments from shippers, the Saddlehorn pipeline capacity is being increased by 100,000 bpd for a total capacity of about 290,000 bpd.

FOX21 Delmarva, Feb. 14, 2020
The Board of Directors for Enbridge Inc. announced February 14, the appointment of Gregory J. Goff as director of Enbridge. Goff most recently served as a director at PolyOne Corporation.

APG Wisconsin, Feb. 8, 2020
Enbridge Energy Co. announced last month that they will begin the permitting process for moving its Line 5 pipeline around the Bad River Reservation. The new line will be about 40 miles long with a section of Line 5 running beneath the Bad River bottom.

Hart Energy, Feb. 21, 2020
Phillips 66 Partners LP has acquired a 50% stake in the $1.6b Liberty Pipeline transporting Rocky Mountain and Bakken crude oil to Cushing Oklahoma. The deal is part of a roughly $75m dropdown agreement between Phillips 66 Partners and Phillips 66 Co.

West Dakota Fox, Feb. 19, 2020
The North Dakota Public Service Commission approved adding a pumping station at Linton as part of Energy Transfer Partners' requested expansion of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The approved station will double pumping capacity at Dakota Access to more than 1 million bpd.

Fuel Oil News
In celebration of its 150th anniversary, Sprague Operating Resources of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, will donate $150,000 to nonprofit organizations that support children and the environment within its community footprint. Applications to apply for these funds can be found online at https://www.spragueenergy.com/charity. Deadline to submit an application is April 1.

 

The ILTA 2020 conference program, including session descriptions, speaker names and the preliminary time slots is now available on the Ilta.org website! We’re excited about the program that features five tracks—Environment, Health Safety & Security, Operations, Executive and Professional Development—dynamic speakers and fresh, new conference topics. Click here to review the program.

Registration is now open for the 40th anniversary Annual Operating Conference and Trade Show. Be sure to register early at www.ilta.org/aocts to enjoy steeply discounted Early Bird conference registration rates of $900 and $1,100, respectively, for members and non-members.

ILTA unveiled its refreshed website at the end of February. Make sure to log into www.ilta.org to view the new graphics, text and features. We will roll out new features, including an updated and improved online member directory section, in the coming months.

ILTA is currently accepting submissions for the Terminal Operating Practices Symposium, an education series designed to provide terminal operators a forum to exchange lessons learned from facility incidents and discuss effective operating practices with their peers. TOPS 2020 is slated for Thursday, September 24 in Boston.

ILTA launched its 2020 Safety Survey and Recognition Program on January 24. The program overview and survey form were sent to all ILTA terminal members. In order to be considered for the annual safety recognition program, survey forms must be returned to ILTA by Friday, March 13. Surveys returned after that date will be included in the annual safety survey report to be issued later in the year, but will not be considered for ILTA’s safety awards. For more information, please contact Peter Lidiak at plidiak@ilta.org.

ILTA is looking to recognize industry veterans that have supported ILTA at its 40th anniversary conference and trade show in Houston June 8-10. Have you attended all shows? Or more than 20? Have you been an active committee member for 20-plus years?

ILTA is thrilled to announce that booths and sponsorships are going fast, and our 40th anniversary conference and trade show is shaping up to be the biggest and best yet! Currently, 306 booths (or more than 95% of the floor) is sold. 

Terminal Members/Members of the ILTA EHS&S Committee and Operations Council: Take a moment to register today for ILTA’s Spring Meetings. The meetings will be held in New Orleans March 31 and April 1.