After signing the $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill into law on March 11, President Joe Biden quickly turned his attention to moving a massive infrastructure package through Congress, outlining a $2 trillion infrastructure and jobs package called the “Build Back Better Recovery Plan” in Pittsburgh March 31.  

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security released its “unified agenda” in the March 31 Federal Register, indicating that one of its rulemaking priorities was “improving Appendix A to the CFATS regulations and addressing concerns with release-flammable security issues.” ILTA anticipates that this likely applies to the inclusion of gasoline, diesel and other fuel mixes in Appendix A.  

The American Society of Civil Engineers made a strong case for big investment in inland waterways when it released its yearly assessment of the state of U.S. infrastructure. The early-March assessment provides a wake-up call for policymakers by shining a light on the immense need for greater investment in improvements and maintenance of our national infrastructure. ASCE graded overall U.S. infrastructure a C-minus; inland waterways received a D-minus grade.

The American Petroleum Institute on March 26 said for the first time it would conditionally support setting a price on carbon, a significant shift that underlines intensifying pressure on Washington and business to tackle the climate crisis.

The new Biden EPA late February said it would support the ethanol industry in a lawsuit over biofuel waivers granted to oil refineries under the Trump administration. 

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, along with Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and eight of their Senate colleagues, sent a letter March 8 to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, urging USDA to assist biofuel producers hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration on March 25 said it will release expanded monthly biofuels data through a new report – the Monthly Biofuels Capacity and Feedstocks Update. The first report, released on March 31, contained January 2021 data. EIA also said it will also modify petroleum and biofuel volumetric balances in the interactive supply and disposition summary data table in its Petroleum Navigator.

The Senate confirmed Michael Regan on March 11 to lead the Environmental Protection Agency by a 66-34 margin. Regan, the first Black man to hold the position, is known for working with both Democrats and Republicans in his home state of North Carolina, where he held the state’s top environmental post. Regan has a history of environmental advocacy and no known ties to the fossil fuel industry. He has pledged to make combatting climate change and social justice issues focuses of the agency.

Even terminal operators with facilities that are substantially non-automated should be mindful of new Coast Guard cybersecurity requirements. Trends related to safety, security, operational efficiencies, and environmental compliance are all leading to greater market penetration of sensors and digital systems at terminal sites. 

 

Headquartered in New Haven, CT, and the only independent and privately owned marine terminal in the state, Gateway Terminal is ILTA’s newest terminal member. A subsidiary of Enstructure LLC, Gateway Termial has successfully rebuilt and expanded all facets of its bulk transshipment operation in both its dry and liquid divisions.

ILTA welcomed six new supplier members in March: Evoqua Water Technologies/ProAct Services; Excel Loading Systems; Fit Up Gear Romar/MEC LLC; Jordan Technologies, a Cimarron Company (Cimarron Energy); TWC The Valve Company; and Xerxes by SHAWCOR.

Storage Terminals Magazine, Mar. 16, 2021
International-Matex Tank Terminals (IMTT) announced Shaun Revere will join the leadership team as Chief Operating Officer, while Kay Kittleman has been named vice president of human resources.

Market Screener, Mar. 17, 2021
Royal Vopak joins several other companies proposing projects in southeast Australia. TheDutch  oil storage company has plans to dock a floating storage and regasification unit in Port Phillip Bay near Melbourne and will submit their proposal to the Victoria state government in Q3-2021.

Market Screener, Mar. 17, 2021
Marathon Petroleum's Columbus east, Columbus west, and Brecksville terminals were recognized by the Ohio EPA for their "Achievement Level" in the Administrations' Encouraging Environmental Excellence program, which recognizes exceptional achievements in environmental stewardship and activities.

Houston Chronicle, Mar. 8, 2021
Phillips 66 donated $450,000 to assist with relief and recovery efforts for those residents impacted during Winter Storm Uri, including $200,000 to the Houston Food Bank and $250,000 to the Houston Harris County Winter Storm Relief Fund.

panews.com, Mar. 9, 2021
Aramco Americas and Motiva Enterprises, both part of the Saudi Aramco network of companies, have donated $200,000 to the Southeast Texas Emergency Relief Fund to support recovery efforts in Jefferson County from Winter Storm Uri.

The Digest, Mar. 8, 2021
Marathon Petroleum Corporation's Board of Directors have approved a plan to convert its Martinez, CA, facility from refining petroleum to manufacturing renewable fuels. The refitted facility is expected to begin producing renewable diesel in 2022, building to a full capacity of about 730 million gallons of renewable fuels per year by 2023.

Nashville Post, Mar. 3, 2021
Delek US Holdings announced it has hired Todd O'Malley as its Chief Commercial Officer. "Todd brings a wealth of private equity, trading, capital markets, operations, and management expertise in the energy and renewable sectors to his role at Delek," said Uzi Yemin, chairman, president and CEO of Delek US.

Bartlesville Public Schools, Mar. 11, 2021
Phillips 66 has gifted the Bartlesville Public School system with funds for school safety improvements, including storm shutters, safety window film, and exterior lighting for several district schools.

 

With an eye toward developing a more international presence and encouraging global operational excellence, ILTA and the Indian Ports Association signed an agreement to “collaborate to share best practices on handling and management of liquid commodities to achieve the highest levels of operational excellence.”  

ILTA's held its annual spring Environment, Health & Safety and Security Committee virtually on March 29-April 1, featuring four days of fantastic discussion on significant matters affecting the tank terminals industry.  Nearly 120 members attended the full committee meeting on day one, where they learned about the national and state efforts to ban or limit the use of PFAS chemicals and discuss how the industry should position itself to deal with the potential loss of PFAS-based firefighting foams.

ILTA’s Think Tank Blog featured nine blog posts in March. Topics included: a look back on how COVID-19 affected the terminal industry during the past year; St. Patrick’s day recipes featuring ingredients handled by the terminal industry; the role of terminals in ensuring kosher foods and other products stay kosher; a new American Society of Civil Engineers study that shows a strong need for investment in inland waterways; ILTA’s strategic partnership with the India Ports Association; the ILTA white paper on VRUs; details on ILTA’s nascent communications toolkit; a preview of the end-March EHSS meeting; and a preview of the seminar for young professionals. We’d love to hear your feedback and ideas. Please reach out to Cathy Landry, clandry@ilta.org. If you are interested in a sponsored blog, please contact Susan Kurdziolek at skurdziolek@ilta.org.

ILTA and the UK-based Tank Storage Association sponsored a recent virtual workshop for the benefit of tank and terminal operators in the Middle East. The workshop, Tank and Terminals 2021, was organized by the global business events firm Marcus Evans. ILTA member company Emerson was the silver sponsor of the event. 

ILTA's held its annual spring Environment, Health & Safety and Security Committee virtually on March 29-April 1, featuring four days of fantastic discussion on significant matters affecting the tank terminals industry. 

ILTA will open registration and unveil its new website April 7 for the 2021 Annual Operating Conference and Trade Show, slated for October 4-6 in Houston. The new website will feature logistics information and a schedule of events, a detailed conference program, safety protocols and information about booth rentals and sponsorship opportunities as well as other relevant materials. Plus, you can get steep discounts if you register before June 1 with rates going up each week thereafter. ILTA members receive discounted fees for conference registration and booth rentals, so consider joining the organization before registering to take advantage. To learn more about ILTA membership benefits or to join, contact our Membership Director Meredith DeZemler at mdezemler@ilta.org.

ILTA is accepting proposals through April 26 for 2021’s Terminal Operating Practices Symposium, slated for June 17. ILTA holds this highly regarded event each year to promote peer-to-peer learning and operational excellence. The day-long virtual symposium provides a forum for terminal operators to share best practice on operations, environmental protection and security as well as discussions on terminal incidents, accidents, abnormal operations and near-misses. TOPS is one of ILTA’s premier events, and we hope employees from each of our terminal members attend. By submitting a proposal, you are doing your part to continuously improve the overall industry. You can learn more about TOPS or submit your proposal here.