Portland–Montreal Pipe Line

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  4. Maine articles missing geocoordinate data
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  6. Energy resource facilities in Maine
  7. Crude oil pipelines in the United States
  8. Oil pipelines in Canada
  9. South Portland, Maine
  10. Canada–United States relations


Portland–Montreal Pipe Line
Portland Pipeline marine terminal in South Portland, ME
Portland Pipeline marine terminal in South Portland, ME
File:Portland-montreal.JPG
Map of Portland–Montreal Pipe Line
Location
Country United States
Canada
From South Portland, Maine, United States
To Montreal, Quebec, Canada
General information
Type Crude oil
Operator Portland Pipe Line Corp.
Montreal Pipe Line Ltd
Commissioned 1941
Technical information
Length 236 mi (Bad rounding hereScript error km)
Diameter 24 in (Script error mm)

The Portland Montreal Pipe Line is a series of underground crude oil pipelines from South Portland, Maine in the United States to Montreal, Quebec in Canada.

History

File:Canada US pipeline border.jpg
A Royal Canadian Mounted Police constable and a state trooper stand on the border before the official ceremony commemorating the joining of the pipeline

The Portland Montreal Pipe Line's history began during World War II, as oil shipments to Canada were largely disrupted by enemy naval forces. South 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]

Details

Oil is delivered via tanker ships to one of South Portland's marine terminals, where it is pumped to a 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) in diameter and another which is 24 inches (610 mm) in diameter.[3] The pipeline extends 236 miles (380 km), 3 feet (0.91 m) 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]

There is a third line, 12 inches (300 mm) in diameter. Lines not being used are filled with nitrogen, an inert gas.[5]

Expansion

In February 2008 the Portland Pipeline Corporation announced that it was studying a proposal to pump crude oil from Canada to South Portland, as more and more crude oil reserves are being utilized in Canada. The proposed plan would open up international markets to Canadian petroleum and would require an estimated $100 million in modifications to the pipeline and South Portland facilities.[6]

References

  1. ↑ ::Portland Montreal Pipe Line:: About us
  2. ↑ Pipeline pondering flow change, Portland Press Herald
  3. ↑ ::Portland Montreal Pipe Line:: Neighborhood guide
  4. ↑ Portland Pipeline
  5. ↑ Braithwaite, Chris (September 28, 2011). "Exposed pipeline is safe, company says". Exposed pipeline is safe, company says. Barton, Vermont. pp. 3.
  6. ↑ MaineToday.com | News Update: Firm will study bringing oil from Canada

Sources


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