Are the Great Lakes the new transport lane for Alberta crude oil?

Financial Post ^ | Dec. 12, 2013 | Yadullah Hussain

[rickmichaels]

The small town of Superior, Wisconsin may emerge as an unlikely American maritime hub for Canadian crude if plans to transport Alberta oil sands oil across the Great Lakes come to pass.

There are many hurdles to cross. The first is a proposal to repair a shipping dock on Lake Superior that would set the stage for the construction of an oil terminal feeding refineries in and around the Great Lakes.

Superior-based Elkhorn Industries has applied for a permit to reconstruct 700 feet of dockwall with the Wisconsin Natural Resources Department, and the move has pricked the ears of those who believe it is the first step towards mass transportation of Canadian crude across the lakes that separate Ontario and several U.S. states.

[Alberta's Child]

I don’t know if it’s true anymore, but I believe the lock system at Sault Ste. Marie could accommodate larger ships than the Welland Canal further downstream. This meant that many of the ships used in Great Lakes shipping (ore carriers, for example) were basically “captive” to the Great Lakes.

[Alberta's Child]

Yes. It’s amazing how much money you save in shipping costs when you account for the economies of scale with very large ships.

[Colonel_Flagg]

Ships using the Great Lakes whether lake ore boats carrying iron ore or other bulk products and ocean going ships can load to a draft of about 25 feet. About half the draft for ships that call on ocean ports.

Duluth harbor, adjacent to the Superior Entry, routinely handles 1,000-foot vessels that draw 17 meters (56 feet). However, as has been noted elsewhere, those ships can't fit through Welland Canal so they are confined to lake duty. It is also the farthest inland freshwater port in the world and IIRC, also the largest.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

The big change happened in the late 70s at the Soo Lock, which was expanded to allow 1,000’ X 105’ ore carriers.

This led to the construction of about a dozen “footers” as they are known.

[Alberta's Child]

Is that really a “gutting” of the Jones Act? Since CN is a publicly-traded company, operates in the U.S. and is therefore under Surface Transportation Board oversight to a certain degree, I’m wondering if it’s even considered a foreign railroad anymore.

[cripplecreek]

Sault Ste. Marie is also one of the oldest continuously populated communities on the continent.

[Alberta's Child]

I saw an interesting TV profile of Gordon Lightfoot recently. The interviewer asked him about what motivated him to write that song, and he described sitting in a hotel room somewhere in November 1975 reading a newspaper and seeing a tiny news story just a few paragraphs long about the incident. He said something to this effect: "I couldn't believe that the loss of a massive ship and the lives of 29 crew members on the Great Lakes didn't warrant front-page news and giant headlines, so I figured it was my duty to tell the story myself."

[Gen.Blather]

“Real plan or just a case of grabbing a hostage and shouting “Give us the pipeline or the lake gets it”?”

Interesting. That was my first thought also.

[Alberta's Child]

Is there ever a morning in Sault Ste. Marie that's not foggy? LOL.

I've been to "The Soo" about 8-10 times in my life. I've never seen a clear day there!

[maine yankee]

vs hauling it halfway around the world?

There is serious talk here in Maine of an east west corridor.

[maine yankee]

the great lakes have locks?

---

Yes they keep the ‘ice-backs’ (Candadian illegals) from skating across every winter.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

A Japanese company that bought and sold grain on the Mississippi tried to buy into a barge line back in the 1980s, I think.
The Jones Act was the law used to put a stop to the purchase.

[Hot Tabasco]

I bought heavy oil several times a year in 50,000 bbl tankers from Sarnia, up to my tanks at Superior and Taconite Harbor

I grew up on Lake Charlevoix and I remember the coal freighters coming into the lake to bring coal to the power company on the lake and the tannery which was located at the far eastern end of it......

I never gave much thought to it then so I can't remember how big the freighters were, but obviously small enough to get thru the channel in Charlevoix from Lake Michigan......

[Berosus]

And not the only such town. I used to live in a place called Winter Park, Florida.

[Cletus.D.Yokel]

:: the coal freighters coming into the lake to bring coal to the power company on the lake ::

I worked for 7 years with Consumers Power. I don’t recall them operating a power plant on Lake Charlevoix.

Do you recall who owned it?

[Cletus.D.Yokel]

I saw Lightfoot in concert at Albion College, circa 1972. Great show.

He got a huge laugh when he began his “Approaching Lavendar”. He stopped and apologized, explaining he wasn’t going to play it since earlier that year, the “queers and fags” had adopted lavendar as their signatory color and he just could include the song in the set.

[Hot Tabasco]

Do you recall who owned it?

Here's what I could find.....

Advance Power Plant

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Those coal vessels probably came up from Ashtabula, home of several big eastern KY coal terminals that loaded lakers for the trip north. This was my former employer’s load out for Big Sandy coal, which was very desirable on the lake system because of it high BTUs and high ash fusion temperature.

[Cletus.D.Yokel]

Thanks! Wolverine Co-op owns it.