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Baltimore fuel providers deal with logistical challenges after bridge collapse

Fuel suppliers in Baltimore will face some trucking hold-ups and other minor logistical issues after the collapse of a significant bridge earlier today shut the city's port indefinitely, market participants said on Wednesday.

A cargo ship smashed into the Francis Scott Secret Bridge on Tuesday, triggering parts of the bridge to collapse into shipping lanes at the mouth of the Port of Baltimore, and putting one of the busiest ports on the U.S. East Coast out of service.

The bridge's collapse includes hold-ups to fuel shipments that will last numerous months, as fuel trucks that previously utilized the bridge will now have to drive farther to provide their loads, fuel provider Mansfield said on Tuesday.

Longer routing methods fewer deliveries can be made each day per truck, tightening up local freight capacity, Mansfield stated.

A five-mile journey on the collapsed bridge is now an over 15-mile journey on alternative routes, Gasbuddy.com analyst Patrick De Haan composed on Tuesday.

Baltimore's primary fuel provider, the 5,500 mile long Colonial pipeline, has actually also made adjustments to manage an uptick in demand to ship refined products on its Line 32 area. The little section gets jet, gas and diesel fuel from Colonial's Dorsey Junction station in Maryland, and delivers them into the Curtis Bay terminal in the Baltimore port area.

On Wednesday, Colonial provided an allocation notice to shippers on Line 32, indicating fuel deliveries will be pro-rated from April 9 and 16. A freeze notification on Tuesday informed carriers that say goodbye to elections will be considered Line 32 deliveries prior to April 9.

The allotment indicates that elections from shippers surpass our capacity to ship on the following five-day cycle, a. business spokesperson stated. Our system continues to run. generally, the spokesperson included.

Currently, the port closure primarily affects U.S. coal. exports and lowers bunker fuel use, the Energy Details. Administration said on Wednesday.

Although the Port of Baltimore is not a significant center for. waterborne fuel imports, some gas and diesel cargoes. generally land there around this time of the year as domestic. fuel need increases, information from ship tracking service Kpler. revealed.

Any imports previously going to Baltimore can be delivered. to Philadelphia or Norfolk and trucked into the Baltimore market. from there, stated Steven Barsamian, primary running officer at. The Tank Tiger, a U.S. terminal storage clearinghouse.

A prolonged closure of the port might impact barge imports. of ethanol from other East Coast markets to the region, which in. turn would impact gas markets, De Haan said on Wednesday. Ethanol is a biofuel which needs to be blended into conventional. fuel for it to fulfill ecological policies.

In the near-term, ethanol stocks in the region should. offer enough of a buffer, but potential issues could occur. if the port is shut for months, De Haan said. He expects an. boost in demand to move ethanol to Baltimore through rail over. the coming weeks.

(source: Reuters)