Oil tanker laden with North Dakota crude reaches Netherlands
April 21, 2016
The State (SC) / Associated Press
A petroleum tanker laden with 175,000 barrels of North Dakota crude was being offloaded in Europe on Wednesday, the first such overseas shipment of the state's oil since Congress lifted a 40-year ban on crude exports in December.
North Dakota's congressional delegation and industry officials hailed Hess Corp.'s shipment as a milestone that could open more markets in faraway refineries where premium prices are typically fetched based on foreign prices.
"It's a big deal," said Ron Ness, president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council, a trade group that represents about 500 companies working in the oil patch in the western part of the state. "Once you get a barrel to sea, it will fetch a better price."
The ban on crude exports was put in place in response to the energy crisis of the 1970s. It's not immediately clear what impact exporting North Dakota oil will have on prices or production, which is currently pegged at about 1.1 million barrels daily. And environmental groups have said they worry that increased supply by U.S. energy companies will lead to more pollution and higher global emissions.
Read entire AP article at The State.
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