Despite the fact that new, stricter regulations on the transport of hazardous materials by rail, introduced following the derailment and explosion of a train carrying crude oil through Quebec in July, will see rail transport costs increase, the volume of crude travelling by rail across North America is expected to rise greatly in the coming year.
Delays associated with the development of pipelines, and the process of receiving permits, have seen more and more oil transported to refineries via rail roads in recent years, especially as the amount of oil being produced in North America has grown.
TransCanada believes that rail shipments of oil from Western Canada will increase by 400% from around 224,000 barrels a day before the end of next year, as new loading terminals are built to put more oil-sands onto railcars. Wood Mackenzie has also claimed that the amount of oil shipped to the east and west coasts from the Bakken fields will increase by a factor of four this year.