A
s fuel oil dealers adapt to the advent of ultra-low
sulfur heating oil and diesel, and the marketing of
biofuel, bulk plants are adapting to those trends to
keep in step with their customers.
And, just as many fuel oil dealers have had to
adjust to the idea of helping their customers burn less fuel—
by marketing high-efficiency equipment, for example—some
bulk plant operators are opting to downsize storage capacity
at their sites.
In other cases older bulk plants that have become out-
dated are being decommissioned instead of upgraded to new
standards, said Bob Ceppi, project manager for MPE, Inc., a
bulk terminal developer based in Hebron, Conn. Demolition
of such plants currently comprises a growing portion of his
company's business, Ceppi said. Bringing existing plants into
compliance with environmental regulations, and updating
or expanding existing sites drive the design and construction
side of his business.
"We see a lot of small oil dealers who have old facilities
basically shutting down—tearing down their facilities and
going to bigger facilities for throughput," Ceppi said. "The
bigger guys are getting bigger and the little guys are disap-
pearing."
Ceppi said that most facilities that are built now are
designed for two or three days of supply. "Oil dealers now
are buying futures in the commodity markets. They buy
ahead of time. They don't do [high-volume] storage. In the
old days they bought oil for 25 cents in the summer and
sold it for 50 cents in the winter. Those days are over." To
replenish, they run to marine terminals and fill up their
tanks, Ceppi said.
FUELS
By Stephen Bennett
Bulk plants Diversify
As fuel oil dealers diversify, some bulk plant operators are doing the same
18 April 2015 | FUEl Oil NEWS | www.fueloilnews.com
Some of the major renovations conducted at a bulk plant operated by Mercury
Energy Distributors in Waterbury, Conn.