Unocal seeks 25 day grace for working inventory at Valdez terminal

Steve Sutherlin

Unocal Pipeline Co. filed a tariff revision in July with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska that would extend by 10 days the grace period for a shipper’s crude petroleum to remain at the Valdez terminal without penalty.

Currently, if a quantity of crude remains in the carrier’s working inventory in excess of 15 days, the carrier will charge the shipper 20 cents per barrel per day until the crude is lifted.

The penalty is designed to encourage shippers to move their oil promptly out of the Valdez terminal, but it imposes a hardship for smaller shippers that need more time to get a shipment together, Kevin Tabler from Unocal’s Anchorage office told PNA.

The tariff revision was initiated by the company’s global trading group at its Sugarland, Texas office, Tabler said.

Unocal has requested an effective date of Aug. 25, 2001 for the filing.