Continental has signed an agreement with PBF Energy to supply Bakken crude oil to Delaware City, DE.
Oil will be delivered to PBF Energy's double loop track at its Delaware City Refinery. Over the past year, Continental has moved crude to the West, East, and Gulf Coasts by rail to maximize crude oil price realizations. Areas paying international crude prices offer between a $10-15 premium over markets reflecting WTI prices.
Continental Resources COO, Rick Bott, added, "This unique transaction illustrates the emerging shift in the light sweet crude market. In addition to diversifying Continental`s customer base and streamlining our value chain, it allows us to deliver unblended premium Bakken crude to the East Coast - a market that has historically been driven by imports of foreign oil."
Continental's size allows the company to negotiate transactions like this one that aren't huge, but provide price security, while bypassing over supplied markets in the Mid-continent.
PBF`s CEO, Tom Nimbley, said, "PBF has made significant investments in acquiring rail cars and developing our East Coast rail delivery infrastructure to increase our access to North American crude oil, which positions PBF to benefit from these cost-advantaged crudes. Delaware City`s heavy and light crude rail discharge facilities allow us to work directly with producers in Canada and the Mid-continent, like Continental Resources, and provide us with a competitive advantage versus northeast refiners that rely on third parties to deliver North American crude oil."