Gibson Energy plans to conduct dredging at its Gateway Terminal (GT) in Corpus Christi, Texas, that will enable users to load 10% more volume directly onto Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC) and Suezmax ships.
The project will commence in Q1 2025, and the new draft would be the maximum allowed in Ingleside based on the depth of the Corpus Christi ship channel for its area.
GT, which is also known as South Texas Gateway (STG) terminal is one of two onshore facilities on the U.S. Gulf Coast that can receive VLCCs; the other being neighboring Enbridge Ingleside Energy Center (EIEC). However, both can only partially load them. Tanker tracking has shown VLCCs arriving at GT receiving at most 1.3 MMbbl this year, while EIEC has been able to load as much 1.5 MMbbl. Typically, a VLCC can carry as much as 2 MMbbl of oil, while Suezmax ships can hold at most 1 MMbbl.
Meanwhile, Gibson has extended and amended a long-term contract with an undisclosed customer for use of GT. The extension includes contracting extra loading windows and increasing contracted capacity per loading window, resulting in fixed revenue from the customer rising by about 40%.
