Introduction
The Nation’s Premier Source for Energy Information
EIA collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment. EIA is the nation’s premier source of energy information and, by law, its data, analyses, and forecasts are independent of approval by any other officer or employee of the U.S. government.
EIA’s data and analyses are widely used by federal and state agencies, business & industry, media, researchers, consumers, financial, international, students, and educators. All of EIA’s products can be accessed through its website, www.eia.gov, which averages approximately two million visits per month.
The nation’s leaders rely on EIA for timely and comprehensive information to formulate energy policy and programs:
- Business, industry, and academia look to EIA for official estimates on energy demand, supply, and prices.
- Media and the general public rely on EIA for the most comprehensive source of current and historical data and information on all aspects of U.S. energy.
- The international community relies on EIA’s products for timely information on world energy supply and demand.
PLG Consulting’s Expertise Provides Visibility and Monthly Reporting Models for Selected Energy Products Moved by Rail
PLG brought to bear both in-depth rail industry expertise and database management skills to develop new methodologies in collaboration with EIA to understand the entire picture of energy movements in North America – pipeline, barge, tanker, and now rail. As rail industry experts, PLG brings a critical understanding of how both physical rail movements and supporting data flows work. PLG built proprietary Excel spreadsheet models, that on a monthly basis, are able to efficiently generate reporting for energy products moved by rail. Together with our partner, IMG-Crown who offers a broad range and diverse set of agile management, information technology, survey management, and data services to both the public and private sector, we continue to seek to improve the quality of the information we provide.
From the initial release of crude by rail data, PLG has worked closely with the EIA to expand to other energy products moved by rail including fuel ethanol, propane, propylene, butanes, biodiesel, petroleum coke, and asphalt. These datasets are now available on the EIA website back to 2010 and provide high-quality data to help make informed business and policy decisions. One of the many examples of available data is detailed below, showing the movement of crude by rail from the Midwest (PADD 2) to other regions from 2010 to the present:
“This new data provides a clearer picture on the modal shifts that have been developing with a number of energy products in North America and
is of great interest to policy makers, the public and industry.”
– Mindi Farber-DeAnda, EIA Team Lead
PLG Consulting took on a large challenge to solve a difficult problem, but with our real-world rail experience, deep analytical capability, and hands-on approach to working closely and collaboratively with the client and our partner IMG-Crown, PLG was able to generate an effective and repeatable process that is of significant value to many stakeholders involved in the North American energy industry.
For more information on the Energy Information Administration visit www.eia.gov/. For more information on IMG-Crown visit www.imgcrown.com/. To contact us regarding PLG Consulting’s services or subscribe to our other thought leadership resources, visit www.plgconsulting.com.
PHIL IRELAND, Senior Consultant
Phil is a senior-level executive in supply chain management, asset sizing, strategy, and network optimization achieved by working over 30 years with Canadian Pacific Railway. He has specific experience in developing crude by rail supply chain solutions including asset optimization and terminal development. Based in Calgary, AB, he brings special expertise in Canadian oil sands crude and the associated transportation, terminal, production, and refining needs.
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JAY OLBERDING, Senior Consultant
As PLG’s lead analyst on energy and bulk commodities, Jay Olberding plays a key role in research, analysis, and market forecasting in the flows of crude oil, NGLs, coal, petcoke, refined products, biofuels, and natural gas in North America. Jay is a mechanical engineer with direct experience managing the transportation of energy products. He has coordinated the distribution of millions of gallons of ethanol via rail and truck, as well as related terminal activities. Jay’s experience also includes network optimization, ton center analysis, mapping of commodity origin/destinations and traffic flows, and market research and analysis.
For 20 years PLG’s team of experts has been providing logistics, design, operations, and strategy consulting for a wide range of clients. We have the most experienced team in the field of freight shipper consulting with the widest breadth and know-how covering all aspects of truck, container, ship, rail, and barge transportation. Our services include network optimization, commercial negotiations, operations, engineering and design, technology, site selection, fleet sizing, and economics.
