Underground storage of large volumes of crude oil: the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve program

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act provided for the storage of up to one billion barrels of crude oil in underground caverns. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) funding, however, provides for the construction of storage facilities for 750 million barrels. No plans exist for developing storage for the final 250-million-barrel increment. The approximate amount of oil in storage as of June 30, 1983, is 330 million barrels; at the present fill rate, the SPR will contain approximately 370 million barrels at the end of 1983, or about 100 days of supply in the event of a complete embargo of imported oil to the United States. This paper presents a comprehensive coverage of the SPR program. The following topics are discussed: (1) system description; (2) funding; (3) storage medium which covers selection, salt dome geology, cavern design; (4) storage and distribution of SPR crude oil which includes SPR crude oil specifications, SPR crude oil acquisition and inventory, sale and distribution of SPR oil; SPR readiness testing; and (5) technical issues which covers crude oil storage stability, environmental issues, site operations model, hazard study, drawdown without pumps. 5 figures, 4 tables. (ATT)