-A Sunday morning explosion at the Poet ethanol plant in Glenville, Minn., left two workers injured. Via the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the two injured workers were treated at the scene before being taken to a local hospital. The cause of the explosion is under investigation.
-Meanwhile, Williams Partners said its Geismar, La., olefins plant, which was damaged by a fatal explosion in 2013, has reached 87% of its full expanded production rate.
-Canadian authorities said a broken wheel caused a fiery crude oil train derailment in New Brunswick in January 2014. Via Reuters, about 150 local residents were evacuated after the train derailed, spilling 61,000 gallons of oil and catching fire. No one was injured. A spokesman for CN Rail said the defect in the wheel had not previously been detected.
-Mexico’s national electric company is planning to tender $9.8 billion in new power projects, including new pipelines to import U.S. natural gas. Via Reuters, the work will include both onshore and offshore gas pipelines as well as electricity distribution projects and power generation projects using wind, combined-cycle natural gas, geothermal and internal combustion systems.
-Meanwhile, the increased availability of light, tight crude oil in the U.S. has virtually eliminated Gulf Coast imports of light crude oil, according to the Energy Information Administration. Additionally, production from the Eagle Ford, Bakken and Permian regions has reduced Gulf Coast imports of medium crude — almost all of which come from the Middle East.
