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6/4/2025
Rail News: Logistics
Renewable diesel depot to open near BNSF's BIG site

T Bros Oil & Gas Co. announced the grand-opening of its bulk renewable diesel depot in Barstow, California, is set for this summer.
The depot aligns with BNSF Railway Co.'s plans for its Barstow International Gateway (BIG), a $1.5 billion, 4,500-acre rail yard, intermodal facility and logistics park planned on the city's west side, said T Bros Oil & Gas officials in a press release.
The BIG project is expected to create an estimated 20,000 direct and indirect jobs, including roles in rail operations, logistics and supporting industries. By launching ahead of BIG, the depot addresses the anticipated surge in clean fuel demand driven by the development, T Bros Oil & Gas officials said.
The depot is engineered for high-volume wholesale distribution, initially offering conventional ultra-low sulfur diesel through the Kinder Morgan CALNEV pipeline in summer 2025. Equipped with state-of-the-art systems for efficient rack loading, precise blending, secure storage and high-capacity throughput, the facility opens with two loading racks, expanding to six by year-end, company officials said. By late 2025, a "mini-refinery" will be added to the facility for the production of renewable diesel.
BIG will consist of a rail yard, intermodal facility and warehouses for transloading freight from international containers to domestic containers. The facility will enable the direct transfer of containers from ships at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to trains for transport through the Alameda Corridor onto the BNSF mainline up to Barstow, according to BNSF's project overview.
Once the containers reach the BIG, they will be processed at the facility using cargo-handling equipment powered by clean energy, and then staged and built into trains moving east via BNSF’s network across the nation. Westbound freight will similarly be processed at the facility to more efficiently bring trains to the ports and other California terminals, according to BNSF.
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