EXPLORER PIPELINE

Explorer Pipeline began with a group of gentlemen from ten different oil companies coming together for a common goal. The competitors set aside their differences to find the best way to get their product to markets across the country.  In the end, eight companies signed on as shareholders in a new pipeline that would span 1,400 miles with a capacity of 720,000 barrels a day. The founding companies were Apco Oil Company, Cities Service Company, Continental Oil Company, Gulf Oil Company, Phillips Petroleum Company, Shell Oil Company, Sun Oil Company and Texaco, Inc.Domestic oil production began decreasing in the late 1960s. Authorities predicted small Midwest refineries would soon begin dying out. At the same time, companies were discovering petroleum reserves on the Alaskan North Slope and the Department of Transportation was considering new regulations.  Despite these complicating factors, the first product was ready for shipment from Lake Charles, Louisiana, to Port Arthur, Texas, by October 25, 1971. Explorer finished the last leg of construction in the spring of 1972.  The system begins with a 28 inch line in Port Arthur to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and then changes to 24 inches into the Chicago suburb of Hammond. The original pipeline from east Texas to Chicago was built on time and under budget in 20 exhausting months.  The early years were tough as economic factors justifying the pipeline changed. Lofty expectations about volumes and business didn’t materialize. The Arab embargo of 1973 caused volumes to drop. Additionally, the time it took to move product from the Gulf Coast to Chicago increased dramatically.