AUSTIN, TX – Flint Hills Resources Public Affairs Director, Andy Saenz, spoke at the Airport Advisory Commission meeting to announce the BATX Pipeline Project.
-Opening Remarks as Delivered-
“Good afternoon, Commissioners and thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today.
I’m Andy Saenz, Public Affairs Director for Flint Hills Resources. I also have a number of colleagues with me here today.
Flint Hills Resources has supplied transportation fuel from its Corpus Christi refineries to the Austin area for more than three decades and is the primary source of jet fuel for the Austin airport.
Austin is currently the largest airport in the country that relies on daily truck deliveries for its jet fuel. It’s also one of the nation’s fastest growing airports.
Everyday more than 100 trucks make the 40-mile round trip on Highway 71 from our Bastrop fuel terminal to the airport. The current just-in-time, truck-dependent fuel delivery system has been prone to reliability issues. As the Commission is aware, there have been growing number of fuel shortage alerts at the airport, which can affect airport operations.
Flint Hills Resources recently expanded its terminal at Bastrop to help meet demand and improve reliability of the trucking system. However, increasing demand, traffic congestion, and driver availability issues continue to push the current airport delivery system beyond its design capacity.
To improve reliability today and meet future demand, we have proposed the construction of the Bastrop-Austin Texas (BATX) Pipeline, connecting our fuel terminal in Bastrop here to the airport. The common carrier pipeline will be owned by Flint Hills subsidiary BATX Pipeline, LLC and privately funded.
Our team is just beginning the permitting process and is actively seeking input from stakeholders, including the community and landowners along the potential pipeline route. This information will inform our proposed route, much of which is expected to follow Highway 71 along existing TxDOT right of way.
Once the route is finalized and permitted, we expect construction to take approximately six months. The 10-inch pipeline will be approximately 20 miles long and will be monitored around the clock by a control center that is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
We initiated communications with key stakeholders, including City of Austin officials, airport staff, elected leaders, and community organizations and leaders interested in learning more about the project. In the first quarter of 2024, we’ll announce a schedule for community engagement meetings to provide timely and in-person communications opportunities and updates on the project.
Our company is committed to a transparent, inclusive and multicultural communication process that will enable us to engage with stakeholders throughout the process. We have established a bilingual project website at www.batxpipeline.com that includes a contact portal both in English and Spanish.
Your feedback and input are valuable to us, and we look forward to productive dialogue to ensure that this project benefits the airport and the community.
Thank you again for the opportunity to introduce ourselves and we look forward to serving as a resource for you now and in the future.
Thank you.”
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