Hanna enjoys boom in mats While pine is the tree that gives our region a name--The Piney Woods--these days, hardwood is a headliner, providing critical support material for the booming oil and gas drilling and pipeline construction in Louisiana and Canada. Rick Hanna, president of Hanna Manufacturing Company, Inc., at Winnfield, says his log inventory and his staff of workers is more than double a year ago, and production is at a peak. A big reason for the high demand is coming from Canada, where oil production from the tar sands of Alberta province has the prospect of supplying a large part of U.S. demand for imported crude oil. To get the crude to refineries on the U.S. Gulf coast, major pipeline construction is required. Drilling and pipeline construction requires the tough hardwood mats that allow the heavy hauling across wild terrain that would otherwise be impossible to cross. A pipeline called Keystone is under construction from the tar sand sites in Canada, headed for Cushing, Oklahoma, the junction point for pipelines transporting crude oil and natural gas from where it is taken out of the ground throughout North America to where it must go to be processed, refined, and consumed throughout the nation. From Cushing, pipelines will also be laid to refineries in Texas and Louisiana, from where finished fuel products will be delivered by pipeline and tanker trucks throughout the country. Anticipating the spring thaw in Canada, drillers and pipeliners are laying in hardwood mats as fast as they can have them delivered--thus the booming hardwood mat business at Hanna Manufacturing Company, Inc., in Winnfield. But, there's a catch: not everyone is happy with the proposed route of Keystone. Inside the U.S., the proposed route through the state of Nebraska crosses the environmentally sensitive Sandhills land occupied by endangered bird species. The On Nov. 14, TransCanada announced it supports proposed legislation within the State of Nebraska to move the Keystone XL pipeline project forward. If passed, this legislation, introduced the same day in the State legislature, will ensure a pipeline route will be developed in Nebraska that avoids the Sandhills. These developments in Nebraska follow the Nov. 10 announcement by the U.S. Department of State (DOS) that further assessment of alternative routes for Keystone XL was needed in Nebraska to move forward with the National Interest Determination. So, final route of the Keystone awaits study. The U.S. consumes 15 million barrels of oil each day and imports 10 to 11 million barrels per day. Industry forecasts predict oil consumption will continue at these levels for the next two to three decades, so a secure supply of crude oil is critical to U.S. energy security. TransCanada, the developer, says Keystone XL is shovel-ready. TransCanada is poised to put 13,000 Americans to work to construct the pipeline - pipefitters, welders, mechanics, electricians, heavy equipment operators, among other jobs - in addition to 7,000 manufacturing jobs that would be created across the U.S. Additionally, local businesses along the pipeline route will benefit from the 118,000 spin-off jobs Keystone XL will create through increased business for local goods and service providers. A company statement says, "TransCanada looks forward to concluding the U.S. regulatory review process and beginning the important work of building Keystone XL. The safe and reliable operation of our pipelines and infrastructure has been TransCanada's priority for 60 years." Meanwhile, Hanna Manufacturing Company, Inc., is enjoying the strong demand for its hardwood oil field mats. "We've got $1.5 million in hardwood logs on the yard," Rick Hanna said. Employment at the mill is at 85, up from 40 a year ago, and log trucks roll into the 40-acre yard daily to keep production rolling. The hardwood operation was started by Hanna's father, cutting hardwood for barrels and other applications including hardwood lumber. As production for logging, oil field, and pipelining mats has ramped up, the company has developed systems for production efficiency, with crews working in teams to assemble the mats. With current production, the company uses 16,500 heavy-duty metal bolts. While pine continues to be the major timber crop in the region, Hanna says there is no shortage of hardwood. "It's out there," he said, indicating with a smile that foresters tend to nurture the hardwood-producing bottomland areas which also are favored for hunting. "There's more than people think." That should be good news for the oil patch, which continues to lay in supplies of mats for their go-anywhere operations. |