Coal or Crude?: What Will South Dakota Gorilla Project "Eat"?

Both projects require over 12 million gallons of water and both require thousands of acres of land. Both sites sit on major rivers.

Not bad reasoning.

But if coal is the raw material, how is it going to get there?

I'm no expert on South Dakota railroads. So if you have some insights, please feel free to add them in the comments.

But my understanding is that the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad (DM&E) is the major coal carrying line in South Dakota. It does not go through Elk Point in Union County. And as we have learned because of the DM&E's attempt to get a tax-payer financed loan from the federal government, that line needs significant upgrades to carry more coal over it.

There are two rail lines that either go through or terminate in Elk Point. The northern line goes from Canton to Elk Point. (It appears another line connects with it from Madison, but I'm not sure if they actually interconnect.) For more on S.D. railroads, click here.

The other, longer line runs from Aberdeen to Mitchell to Yankton to Elk Point and on the Sioux City. It does cross the DM&E and the BNSF lines. (Whether they interconnect, I don't know.)

Could these lines carry enough coal to feed the plant's needs? Does the DM&E get their new rail line via a corporate sugar daddy? (If they can, more power to them. I just don't want to pay for it.) Would the Gorilla pay for rail line improvements in South Dakota? That could also benefit ethanol plants and farmers.

Is there another delivery method? (Old timers will remember former Gov. Bill Janklow's controversial ETSI Pipeline plan for a coal slurry pipeline in the late 70s and early 80s.)

Barges only go up the river as far Sioux City. I can't image that coal would then be offloaded onto trucks or trains then transshipped to Elk Point, but I guess that isn't out the question.

Or, is Gorilla actually an oil refinery, as earlier speculated?

None other than the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis notes that a large crude oil pipeline is in the plans that would cross eastern South Dakota on its way south, with one branch going to -interestingly- southern Illinois-and another branch to Oklahoma.

The Fed also notes the potential economic impact such a crude line could have for the region.

Based on this, I lean toward a refinery, but I think Gorilla is acquiring too much land for a "typical" refinery, unless they are looking to block out competitors or they have plans for a large buffer zone or room for expansion. I think the coal idea is hampered by poor rail service, but maybe I'm wrong on that count.
I don't know what Gorilla is. But South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds knows. Some local economic development officials know. And the Gorilla knows.

Stay tuned.