OREANDA-NEWS.    Monroe Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL), has entered into a five-year agreement with Bridger, LLC, a leading midstream energy company, to supply 65,000 barrels of domestic crude oil daily to its refinery in Trainer, Pa.

The agreement, which will supply about one-third of the crude oil refined daily at the facility, is a significant step in Delta's strategy to manage the cost of jet fuel, which is the airline's No. 1 expense. The lower-cost domestic crude from the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota replaces more expensive crude that historically has been shipped to the refinery from overseas.

"This strategic agreement with Bridger is a key milestone in our strategy to manage the cost of jet fuel. By combining this transaction with our other sources of domestic crude supply, we expect to meet our goal of a minimum of 70,000 barrels per day of domestic crude sourcing at the refinery," said Graeme J. Burnett, senior vice president – Fuel Optimization for Delta and chairman of Monroe. "Supplying a third of the crude refined at Trainer from the Bakken further reduces the overall cost of fuel for Delta, adding to the significant benefits we already see from Monroe Energy, in combination with our robust fuel hedging program, fleet efficiency improvements and fuel conservation efforts."

"We are proud to partner with a world-class airline such as Delta on a first-of-its-kind crude sourcing and transportation agreement that directly connects the oilfield to the jet engine," said Julio E. Rios II, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bridger.  "This transaction reflects our commitment to deploy midstream assets to link upstream domestic producers with downstream refineries to further promote U.S. energy independence."

Bridger consists of five distinct business divisions, which will all play a key role in fulfilling this agreement, including Terminals and Pipelines, Truck Transportation, Marketing, Rail Transportation and Maritime Logistics. The company recently invested USD 200 million to acquire 1,300 new railcars that exceed current safety specifications for crude oil tank cars to add to its existing state-of-the-art railcar fleet. These railcars will be among the mix of assets used to alleviate infrastructure constraints on the East Coast and will be utilized in transporting oil to the Trainer refinery.