“…Several years ago, Greg Armstrong, CEO of Plains All American, told attendees at an oil and gas conference that he supported TransCanada ’s Keystone XL (KXL) pipeline as an American, but his company would actually benefit if it didn’t get built.
Plains All American did not respond to a request for comment on Friday after the White House denied the KXL permit, but Armstrong’s point is well taken. KXL was just one of many competing ways Canadian crude could have gotten to market.
In 2010, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway acquired BNSF for $26.5 billion. Fuelled by crude by rail volumes, BNSF became a cash cow for Berkshire, producing billions. Through a holding company called Marmon, Berkshire also owns Union Tank Car, which owns rail tank cars.
In his 2012 Letter to Shareholders, Buffett noted that both BNSF and Marmon are “benefitting from the resurgence of U.S. oil production” and “all indications are that BNSF’s oil shipments will grow substantially in coming years.”
Buffett has been a high-profile supporter of President Obama who donated and hosted a fundraiser to support Obama’s re-election bid…”