Portland council advances proposed 20% CEI Hub fuel-storage reduction
Portland City Council advanced amendments to a proposed plan to reduce bulk fuel storage capacity at the Critical Energy Infrastructure Hub, but the ordinance remains pending after council members continued it on October 1.
Ordinance 2026-312 is scheduled for continued consideration at 10 a.m. Wednesday, October 7. If adopted, it would require at least a 20% reduction in in-service bulk fuel storage capacity at the northwest Portland hub by December 1, 2036.
What changed October 1
The council rejected an amendment that would have removed the proposed exemption for aviation-fuel storage. That vote ended in a 6-6 tie, so the exemption remained in the amended proposal.
Council members then approved a broader amendment package by a 10-2 vote. The package included changes involving alternative approaches, inventory and reporting requirements, penalties and continued engagement. The ordinance was continued as amended rather than enacted.
What the proposal would require
The ordinance would create a reporting system for bulk fuel terminal operators. Baseline submissions would include storage-capacity information, materials stored, fill levels and three years of throughput data covering 2024 through 2026. The proposal also calls for inventory verification, public notice and opportunities for comment.
The central requirement is a reduction of at least 20% in in-service bulk fuel storage capacity by December 1, 2036. The measure addresses storage capacity, not an immediate reduction in fuel throughput or the total volume of fuel moving through Portland.
The proposal includes enforcement penalties, administrative fees to cover city staff work and a CEI Hub Mitigation Improvement Sub-Fund that would receive violation penalties for mitigation investments. The city estimates that processing and verifying each inventory would cost $10,000.
The Bureau of Planning and Sustainability would report to the council in 2028, 2031 and 2036 on risk-mitigation plans, updated fuel-demand projections and the capacity-reduction program.
Who would be exempt
The amended proposal retains an exemption for in-service storage tanks used exclusively for aviation fuel, subject to the ordinance’s conditions. It also exempts regulated public utilities and tanks used exclusively as surge or breakout tanks associated with federally regulated interstate pipelines.
Additional storage capacity approved through specified Title 33 fuel-storage capacity-transfer or aviation-fuel expansion reviews would also be exempt from the reduction requirement. The proposal would apply primarily to existing bulk fuel terminal operations and would not broadly change industrial zoning or regulate fuel throughput.
Why the city is pursuing it
The CEI Hub is an approximately six-mile stretch of northwest Portland along the Willamette River. It contains 11 bulk fuel terminals and serves as a major storage and distribution center for Oregon’s liquid-fuel supply.
City findings cite seismic, liquefaction, wildfire, landslide and environmental risks associated with concentrating fuel infrastructure in the area. The city says reducing storage capacity is intended to lower potential disaster risks while preserving fuel-supply reliability.
Fuel prices, supply, terminal costs, airport fuel and business operations are not settled outcomes. The city’s impact analysis says available modeling does not establish that the proposal would raise fuel prices, but also acknowledges uncertainty about operational and market effects.
What Portland residents should watch next
The next scheduled milestone is continued council consideration of Ordinance 2026-312 at 10 a.m. Wednesday, October 7, at Portland City Hall and through the city’s hybrid meeting options. The agenda gives the item 90 minutes.
Until the council takes final action, the 20% target, reporting framework, exemptions and enforcement provisions remain part of a proposed ordinance rather than current operating requirements.
Sources
- Bulk Fuel Terminal Capacity Reduction Regulations, Ordinance 2026-312
- Portland City Council October 1 meeting transcript and action summary
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