Bulk terminal is a facility used primarily for the storage and/or marketing of petroleum products, which has a total bulk storage capacity of 50,000 barrels or more and/or receives petroleum products by tanker, barge, or pipeline. Facilities meeting this description function in the downstream petroleum supply chain, where refined products such as gasoline, distillate fuel oil, and other petroleum liquids arrive in large volumes from upstream sources including refineries, imports, or pipelines.
This capacity threshold distinguishes bulk terminals from smaller distribution points, ensuring they handle wholesale-scale operations that support the broader distribution network without direct retail access. The term is applied consistently in federal and state contexts for purposes including environmental regulations on vapor emissions during loading operations and statistical tracking of petroleum stocks, confirming its role as a precisely defined infrastructure element rather than a generic storage site.
