Downstream news catch up: North America

Canada

Korea National Oil Corp is reportedly looking to sell its refinery in Come by Chance, Newfoundland. It has been rumoured that the company is going to sell the 115 000 bpd plant to SilverRange Financial Partners LLC. In addition to the refinery, the Korean company is selling the 53 service stations it owns in the region as well. SilverRange are also interested in purchasing these. A purchase amount has not yet been disclosed.

The decommissioning of the Dartmouth refinery on the East Coast of Canada has begun. The refinery is owned by Imperial Oil Ltd and was originally put on the market in 2012. The refinery is now being converted in to a tank farm and the process is expected to take several years.

USA

With immediate effect, Bill Haywood, CEO, Hawaii Independent Energy is stepping down. Tom Weber is going to take over refinery management responsibilities at the company’s refinery in Hawaii. This is the state’s biggest refinery. Haywood’s step down follows news that Hawaiian Electric Co. is not going to renew its fuel supply contract with the refinery when the current agreement expires in December 2014. The contract represented 8% of Hawaii Independent Energy’s refining segment revenue in the first half of this financial year.

Documents have recently been revealed by the Department of Environmental Protection in Pennsylvania revealing that oil and gas operations resulted in 248 incidents damaging water supplies in the state between 2008 and now. The agency publicly posted letters to property owners and sent orders to oil companies in cases where it was determined that drilling operations contaminated water supplies.

The Alon refinery is waiting on the results of a vote from the Kern County Board of Supervisors to see if it can accept and facilitate trains carrying crude oil. It has been said by the CEO of the Kern Economic Development Corporation that if this vote passes, over 200 jobs would be created in the area. However, due to recent accidents involving crude by rail, there are those in opposition.

The fluidic catalytic cracking unit at the Pasadena refinery, Teas was shut on Sunday 7 September due to a compressor malfunction. Petrobras SA, who own the facility, filed a notice with the Texas pollution regulators following the upset. The malfunction is thought to have resulted in the release of 14 000 lbs of particulates.

Edited from various sources by Claira Lloyd

Sources: Marine Link, Biz Journals, Bakersfield Now, Nola, Ship and Bunker, Business Recorder.

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/gas-processing/08092014/downstream-north-american-update-8-9-14/