USA: refining weekend news catch up

California

Approval of a crude by rail project at the Alon Energy owned Bakersfield refinery is expected to get approval in the next month. The facility has been on the table for over a year and has been the source of much scrutiny. Offloading capacity at the site will be increased to 140 000 bpd from the current 13 000 bpd once complete. The refinery was shut in 2012, but this rail project could see the rejuvenation of the Bakersfield refinery.

EPA

It has been announced that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is giving the public until the end of October to comment on the proposed regulations to restrict air pollution from oil refineries. The original comment deadline was 30 August, but 28 October is now the deadline.

Kansas

CVR Refining is going to restart the Cofyville refinery later this month following the repair and maintenance work that was required following a fire last month. The company repaired the fire damage during the downtime and also reportedly carried out upgrade work that was originally scheduled to take place next year.

North Dakota

The Billings area is reportedly being nominated for the construction of a clean energy centre/ At the US$ 500 million site, a refinery for the processing of Bakken crude in to diesel is being considered. Surrounding the facility units to separate propane, butane and other light components have also been suggested. Quantum Energy Inc., are the company behind the proposal and look to develop many clean energy centres across the Bakken area.

Ohio

A fire was reported at the Marathon Petroleum refinery in Canton, Start County on Saturday. The fire resulted in a large volume of dark smoke, and a damage report is yet to be released. It is thought that the fire was contained to the plant’s furnace and no one was injured.

Texas

At the end of last week, residents around the Delek refinery in Tyler reported black smoke in the air. The source is thought to have been a routine burn off and nothing to cause alarm among residents.

Washington

Investigations in to a refinery explosion at the Tesoro Corp. Anacortes refinery have come to an end after four years. The US Justice Department has not filled any criminal charges after investigating the blast that resulted in the death of seven people.

Sources: The Hill, Reuters, Billings Gazette, KLTV, OGJ, Canton Rep, ABC News.

Edited from various sources by Claira Lloyd

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/gas-processing/18082014/weekend-usa-news-catchup-18-aug/