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Refining

Sunoco Logistics acquires Marcus Hook refinery

Sunoco Logistics Partners has announced the acquisition of the Marcus Hook refinery, located on the banks of the Delaware River just south of Philadelphia, for $60 million. The 780-acre Marcus Hook refinery was owned by Sunoco Logistics' former parent company, Sunoco.

Canada's Enerkem to develop waste-to-biofuels catalytic processes

HP Editorial Staff: HP News

Enerkem is working on a new research project with the Canadian government to develop new catalytic processes for the conversion of waste into "drop-in" biofuels.

Phillips 66 restarts Sweeny refinery after power cut

The power failure was triggered by a larger outage in Texas and New Mexico, Phillips 66 said in its filing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Units affected included the 25.2 crude distillation unit, one of the first steps in the oil refining process, and the 27.1 fluid catalytic cracking unit.

Saudi Aramco, Exxon bring new clean fuels project online at Yanbu refinery

During maintenance, which started in March, SAMREF boosted the reliability of the fluid catalytic cracker, which helps turn crude oil into gasoline, and upgraded the refinery to produce cleaner fuels.

Diesel leaks from Marathon pipeline in Indianapolis

The pipeline wasn't flowing at the time of the leak due to a lull in market demand, Marathon spokesman Shane Pochard said, but it was still pressurized with diesel in it. The company believes the leak occurred slowly over time and wasn't due to a sudden break or external forces.

US West Coast spot gasoline premiums widen on Shell refinery outage

Spot gasoline pricing premiums moved up sharply in West Coast refined products markets as another regional refinery experiences production problems. Shell reported a unit shutdown at its San Francisco area refinery in Martinez, after discovering a valve leak.

EPA seeks improvement on Keystone XL review

HP Editorial Staff: HP News Services

The EPA gave the US State Department's review of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline a 'C' grade, adding that there is "ample time and ability" to upgrade the analysis.

Alon cuts rates at Texas refinery after malfunction of sulfur recovery unit

Alon said a malfunction of a sulfur recovery unit at its refinery in Big Springs, Texas, resulted in reduced charge rates at several processing units to minimize emissions. A sour water stripper was taken out of service and steam was vented as necessary to safety flare devices, according to the company.

Enbridge to expand infrastructure at Cheecham oil sands terminal in Alberta

The company estimated the Cheecham project would cost about $300 million. It will include two new 450,000-bbl blend tanks and convert an existing tank from blend to diluent service. Enbridge will also install receipt and distribution manifolds to facilitate transfers to Enbridge's Waupisoo pipeline.

Phillips 66 sees US renewable fuels mandate as 'unworkable'

HP Editorial Staff: HP News Services

CEO Greg Garland said the EPA's proposal to require refiners to add more ethanol to the fuel, coupled with flat or declining US gasoline demand, means the industry as a whole is likely to hit the so-called blend wall by 2014, a point after which refiners say more ethanol can't be added to fuel supply.