Valero says Port Arthur refinery to reach full rates in Q4
Valero Energy said Tuesday it will bring the hydrocracker at its 290,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Port Arthur, Texas to full rates in the fourth quarter after completing work in the third quarter, Reuters reports.
The San Antonio-based refiner recently expanded the coker at the Port Arthur plant to 95,000 bpd from 85,000 bpd. It also expanded its crude and vacuum units, helping the plant to process heavy sour crude.
Valero also said in its second-quarter earnings release that it will bring an ongoing project at its 205,000-bpd St. Charles plant in Norco, Louisiana to completion at the end of this year and expects full operation at the refinery in second quarter 2013.
The company completed major turnaround projects at the St. Charles and the 156,000-bpd McKee refinery in Sunray, Texas in the second quarter.
It reported $1.4 billion operating income in the second quarter, up from $1.3 billion in the same period last year, due to higher margins in its Midwest, West Coast and East Coast refineries and an additional 342,000-bpd throughput following its acquisition of the Pembroke plant in the United Kingdom and Meraux in Louisiana.
Refinery margins in the Gulf Coast were weaker, partially offsetting its income gains, Valero stated.
Valero reported a 92-percent drop in its ethanol production margins from a year earlier, as high inventory levels in the industry weighed on margins.
The ethanol segment of its business logged operating income of $5 million operating in the quarter.