Bakersfield refinery to abandon expansion plan
Associated Press – March 25, 2010 5:54 PM ET
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) – The company expected to take over Bakersfield’s Big West oil refinery says it’s still not clear when the facility will reopen.
But when it does, Alon USA Energy Inc. said Wednesday it does not plan to go forward with a proposed $700 million expansion – at least not immediately. The facility has been closed for 16 months after its current owner, Flying J, declared bankruptcy in December 2008.
A bankruptcy court approved the plant’s sale to Alon for $40 million Tuesday.
Alon USA CEO Jeff Morris told the Bakersfield Californian that Big West will no longer process crude oil. Instead, Alon plans to ship gas oil it produces in Southern California to Big West and turn it into gasoline and diesel for the wholesale market.
Morris says the roughly 65 employees still working at the site will keep their jobs.
Information from: The Bakersfield Californian, http://www.bakersfield.com