HOUSTON, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Marathon Oil Corp. said on Tuesday its board of directors had approved a $3.2 billion project to expand its Garyville, Louisiana, refinery’s crude oil refining capacity by 180,000 barrels per day.
The project, which is expected to be operational in the fourth quarter of 2009, would increase the plant’s capacity to 425,000 bpd from 245,000 bpd.
The capacity addition would list Marathon’s total refining capacity to 1.154 million bpd from 974,000 bpd.
The project will also add a new crude and vacuum distillation unit, as well as other infrastructure, including a 44,000 bpd delayed coker, a 70,000 bpd heavy gas oil hydrocracker, a 65,000 bpd reformer and a 47,000 bpd kerosene hydrotreater.
The completed expansion will add 180 to 200 new full-time employees and 50-70 new full-time contract employees at the plant.