Royal Dutch Shell Group .com Rotating Header Image

InterestAlert.com: Motiva Celebrates Groundbreaking for Largest Refinery in United States

Dignitaries scheduled today at site of future 600,000 barrel-per-day refinery include U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman

PORT ARTHUR, Texas, Dec. 10 /PRNewswire/ — Motiva Enterprises LLC today will officially break ground for its recently announced 325,000 barrel-per-day (b/d) refinery expansion in Port Arthur, Texas. The expansion will increase the refinery’s crude oil throughput capacity to 600,000 b/d, making it the largest refinery in the U.S. and one of the largest in the world. The upgrades and modernization will lead to new supplies of transportation fuels for U.S. markets, add jobs to the local economy and decrease the refinery’s ozone precursor emissions from present day levels.

Motiva President and Chief Executive Officer William B. Welte will welcome about 150 guests to mark the occasion, including several dignitaries. U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman will attend and provide remarks, as will Ted Poe, Port Arthur’s hometown U.S. Congressman; Phil Wilson, Texas Secretary of State; Buddy Garcia, Chairman, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; and Ron Lehman, Commissioner for Employers, Texas Workforce Commission. Port Arthur Mayor Deloris Prince will read an official proclamation during the ceremonial turning of dirt.

Shell, Saudi Aramco and Motiva senior leaders are also scheduled to speak at the event. They include Rob Routs, Executive Director Downstream Royal Dutch Shell plc.; Abdulaziz Al-Khayyal, Sr. Vice President, Industrial Relations, Saudi Aramco; Tom Purves, Motiva Vice President, Manufacturing Gulf Coast-Americas; Todd Monette, Motiva Port Arthur Refinery General Manager; and Forrest Lauher, Motiva Venture Manager for the Port Arthur Expansion Project.

Commenting on the construction groundbreaking, Welte said: “This is a major milestone in the journey to meet our nation’s growing energy demand. By adding 325,000 barrels per day capacity, the expansion is equivalent to building a new refinery.”

The expansion will bolster energy security in the U.S. by strengthening the supply of gasoline, diesel, aviation fuels and high quality base oils. The new production capacity is expected to be online in 2010 and will increase Motiva’s supply of Shell-branded fuels to the company’s wholesale and direct supply markets. In all, the refinery will produce about 23 million gallons of transportation fuels per day.

Motiva’s expansion will lower most types of emissions from refinery operations on a per barrel basis by utilizing advanced technology in all new system installations and by replacing existing systems. The expansion of the refinery will decrease emissions from present day levels for ozone precursors, specifically nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds.

Motiva awarded a contract to Bechtel/Jacobs Joint Venture to manage the expansion project as the engineering, procurement and construction contractor. Coupled with Motiva’s dedication to the environment and health of its workforce, the Bechtel/Jacobs Joint Venture will mandate stringent safety practices throughout the construction project.

The expansion is projected to generate more than 4,500 construction jobs and at least 300 new full-time jobs upon completion. Motiva is working with the Texas Work Force Commission, Southeast Texas Workforce Development Board, Lamar State College-Port Arthur, represented work groups, vocational institutions and local school systems to recruit and train qualified members of the workforce to take full advantage of the job opportunities. Many local sub-contractors have already been hired for the project.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Motiva Enterprises LLC is a refining and marketing joint venture owned by affiliates of Shell and Saudi Aramco. Motiva’s marketing operations support a network of more than 8,000 Shell-branded gasoline stations in the eastern and southern United States. Company assets include three refineries located in Norco, Louisiana; Convent, Louisiana; and Port Arthur, Texas, currently capable of refining approximately 740,000 barrels per day, and ownership or partial interests in 41 product terminals. More information is available at http://www.motivaenterprises.com.

Motiva Enterprises LLC

Web site: http://www.motivaenterprises.com/
http://www.shellus.com/

http://interestalert.com/story/12100002aaa068f3.prn/siteia/OILENERG/oil_and%20energy.html

This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Comments are closed.