Flying J has
purchased the Shell Oil refinery in Bakersfield, CA.
The refinery had been at the center of controversy
in 2004, when Shell announced it planned to close the plant. The refinery makes 6 percent of
all of California’s diesel fuel, The Los
Angeles Times reported, and the prospect of losing that production capacity
had state officials concerned that already sky-high diesel prices in the state
would rocket upward even more.
Officials for Flying J, which is based in Ogden, UT, said in a
news release that the refinery, located in California’s Central Valley, can
refine up to 70,000 barrels of crude oil per day. It was opened in 1932.
The sale will not be complete until Flying J
and Shell receive approvals from the Environmental Protection Agency and the
Department of Justice, the company said.
Flying J is also asking the San Joaquin Valley
Air Pollution Control District to support its petition for variances regarding
compliance with some California regulations at the refinery.
The sale is expected to close in the first
quarter of 2005. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
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