Refinery shut by pipeline malfunction
Valero Energy Corp’s 180,000 barrel per day (bpd) Memphis, Tennessee refinery was knocked out of production by a Diamond Pipeline malfunction, sources said.
Severe weather interrupted operations on the Diamond pipeline, and the crude supply from the pipeline fell below the needed amount to operate the refinery late on Thursday morning, the sources said.
Most of the units at the Memphis refinery are on circulation, being kept at operating temperature and moving a specialized feedstock in a loop through the individual units for a quick restart, the sources said.
The Valero refinery is the primary supplier of jet fuel to the Memphis International Airport, where FedEx Corp has its hub for global operations.
The 20-inch Diamond Pipeline can transport up to 200,000 bpd in crude oil from the Cushing, Oklahoma, oil hub 440 miles (708 km) to the Memphis refinery. It is a joint-venture between Valero and Plains All-American.
On Monday, Valero shut the 65,000-bpd gasoline-producing fludic catalytic cracking unit for an overhaul scheduled to last at least 60 days.
Also, Valero had cut back production on the 110,000 bpd East Crude Distillation Unit by at least 25 percent because the shut FCCU could not take the feedstock the crude unit provides.
The two Valero Memphis CDUs do the primary refining of crude oil, providing feedstock for all other units at the refinery, as well as producing unfinished motor fuels.
Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by Marguerita Choy
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