The possibility of the Philadelphia losing all but two of its refineries seemed to be fading as the Philadelphia Inquirer and other news outlets were reporting that a number of bidders were interested in the Sunoco Philadelphia refinery and possibly two were eying the ConocoPhilips refinery in Trainer.
Among the parties said to be interested in the Philly refinery is PBF Energy, which swooped in and purchased the shuttered Delaware City Refinery after former owner Valero planned to raze the site. PBF also owns another refinery in southern New Jersey. With the Philly refinery, PBF would have a lock on the market.
The most intriguing bidder, according to the Inky, is an area company involved in shipping via rail the massive amount of sand used in the natural gas “fracking” wells in Pennsylvania and other states.
Transportation enters the picture because of recent oil discoveries in North Dakota don’t have a nearby refinery and oil is already being shipped by rail. That’s expensive, but feasible, in a world of $100 crude.
Earlier in the year, there were fears that the Delaware Valley could be left with as few as two refineries, leading to possible tightening of supplies and adding to the risk of price spikes. Another report also predicted potentially devastating effects on the economy, since refineries employ a lot of people in construction, transportation and other areas.
Here’s a link to the INQUIRER STORY.
