Tesoro plans to sell refinery in Hawaii

Jan. 11, 2012
Tesoro Corp. plans to sell its 93,700-b/cd hydrocracking Kapolei refinery, the largest of two refineries in Hawaii, along with its Hawaiian retail operations and logistical assets.

Tesoro Corp. plans to sell its 93,700-b/cd hydrocracking Kapolei refinery, the largest of two refineries in Hawaii, along with its Hawaiian retail operations and logistical assets.

The company bought the refinery, about 20 miles west of Honolulu, for $275 million from BHP Petroleum Americas Refining Inc. in 1998 (OGJ, Mar. 30, 1998, p. 29). Its Hawaiian operations include 32 retail stations.

In a statement, Tesoro Pres. and Chief Executive Officer Greg Goff said, “Our business in Hawaii does not align with our strategic focus on the Midcontinent and West Coast.”

According to Oil & Gas Journal’s 2011 Worldwide Refining Survey, the Kapolei refinery’s processing capacities include 17,600 b/cd of high-pressure distillate hydrocracking, 11,500 b/cd of visbreaking, 12,800 b/cd of semiregenerative catalytic reforming, and 12,800 b/d of catalytic hydrotreating for pretreatment of cat reformer feeds.

Chevron Corp. operates Hawaii’s other refinery, a 54,000 b/cd facility also at Kapolei.