Asphalt plant at Alon's Big Spring, Tex., refinery to recycle tire rubber

By the OGJ Online Staff

HOUSTON, Dec. 17 -- Alon USA, Dallas, a subsidiary of Alon Israel Oil Co. Ltd., and Wright Asphalt Products Co., Channelview, Tex., will build a tire rubber modified asphalt plant in Big Spring, Tex.

The plant will use ground tires to make asphalt for roads in West Texas and eastern New Mexico.

The plant will be built at Alon's 61,000 b/d refinery. TotalFinaElf SA sold the refinery to Alon as part of the Total-Petrofina SA merger (OGJ Online, May 23, 2000).

Groundbreaking will be in January and the project should be completed in April. Alon will employ 50 extra people for the construction phase, but existing refinery employees will operate the asphalt plant.