Motiva expects Port Arthur crude unit to restart

Motiva Enterprises, a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell and Saudi Aramco, has attempted to restart the new crude unit, VPS-5, at its flagship Port Arthur, Texas, refinery after its shut-down due to piping damage.
The plant, which took five years to construct, is the centerpiece of a US$10 billion expansion project and became the largest refinery in the U.S. with a capacity of 325,000 barrels per day (bpd) for crude distillation. However, shortly after its launch nearly six months ago, cracks were discovered in the CDU’s piping, forcing it to shut down. Efforts have been made to restart operations, and the company expected the plant to be functioning by the end of December. News that the plant would begin operating at its full capacity of 600,000 bpd capacity caused wholesale gasoline prices in the Gulf Coast to fall. While repairs were being made, Port Arthur continued to process crude at the older 285,000 bpd section of the plant. (December 3, 2012)