Motiva refinery expansion now operational

The expansion of the Motiva refinery in Port Arthur, Texas, to a capacity of 600,000 barrels a day has started operations, said Simon Henry, chief financial officer of Motiva partner Royal Dutch Shell PLC. The crude distillation unit at the plant is now processing oil and the hydrocracker is expected to be online by the end of this quarter, he said. Shell is also assessing two sites in Texas and Louisiana where it could build new plants to convert cheap natural gas into higher value gas-to-liquids (GTL) products, Henry said. A final investment decision will take at least a year, he said. (April 26, 2012)