Refinery's future is at stake

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BY ANDREA HOLECEK
holecek@nwitimes.com
219.933.3316 | Saturday, August 11, 2007 | (14 comment(s))

BP is "100 percent committed" to a $3.8 billion expansion of its Whiting Refinery, an investment that will increase production of gasoline and diesel fuel by 15 percent, officials said Friday.

"A $3 billion investment in one company is extraordinary," said Ted Krauss, project senior manager, during a meeting with The Times Friday. "It's in a class of its own ... All projects of this scale are massive. It's a complicated, challenging undertaking. For BP to choose Whiting is extraordinary."

The "world-scale project" will saturate Northwest Indiana's engineering and supply markets, have a large impact on labor and its apprenticeship programs and provide work for more than 2,000 members of the craft and trade unions during its three years of construction. It will provide continued employment for its 1,700 workers and 1,500 contract employees and -- most importantly -- insure the refinery's future, Krauss said.

"The real issue is sustaining the asset base," he said "The investment sustains the asset going forward. It gives it the capacity to compete in the global market. It makes it a survivor."

Over time, wthout investment, the refinery's value and production would deteriorate, Krauss said.

Plus, the project will help the country reduce its reliance on foreign oil, by allowing it to refine heavy Canadian crude from the sands of Alberta where there is an estimated 1.4-billion-barrel reserve. Currently, 10 percent of the nation's fuel supply is being imported because U.S. refining capacity lags behind the amount consumed, Krauss said.

The Chicago area is especially hard hit by supply disruptions because it is at the end of a long supply line that begins in the oil fields of Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma and the pipe lined from tankers in the Gulf of Mexico.

BP competitors are engaged in similar projects that will enable them to refine heavy crude and tap Alberta's reserve, Krauss said.

Included in the project is $150 million in upgrades, involving new processing units and new technolgy, for the refinery's waste water treatment plant, which are necessary because heavy crude requires additional treatment for ammonia and suspended solids, he added.

Following treatment, the composition of the refinery's waste water will be "comparable" to the treated water municipalities discharge into the lake, Krauss said.

Stan Sorrels, the Whiting refinery's health, safety, security and environmental manager, said for the past 25 years investments made in the refinery have been for environmental compliance.

"It's at a stage where it needs modernization to be competitive," Sorrels said.

Other crude oil projects
ConocoPhillips has announced plans to improve its ability to process heavy crude, particularly at its Wood River, Ill., and Borger, Texas, refineries, through its oil-sands joint venture with EnCana Corp. And Marathon Oil Corp. recently agree to acquire Canada's Western Oil Sands Inc., which will give it access to more than 300,000 gross acres of oil sands and allow to refine heavy crude at its Midwestern refineries, including in Robinson, Ill.
Surce: company Web sites

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Attention lakemichiganwatchdogs wrote on Aug 17, 2007 8:44 AM:

" The oil globs come in great part from all the motor boats crisscrossing Lake Michigan -- and many of these are operated by people who are 'upset' with BP for polluting the Lake ... but don't even consider that their own cumulative impacts are levels of factors worse than BP's discharge to Lake Michigan. Just more hypocrisy ... "

Where'd that come from, Jason ? wrote on Aug 13, 2007 7:45 AM:

" Jason mentions that "Meanwhile our children are less educated and their land water and air more polluted." My question for you is how is BP making your children less educated ? Is it the millions of dollars in taxes that BP and it's employees pay to Indiana that help fund the schools ? Is it the donations (both time and money) that they make to local charities ? It's classic how now everything becomes the fault of BP. Can you tell me how many times this year ANY beach on Lake Michigan was closed due to high levels of ammonia ? None. How many times has OUR lake been closed due to the RAW SEWAGE dumped into the lake by the holier-than-thou munipalities -- WAY TOO MANY. I agree, let's have as many people sign a petition as possible -- but the petition should be to ask your GOVERNMENT to STOP POLLUTING THE LAKE "

Larry Davis - Already Awake wrote on Aug 13, 2007 4:30 AM:

" Telling people to stop activities because they pollute is as silly as BP trying to convince us that they can’t do better… Justifying a multinational corporation’s choice to pollute more because others do is reprehensible. Reducing pollution can be a wining situation for all concerned. Pollution is gross inefficiency. Mostly it’s wasted raw resources and/or energy that never make it into the products being produce. Additional and better paying jobs are created by reducing pollution. The more innovative and efficient a facility is, the more competitive it is. Making those jobs more secure in the long-term. The Rules have already been changed – by the corporations with their vast lobbing budgets over the last 30 years and for the worse concerning our health and environment! Does anyone believe that BP doesn’t have the resources to buy more land and build a better expansion that actually reduces pollution? This is a prime example of how powerful corporations externalize and transfer their costs to the public and communities they operate in… We subsidize their already huge profits by allowing them to pollute more! Automobiles do not have to run on gasoline. But that’s another discussion. "

lakemichiganwatchdogs wrote on Aug 12, 2007 4:35 PM:

" Oil globs continuosly wash up onto beaches along Lake Michigan Southern Shores. Where do you think this comes from? I challenge love the smell to go take a dip with his kids over at the wastewater discharge if he/she is feeling so confident. Make sure the news cameras are there to confirm it. "

KnowsBetter wrote on Aug 12, 2007 1:59 PM:

" Joe says, "If everyone in the U.S. would switch to a more fuel efficient vehicle, we wouldn't need to import foreign oil." Joe, since about 2/3's of the oil we consume is imported AND also import about 25% of the gasoline we consume (which equals roughly the equivalent of 50% of our oil imports) we are now effectively consuming over 20 MMBPD. Even if every car in America quadropled its MPGs over night we would still be importing oil. In fact we could literally park every car in the country and still not have enough domestic oil for all the other needs/uses. "

Hey Wake Up ... (Part II) wrote on Aug 12, 2007 12:00 PM:

" Second point - If the new standard is to stop all pollution to water, air and soil then let's all live by that standard. No more driving cars since they pollute, no more using central plumbing since they pollute, no more Internet since its use pollutes - in other words every human activity, including our biological functions, cause pollution in the strictest sense. The wise thing to do then is for society (all of us) to decide what is in our common best interest and make sure that what pollution is generated doesn't pose unacceptable degradation to our environment. We elect governments to set the rules and regulatory agencies to administer them. We, as a society, have set the rules and BP has followed them to a T. If we don't like the rules, let's work on changing them so everyone plays by the same standard - the worst thing we could do as a nation is to arbitrarily decide losers and winners on whims of individuals or politicians. "

Hey Wake Up ... wrote on Aug 12, 2007 12:00 PM:

" First point - Wake up to the fact that half of the people who work for BP worldwide (worlwide=across planet Earth) are Americans - US citizens who live in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Colorado, Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and just about every state in these great United States. Heck - you might even have a cousin working for or making a living off this company. As a BP employee myself I can attest that our hearts and minds are set on providing our nation, our families and our neighbors with the energy needed/demanded to exercise our freedoms and innovation. See second point on next post "

Larry Davis wrote on Aug 12, 2007 11:54 AM:

" I want to know what happened to the innovation and cutting-edge technology development at the Whiting refinery. Why isn't BP proposing a cutting-edge technology and innovative refinery and waste treatment expansion? Quite simply, because they don't have to... After 30 years of coordinated efforts the regulated community has largely succeeded in getting the regulations they want! They do more to protect market sectors and lessen competition than actually protect our environment... This is why the current regulations stifle any shift in thinking about how we regulate polluters and how they continue to prevent innovative technologies that can reduce or eliminate pollution at the source. It is a proven fact that better corporate returns on investment, more and higher paying jobs, and increased economic gains can be had by improving environmental performance. Lax control of pollution results in both environmental and economic degradation. Does anyone actually believe that BP doesn’t have the resources to buy more land for space to build a bigger and better expansion that reduces their pollution? It’s no coincidence that NWI has some of the highest Cancer rates in the nation and also high levels of industrial discharges. "

Jason wrote on Aug 11, 2007 7:02 PM:

" Isn't Canadian oil "foreign oil"? Last I check it was. So really this does nothing to curb our dependence on foriegn oIl, what rhetoric. This is just another foriegn company who does not care about America, only its own profits. If we produced more alternatives in this country we would produce many more jobs than this expansion. This is the sad state of our democracy, foriegn companies like BP can come in here pollute everything, rip us off on Gasoline, and then leave when ever they want. Meanwhile our children are less educated and their land water and air more polluted. This should not go forward, if we really wanted America free we would support domestic production of energy alternatives that we exported to other countries. Wake UP! "

WWJVBD wrote on Aug 11, 2007 5:45 PM:

" wake up NW Indiana, let me know when you want to start paying $60/week to stop polluting the Lake from your toilets at home. Then I'll believe you want to save the Lake. "

Blowing Smoke wrote on Aug 11, 2007 4:59 PM:

" Anyone that says they will pay 6 dollars for a gallon of gas will be the firat to complain at 4 dollars a gallon. The immediate threat, shutting down beaches today in record numbers is E-COLI. None of these activists have the gutts to tell Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan to stop dumping raw sewage and overflowing raw sewage into Lake Michigan. People worring about a problem 20 years from now complaining about how bad the beach will be and can't swin in it today. Get Real. "

wake up NW Indiana wrote on Aug 11, 2007 3:49 PM:

" If the future of the BP Whiting refinery is at stake over whether or not they can polute the water, air and soil, then let them close and clean up their mess on the way out of town. I would rather pay $6.00 per gallon for the next three years than to keep pumping contamination into our environment. Remember what the B in BP stands for and throw the tea and oil into the waterways of London. "

Joe wrote on Aug 11, 2007 9:56 AM:

" If everyone in the U.S. would switch to a more fuel efficient vehicle, we wouldn't need to import foreign oil. If the U.S. had a the same fuel efficiency standards as Europe, we wouldn't need ANY foreign oil at all. There are too many numb skulls needlessly driving around in oversized SUVs and trucks. As a result, northwest Indiana's environment is going to pay for it now. "

love the smell wrote on Aug 11, 2007 8:44 AM:

" "Following treatment, the composition of the refinery's waste water will be "comparable" to the treated water municipalities discharge into the lake, Krauss said." Ridiculous. Mr. Krauss is being far too modest. The refinery discharge will be and is, far cleaner! When was the last time a beach was closed because of the refinery? When was the last time a swimmer contracted a disease due to the refinery discharge? NEVER! When was the last time someone got sick because of the pathogens originating from a municipal waste discharge into the lake? YESTERDAY! "

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