ExxonMobil sells Torrance refinery for more than $530 million

Exxon Mobil Corp. said Wednesday it will sell its refinery in Torrance, California to PBF Energy, a New Jersey-based refining company, following an explosion at the facility in February.

Exxon-Mobil had announced last September that it planned to sell the refinery as part of a companywide restructuring, and several bidders had expressed interest.

The New Jersey energy company that purchased ExxonMobil’s Chalmette refinery in June will buy a second plant from the oil giant, this one in California, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Interested in the stories shaping California? The refinery will be restored to full working condition before the acquisition closes.

Consumer Watchdog’s letter alleged a coverup by Exxon of evidence and concealing of witnesses that it said could prove the refinery made a decision to keep operating a fluid catalytic cracker while repairing a compressor. When Exxon Mobil did not deliver, gasoline prices jumped. Once the refinery stopped making fuel, prices at the pump in the state soared. As such, gasoline prices in California are expected to remain among the nation’s highest for the foreseeable future. The system was installed to comply with environmental regulations imposed by the air quality management district.

The refinery faced additional challenges.

Waters and Lieu wrote that they were “deeply concerned by recent efforts by Exxon Mobil to push back against the investigations by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health and the U.S. Chemical Safety Board”.

The sale also includes other storage facilities and pipelines, including a 116-mile section that delivers San Joaquin Valley crude to the refinery and pipes that provide access to the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles.

“… We are committed to the safe and environmentally responsible operations of the facility and look forward to welcoming Torrance’s well-trained and professional workers to the PBF family”. It can process an average of 155,000 barrels of crude oil per day and produce 1.8 billion gallons of gasoline per year.