The expansion project’s $2.4 billion cost includes interest and overhead. The expansion is expected to boost the refinery’s overall throughput capacity to 415,000 barrels per day, reportedly making it one of the largest refineries in the US and giving Valero more capacity to process heavy, sour feedstocks that trade at discounts to light sweet crude oil.
The hydrocracker project is expected to be finished in the fourth quarter of 2010 while the coker project is expected to be finished in the second quarter of 2011.
Bill Klesse, chairman of the board and CEO of Valero Energy, said: As with the St Charles expansion project that we announced last year, the Port Arthur expansion project emphasizes ultra low sulfur diesel production, reflecting the significant projected growth in demand for diesel both in the US and around the world.
