July 23, 2012

Valero Energy Corp said all units at its 125,000 barrel-per-day Meraux, Louisiana, refinery were shut following a fire early Sunday.  "A full damage assessment is still under way at the Meraux refinery," company spokesman Bill Day said on Monday. The units will remain down while repairs are made to the crude unit and related utilities, Day said. A leaking exchanger at the refinery caught on fire at about 1:30 a.m. local time (0630 GMT) on Sunday, a report filed with the U.S. National Response Center showed. "It is believed that it was leaking crude oil," the report said. The fire was extinguished on Sunday with no injuries. The refinery can process medium sour crude oil and produces premium products.

By NewsDaily