Fire Shuts Chevron Refinery Units Near LA as Fuel Crunch Looms
(Bloomberg) -- Chevron Corp.’s El Segundo refinery in Los Angeles County has shut multiple units as it continues battling a fire that broke out last night, the latest threat to fuel supplies in a state that’s already bracing for shortfalls.
Firefighters responded after reports of an explosion at the El Segundo operation, south of Los Angeles airport, on Thursday evening local time.
“The fire originated at a process unit at the southeast corner of the refinery,” said Becky Robinson, a spokesperson for the city of El Segundo. “The fire is contained, but fire crews continue to work to fully extinguish the incident.”
The fire was isolated and there were no injuries, a representative for Chevron said in a statement. All refinery personnel and contractors have been accounted for, the spokesperson said.
Units shut Thursday night include the 60,000 barrel-a-day catalytic reformer, the 45,000 barrel-a-day hydrocracker, the 73,000 barrel-a-day fluid catalytic cracker and two hydrogen plants, according to Wood Mackenzie.
The fire appears to have begun at the convection section of a furnace that is part of the Hydrocracker/ISOMAX complex, said Randy Hurburun, head of refining at energy consultancy Energy Aspects. That complex makes distillates, including diesel and jet fuel.
The entire hydrocracker section will likely have to be shut for assessment and repair, and crude rates will probably be slowed to limit feedstock output that would have gone to the hydrocracker, Hurburun said.
Chevron said there were no evacuations for nearby residents and emissions from the refinery haven’t exceeded permitted levels, based on the facility’s monitoring system.
This week, Phillips 66 said its Los Angeles plant will refine its final barrel of crude oil around Oct. 16 as the facility — one of California’s few remaining refineries — moves to permanently shutter operations by the end of the year.
It’s the latest in a wave of refinery closures in California that has tightened an isolated fuel market. The looming crunch led to recent attempts by state officials, including Governor Gavin Newsom, to shore up supply in a state that regularly sees the highest gasoline prices in the nation.
LA Mayor Karen Bass said in a social media post that she had been briefed on the fire outside of the city limits, adding that there was no impact on the airport.
According to the company website, the El Segundo refinery, built in 1911, supplies 20% of all motor vehicle fuels and 40% of the jet fuel consumed in Southern California. It has a capacity of about 290,000 barrels a day.
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