The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is handing over to the Government Accountability Office information on oil refiners that petitioned for exemptions to biofuel blending mandates, in an effort to help the government watchdog investigate the exemption program.
EnergyMarathon Petroleum probing cause of chemical release at Texas refinery
Reuters
1 minute read
Marathon Petroleum Corp (MPC.N) on Wednesday said it is investigating Tuesday s release of a toxic chemical that injured two workers at a Texas City, Texas, refinery and led to a shelter-in-place order for local residents.
The refinery has notified federal and state regulators that toxic hydrofluoric acid was released at its Galveston Bay plant. It used 1.1 million gallons of water to contain and dilute the leak, a spokesman said.
EnergyMarathon Petroleum refinery in Texas issues alert over chemical leak
Erwin Seba
2 minute read
Marathon Petroleum Corp s (MPC.N) 585,000 barrel-per-day Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas City, Texas, on Tuesday issued a shelter-in-place notice because of a toxic leak, said people familiar with plant operations.
Marathon and Texas City officials ordered workers and nearby residents to go indoors and close windows for over an hour due to a leak of hydrofluoric acid (HF), said the people, who spoke to Reuters on the condition of anonymity. Hydrofluoric acid forms a ground-hugging cloud at room temperature that can lead to severe health problems and even death.
EnergyVitol $85 billion revenue hit offset by trading profits
ReutersJulia Payne
3 minute read
Global energy trader Vitol suffered an $85 billion fall in revenue last year, but its profits were boosted as trading plays offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on oil demand and prices.
Many traders benefited in 2020 from extreme oil price volatility and storage opportunities. In April last year, U.S. light sweet crude went negative for the first time and benchmark Brent futures touched two-decade lows before rebounding.
In a statement on Tuesday, Vitol said its revenue dropped to $140 billion last year from $225 billion in 2019. The Swiss firm does not disclose its net profit. Bloomberg quoted sources last month saying Vitol made a record net profit of about $3 billion last year.
EnergyCanada s Suncor posts profit as crude prices recover from 2020 lows
Reuters
2 minute read
Suncor Energy facility is seen in Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada August 21, 2019. REUTERS/Candace Elliott
Canadian oil and gas producer Suncor Energy Inc (SU.TO) on Monday reported first-quarter profit after a loss in the prior quarter, buoyed by a recovery in crude prices from the pandemic-led lows hit last year and cost cutting measures.
Like many of its peers, Suncor has been benefiting from a rebound in oil prices driven by a recovery in global fuel demand, after it was decimated in 2020 due to coronavirus lockdowns.
But the pandemic continues to rage in certain parts of the world and the demand outlook remains uncertain.