Flaring at Valero Could Mean Lower than Expected Gas Prices

The Fluid Catalytic Cracker Unit at the Valero Benica refinery is coming back on line after repairs to a compressor were finished.  The refinery took the unit out of production on July 26 when a compressor failed.

The flaring that was clearly visible Tuesday morning from the Benica-Martinez Bridge and from many vantage points in the Benicia Industrial Park is a normal part of the startup routine according to refinery officials.

Gas prices in the Bay Area began to rise shortly after the unit was taken out of production as demand for gasoline during the busy summer driving season outstripped supply. 

The fire at Chevron’s Richmond Refinery is expected to be another blow to the supply of gas with some analysts predicting an increase of as much as $.24 a gallon.

The Valero Benicia refinery is expected to be at full production- “planned rate” in refinery jargon- by mid August.  The Benicia refinery can process 170,000 barrels of crude a day when running at capacity and, according to the refinery website, supplies about 25 percent of the gasoline used in Northern California.

Do you think the Valero Refinery being back at full production will keep Bay Area gas prices from rising too high?

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If there’s something in this article you think should be corrected, or if something else is amiss, call editor JB Davis at 707-628-0051 or email him at benicia@patch.com.