Valero Corpus Christi plans April FCC work

US refiner Valero is planning a major turnaround at its 290,000 b/d Corpus Christi, Texas, refinery according to a contracting firm conducting the maintenance.

The work at Valero's Corpus Christi refinery — also referred to as the Bill Greehey refinery — is expected to start early this month and last at least six-to-eight weeks according to a job posting for workers by Corpus Christi-based engineering firm H&S Constructors.

The maintenance work is focused on the refinery's fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit, according to a person familiar with operations. FCC's convert heavier crude feedstocks, such as vacuum gas oil, into lighter petroleum products via a catalyst that needs to be periodically replaced.

Valero did not respond to a request for comment.

Valero typically conducts the bulk of its maintenance in the first and third quarters of the year, according to comments made by chief executive Lane Riggs on the company's fourth quarter earnings call earlier this year.

The company plans $2bn of capital expenditures in 2023, $1.5bn of which is allocated to sustaining the business — including turnarounds — with the remainder allocated to growth projects. Valero's capital expenditure in 2022 was $2.3bn.

The 2023 expenditure includes building a new coker at Valero's 335,000 b/d Port Arthur, Texas, refinery that will add 55,000 b/d of capacity.

By Nathan Risser