Valero Energy Corp. is pushing ahead with the restart of its Port Arthur, Texas refinery even after it experienced a disruption and emissions over the weekend.
The restart came after the refinery was shut down when Hurricane Harvey hit the coast.
“Unit upset during startup activities following Hurricane Harvey,” the refinery said in a statement, adding the emissions of sulfur dioxide began Saturday evening and lasted about an hour. “Continued to follow startup procedures.”
The 335,000-barrel-a-day refinery had been shut down in late August along with more than a dozen other refineries as the hurricane threatened the state. Once the storm hit Texas, it resulted in massive flooding.
Over the weekend, at least five gulf-coast refineries remained shut down and that represents about 6% of total U.S. refining capacity.
Six others were in the process of being restarted while others are in full operation.
