Valero Energy Corporation
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ou might not readily recognize the name Valero Energy Corporation, but chances are if you fill up your gas tank in the Mid-South your gas was made at their Memphis refinery. Valero, a Fortune 500 company, is the world’s largest independent refiner of regular and premium gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and petrochemicals. This energy giant has 15 petroleum refineries with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 2.9 million barrels per day. Eleven corn ethanol plants that output 1.3 billion gallons per year, a joint venture with Diamond Green in the production of renewable diesel, and a 50-megawatt wind farm are just a few of its strengths. Valero purchased the Memphis refinery, which was built in 1941, from Premcor in 2005. This sprawling 250-acre complex has 305 employees, 200 contractors, and pumped out $80 million in wages in 2013. Valero has invested $140 million in refinery plant maintenance and overhaul in 2014, in addition to the $12 million in capitol investment over the past five years. The refinery, the only one in Tennessee, is located near the International Port of Memphis, but a lot of local residences don’t even know what it is. “Very few people know there is a refinery here. They’ve seen it and some people joke around and say it looks like Gotham City,” said Lisa Jenkins, Public Affairs Manager of Valero Memphis Refinery. The refinery, sometimes referred to as a liquid assembly line, has total throughput capacity of about 195,000 barrels per day. The people at the Memphis refinery are proud of their independence from foreign markets for their oil. The oil Valero uses is strictly from North America including its Capline pipeline that runs
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crude oil from North American shale and it pipes light sweet oil from the Louisiana Gulf. “We can ship product out four ways, we can ship products out on barge, by rail, by pipeline, and by truck. Our facility has one of the largest truck rack facilities in the United States,” said Jenkins. The other pipeline carries jet fuel from the refinery directly to the Memphis International Airport. Valero is dedicated to the community, dedicated to the environment, and dedicated to providing quality products to its consumers, and is proud to be a part of the Memphis community and a part of the fabric that makes Tennessee strong.