据世界石油网站10月28日报道,据熟悉埃克森美孚计划的三名消息人士透露,该公司正在为其位于蒙大拿州比林斯的日产量约6万桶的炼油厂寻找潜在买家。
两名知情人士表示,包括瓦莱罗能源公司和马拉松石油公司在内的大型炼油商的代表参观了炼油厂,他们要求匿名,因为这个过程是私人的。
其中一位消息人士称,最终一家规模较小的精炼商可能更可能成为该厂的买家。
记者未能立即联系到埃克森美孚和瓦莱罗请其置评。马拉松发言人拒绝置评,但提到了公司首席执行长Gary Heminger最近的言论,该公司正在考虑优化投资组合和剥离资产。
据路透社当时报道称,埃克森美孚曾表示,将在2016年讨论将该工厂出售给PBF 能源的计划。据知情人士透露,在这些谈判中,埃克森美孚希望将比林斯工厂及其位于伊利诺伊州的Joliet炼油厂同时出售给PBF,但规模较小的炼油厂只想要比林斯工厂,从而破坏了交易。
四年前,埃克森美孚向比林斯开价约5亿美元。消息人士称,该工厂的售价仍将维持不变。
埃克森美孚正考虑出售这家炼油厂,以直接投资于位于墨西哥湾沿岸的三家炼油厂。这三家炼油厂分别位于得克萨斯州的Baytown和Beaumont,以及路易斯安那州的Baton Rouge。
李方征 编译自 世界石油
原文如下:
Exxon Mobil seeks buyer for Montana refinery
Exxon Mobil Corp is seeking a potential buyer for its roughly 60,000 barrel per day Billings, Montana refinery, according to three sources familiar with Exxon’s plans.
Representatives for large refiners, including Valero Energy Corp and Marathon Petroleum Corp, have toured the refinery, two of the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the process is private.
Ultimately a smaller refiner could be a more likely buyer of the plant, one of the sources said.
Exxon and Valero could not immediately be reached for comment. A spokesman for Marathon declined to comment, but pointed to recent comments from Chief Executive Gary Heminger that the company is mulling portfolio optimization and divestitures.
Exxon was said to discuss plans to sell the plant to PBF Energy in 2016, Reuters reported at the time. In those talks, Exxon wanted to unload both the Billings plant and its Joliet, Illinois refinery to PBF, but the smaller refiner wanted only the Billings plant, scuttling the deal, according to people familiar with the plans.
Four years ago, Exxon was asking about $500 million for Billings. The plant is still expected to fetch the same amount, the sources said.
Exxon is looking to unload the refinery to direct investment towards its three Gulf Coast refineries at Baytown and Beaumont, Texas and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.