By Nicole Jao
New York (Reuters) -Phillips 66 will close his 139,000 barrel per day Los Angeles-Erea refinery in September, according to people who are familiar with the case.
The refinery of the Los Angeles area starts to close the activities for permanent closure next week, according to two sources.
Phillips 66 announced last year that it would close the facility and start closing the activities by October 2025.
“The refineries will start with Q4 2025 as planned … Our timeline remains unchanged,” said a company spokesperson on Thursday in an e -mail statement. The company no longer gave detailed timeline, but noted that the process of stationing the facilities requires a complex, multi-phase approach.
The refinery is expected to dismiss most employees at the refinery in December. The facility in Los Angeles area has around 600 employees and 300 contractors. More than half of the employees are timepieces represented by the United SteelWorkers Union.
The company refused to comment on the status of its employees.
The exit of Phillips 66 leaves a void in the motor fuel supply in California, the most populated American state. The State consistently experiences some of the highest average gas prices in the country, which leads to an often tense relationship between the state and the oil companies.
Valero Energy also announced his intention to close the refinery of 145,000 BPD Benicia, one of the two remaining refineries in the state.
The two closing refineries produce approximately 20% of the State gas supply.
(Reporting by Nicole Jao in New York; Additional reporting by Shariq Khan; adaptation by Franklin Paul)
