Saudi Aramco Nets Biggest U.S. Refinery in Shell Deal
David Wagman | March 07, 2017Saudi Arabian Oil Co. will pay Royal Dutch Shell Plc $2.2 billion including debt to finalize the breakup of a 19-year refining partnership known as Motiva Enterprises LLC. (Read the announcement.)
Saudi Aramco’s Saudi Refining unit will take full ownership of the Motiva Enterprises name and legal entity, including the largest refinery in the U.S. at Port Arthur in Texas, and 24 distribution terminals, according to a joint statement.
Expanded in 2012, the Port Arthur Refinery has a capacity of 600,000 bbl/d. The refinery is capable of handling most grades of crude, even the lowest quality. A three-unit naphtha processing complex includes a catalytic reformer which converts 85,000 b/d into high octane gasoline for blending. The expansion included 725 pumps, 19 compressors, 514 heat exchangers and several new tanks.
Under terms of the agreement, Shell will take sole ownership of the Norco and Convent refineries in Louisiana and 11 distribution terminals.
Aramco will make a $2.2 billion balancing payment, split between debt and cash and subject to adjustments including working capital, Shell said. Aramco will assume almost all of Motiva’s $3.2 billion of net debt, including $1.5 billion of Shell’s share. A cash payment will cover the balance, Shell said.
Under the agreement, Motiva will sell Shell-branded gasoline and diesel in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., as well as the eastern half of Texas and most of Florida. Shell’s markets will include Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Louisiana, a portion of the Florida panhandle, and the Northeastern region of the U.S.