Phillips 66 begins Cork oil refinery operations

Today marks the first day of operations of Phillips 66 oil refinery and storage facilities in Ireland.

This follows a decision announced by the board of ConocoPhillips in Jul 2011 to create two standalone, publicly traded corporations with the separation of the company’s refining and marketing, and exploration and production businesses.

Phillips 66 has two facilities here the Whitegate Oil Refinery and the Bantry Storage Facility, both in Cork. The company also operates a wholesale marketing business.

Lead executive Neil O’Carroll said: “Today, we stand ready to move forward into a promising future as one of the world’s largest independent downstream companies.”

The Phillips 66 Whitegate Oil Refinery is the only oil refinery in Ireland and supplies one-third of the country’s transportation fuels. The refinery began operations in 1959 and processes 71,000 barrels of crude oil a day — 3m tonnes a year.

The refinery operates all year round, and employs 150 employees and up to 100 contractors.

It produces a range of petroleum products including unleaded petrol, auto diesel and central heating oils; gas oil, kerosene, and liquid petroleum gas. The refinery also produces and blends biofuels.

The Phillips 66 Bantry Bay Terminal has 1m tonnes of crude and product storage capacity.

The National Oil Reserves Agency is a major long-term customer, which makes the facility of national strategic importance.

“We have a strong heritage and enduring commitment to responsible operations, safety, environmental stewardship and reliability,” Mr O’Carroll said.