NEW YORK, April 9 (Reuters) – The chief executive of
Phillips 66, ConocoPhillips’ newly minted downstream
spinoff, said he will not comment on negotiations for the sale
of its 185,000 barrel per day refinery in Trainer, Pennsylvania.
CEO Greg Garland told analysts at the company’s inaugural
conference call that Phillips 66 will continue ConocoPhillips’
tradition of not to commenting on commercial negotiations.
The final split between ConocoPhillips and Phillips 66 was
approved by the board and will formally take place on May 1.
Garland said Phillips 66 will continue to shore up its
refining portfolio and there may be other actions affecting its
portfolio, in addition to the two refineries up for sale –
Trainer and Alliance in Louisiana.
Sources familiar with the sales process said Delta Airlines
is considering a bid for the Trainer refinery, idled at
the end of September 2011, and is in “very critical”
negotiations with ConocoPhillips.
Trainer, one of three East Coast refineries to be idled or
sold in a 12-mile region outside Philadelphia, is configured to
produce a higher than normal yield of jet fuel.
It accounts for a third of the total jet-kerosene capacity
on the East Coast, according to government data. Delta is the
largest international carrier at John F. Kennedy International
Airport in New York, and jet fuel is nearly a third of an
airline’s costs.
