Williams completes $70 million expansion at Alaska refinery

Tom Hall

Williams said Dec. 7 that it has completed a $70 million expansion of its North Pole refinery, increasing production capacity by 17,000 barrels per day.

A third crude unit was added to the refinery, producing primarily jet fuel. Construction began in July 1997, and was completed six weeks ahead of schedule. At peak construction nearly 500 people were employed on the project. The expansion created 15 new permanent jobs at the refinery and another four at the company’s terminal at the Port of Anchorage.

Total refinery output is now 62,000 barrels per day, 35,000 barrels of which is jet fuel. Of the increased production, 14,000 barrels a day is jet fuel; the remainder is diesel.

“The increased production is designed to eliminate the need for Alaska’s air cargo carriers to import jet fuel, giving them a reliable, local, cost-effective solution,” refinery President Randy Newcomer said in a prepared statement. “Our ability to produce more jet fuel continues Williams’ position as the leading supplier of jet fuel in the state.”

Williams acquired the North Pole refinery — Alaska’s largest — and a refinery in Memphis, Tenn., in its March 1998 merger with Mapco Inc.