Husky given green light to rebuild Superior refinery
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
Husky Energy says it has received approval for its $400 million plans to rebuild the Superior oil refinery and plans to begin construction immediately. The explosion and series of fires in April last year injured 36 people, caused a temporary evacuation and damaged the refinery’s equipment and storage tanks.
Husky, which does business as Superior Refining Company in Wisconsin, applied for a permit with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources earlier this year, which covers repair and replacement of equipment that was damaged.
As part of the rebuild, the refinery’s fluid catalytic cracking unit reactor will be replaced and all downstream equipment that was damaged will be rebuilt. In addition, asphalt tanks damaged in the explosion will either be repaired or replaced.
Husky will also install several new permanent pipelines that will run to the Enbridge terminal and Plains Midstream, which deal with transport and storage of petroleum products and natural gas liquids.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
“Our continued investment in this refinery and the community will support the Superior-Duluth regional economy through jobs, procurement, taxes and essential energy products for years to come,” said Husky CEO Rob Peabody in a news release.
At an August hearing on the rebuild permit, business and labor groups touted the refinery’s economic benefits on the community and efforts to improve safety of the operations moving forward, including Supeior's Bruce Thompson, executive vice president for National Bank of Commerce.
“It’s some of the best family jobs that we have in the community, providing really good wages and benefits,” said Thompson in a WPR interview on Monday.
The Husky refinery has around 200 permanent jobs with a $27 million payroll, according to the company. Around 350 jobs are expected to be created during the rebuild.
Thompson said he lived within three miles of the refinery for 50 years and never felt unsafe, citing the company’s safety improvements and technological upgrades to prevent the risk of another incident.
“I really feel like much of that has been mitigated and managed and that’s why you have professional people and workers with good training on the job,” said Thompson.
Other Twin Ports residents and tribal members have said the rebuild props up an industry that relies on fossil fuels and accelerates the effects of climate change. They also expressed frustration over Husky’s plans to continue using hydrogen fluoride, a highly toxic chemical, as part of its refining process.
The refinery plans to make safety improvements to the existing alkylation unit, including a rapid acid transfer system that would capture any hydrofluoric acid in the event of a release.
Ginger Juel, co-founder of activist group Twin Ports Action Alliance, said she’s disappointed with the company’s plans for rebuilding the refinery, citing it’s continued use of hydrogen fluoride and lack of air monitoring in the community. She noted recent resolutions by Duluth and Superior have supported rebuilding a safe refinery.
“We lack the political will to build the safest refinery possible,” said Juel.
The group has undertaken an effort to install nine air monitoring devices that will track levels of particulate matter, such as soot and smoke, at locations throughout the Twin Ports. Juel said the first monitor was installed in Duluth within the last week. The monitors do not track readings of gases, such as hydrogen fluoride.
“People can make a decision based on the data whether they should evacuate or stay or use an air mask,” said Juel.
Juel said the monitors will continuously track levels and provide a baseline of air quality to distinguish from aberrations due to a specific cause. The monitors are PurpleAir sensors that are also being installed by the state of Minnesota as part of its 2020 Air Monitoring Network Plan. She said the sensors will be installed at businesses and homes throughout Duluth and Superior.
The company expects to refine an average of 45,000 barrels of oil per day when it resumes operations, which will increase its downstream capacity to 400,000 barrels per day.
The company bought the Superior refinery from Calumet Specialty Products in 2017. Demolition of equipment that was damaged in the explosion is largely complete. Husky expects to resume partial operations next year and full operations in 2021.