Many alternatives can replace refinery

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Jan 10, 2013

~~<p>The announced closure of Tesoro Corp.'s oil refinery operations in April signals that Hawaii is about to experience the kind of market shakeup that this isolated, import-dependent state always fears. It also underscores that its steady development of alternative energy sources was absolutely the right path to follow.</p>
<p>Besides those fairly plain observations, the impacts of the shuttering — which means Chevron Hawaii will run Hawaii's only oil refinery — seem murky, even in the near term. Things are about to get more complicated, but there's no straight line that can be drawn from the conversion of the Tesoro plant to an import terminal, where the ready-for-sale petroleum products can be offloaded, to any particular change in prices.</p>
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The announced closure of Tesoro Corp.'s oil refinery operations in April signals that Hawaii is about to experience the kind of market shakeup that this isolated, import-dependent state always fears. It also underscores that its steady development of alternative energy sources was absolutely the right path to follow.

Besides those fairly plain observations, the impacts of the shuttering — which means Chevron Hawaii will run Hawaii's only oil refinery — seem murky, even in the near term. Things are about to get more complicated, but there's no straight line that can be drawn from the conversion of the Tesoro plant to an import terminal, where the ready-for-sale petroleum products can be offloaded, to any particular change in prices. Login for more...