From Deseret News archives:
Another refinery in works for Utah?
Oilmen buy facility in Green River, hope to process Uinta oil
Texan Devere Bigelow and Wayne Heftye, Santa Fe, N.M., have purchased an idle oil refinery just off I-70 that they plan to fire up in the next three months. They call their company EcoDomaine Refining Inc.
The one-time used-oil processing plant will initially be equipped to process about 3,000 barrels of oil a day and eventually 18,000 a day, including black wax crude from the Uinta Basin, Heftye said. EcoDomaine intends to make mostly gasoline and diesel.
"We'll soak up all the black wax available to us," said Heftye, who has managed three oil refineries in his 39-year career. "We're basically the sponge in the area."
EcoDomaine has gone about its business quietly since agreeing to buy the plant from Coyote Oil 18 months ago. It paid $500,000, according to Securities and Exchange Commission documents.
State government officials were unaware of the company until fielding questions from reporters this week.
Rusty Ruby, a manager at the Utah Division of Air Quality, said depending on the amount of pollutants emitted, an air-quality permit could take years to obtain.
No permit application by the company has been submitted to the Division of Air Quality, Ruby said.
"I don't even have enough data to even know how big they would be," Ruby said. "For one thing, we don't have any history on how to even permit these. We would have a lot of questions to ask ourselves.
"I would think that the major part of it would be them gathering the information, if they even get to us. I would think that would take longer than it would take us to process it."
Ruby said the plant could be retrofitted to process crude oil but that it would likely be a complex process that would include adding new pollution-control equipment.
The plant will be the "cleanest operation internationally," Heftye said.
"We've done excellent work from an environmental standpoint," he said. "I don't think we're going to have any issues."
Heftye said he understands the company can operate under an existing permit on the site.
Oil-exploration companies in eastern Utah have shut down wells the past year because the five Salt Lake area refineries have shunned their product for cheaper crude from Canada.
Comments
- Ohio lawsuit over air pollution 3:38 p.m.
- Man dies in dirt bike crash 3:25 p.m.
- Woods, wife unavailable for interview 3:22 p.m.
- Utes vs. Cougars live game blog 3:11 p.m.
- Working in your garden 3:08 p.m.
- TCU wraps up 12-0 season 2:51 p.m.
- Orlando forward Matt Barnes fined 2:26 p.m.
- Black Friday store spending up 2:13 p.m.
- Gamecocks top No. 15 Clemson 1:51 p.m.
- A naturally 'green' Christmas 1:42 p.m.
- Cave to be sealed with body inside
- Predicting the unpredictable: BYU wins
- Vegas, Poinsettia bowls or bust
- Glover gives Utes last-second upset
- Cougars turn back Wildcats'
- BYU football: 5 keys to victory
- Man trapped in Nutty Putty cave dies
- Rivalry Week is highly profane
- Running game key to BYU offense
- Budget cuts won't help in 2011
- BYU would like friendlier rivalry
272 - Thunder rolls by Jazz
136 - Letters: Rushing to judge Palin
134 - Boys basketball rankings
133 - Editorial: Poor welcome for Palin
113 - Man trapped in Nutty Putty cave dies
111 - Cave to be sealed with body inside
110 - Letters: Trump card for believers
98 - Rivalry Week is highly profane
88 - Utah, BYU are top choices for bowls
76
I wanted to tell them not to go. I dropped subtle hints. "My money is on...
When I was a kid, I worshipped my grandpa. He was undoubtedly my hero....
Re: Earnest T. Bass... It don't matter Earnest T. If a woman is happy...
The back of the lot of the one house adjacent to the temple lot would be the...
I may not agree with your rankings, but your commentary is, "witty and wise!"...
I think that the right decision was made. No more loss of life in rescue...
3 and out AGAIN!!! BYU can't run so far its only a matter of time Max gets...
hope there aren't any underlying problems between them as a husband and wife....
I'ts not sloan that keeps some biggies in the league not wanting to come...
Once the leftist leaders have convinced ENOUGH of the population that...
I haven't been able to get this out of my mind. It truly is the stuff of...
Why is the division of wildlife releasing the cubs at this time of year? As...



You can be the first to comment on this story.