Gasoline premiums jumped 5 cents on Monday as a Los Angeles-area refinery was seen buying unleaded, ethanol-blend CARBOB gasoline, traders said. The buying triggered rumours of a current or recently overcome problem in gasoline production units at Exxon Mobil Corp's 150,000 barrel per day (bpd) Los Angeles-area refinery in Torrance, California.
Refinery spokeswoman Carolin Keith said the refinery was running "beautifully" on Monday despite market rumours of a malfunction
The buying, traders said, was in preparation for an overhaul of the alkylation unit set to begin around February 15, the traders said. Keith declined to discuss possible maintenance, saying if work is planned, Exxon will make an announcement shortly before the work begins.
Other traders said the work would be on a hydrotreater connected to the gasoline-producing fluidic catalytic cracking unit. CARBOB opened in Los Angeles 1.5 cents higher at 31 cents over March Nymex RBOB gasoline and finished trade at 34.5 cents over.
In the San Francisco Bay market, CARBOB sold at 35-cent premium to Nymex RBOB. March CARBOB, which will begin trading in the fourth week of February, sold at 17.75 cents on top of April RBOB in L.A. Ultra low sulfur diesel jumped 10 cents in a bid-offer spread at 36 cents/39 cents over March Nymex heating oil in L.A. and the Bay.
Los Angeles CARB diesel was priced near ULSD in a bid-offer spread at 36 cents/40 cents over Nymex heating oil. Bay CARB diesel was virtually unchanged at 45 cents/50 cents over. Traders said diesel supply is tight on the West Coast along with gasoline as refiners wrap up winter refinery overhauls.
Los Angeles and San Francisco jet fuel was unchanged at 19.5 cents/21.5 cents over Nymex heating oil. In the Portland market, unleaded gasoline sold at 5 cents over Nymex RBOB while low sulfur diesel traded at a 30-cent premium to Nymex heating oil.
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