Benicia’s draft Industrial Health and Safety Ordinance is now live! Read and provide feedback on the draft ‘IHSO’ and supporting documents by clicking the link or image below.
The deadline to submit feedback is August 17, 2024. You will need an account for EngageBenicia.com to read the draft and leave feedback.
If you would prefer to email comments or suggestions, the directions for how to do so are included on the linked page.
To learn more about the project and the public engagement process, visit the City’s public engagement website, www.EngageBenicia.com.
Accessing The Meeting
How to Participate in the Meeting:
1) Attend in person at Council Chambers
2) Cable T.V. Broadcast – Check with your cable provider for your local government broadcast channel.
3) Livestream online at www.ci.benicia.ca.us/agendas.
4) Zoom Meeting (link below)
The public may view and participate (via computer or phone) link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88508047557?pwd=cHRsZlBrYlphU3pkODcycytmcFR2UT09
Dial in with phone:
Before the start of the item you wish to comment on, call any of the numbers
• Enter the meeting ID number: 885 0804 7557 *please note this is an updated ID number* item you wish to speak on. Once unmuted, you will have up to 5 minutes to speak.
How to Submit Public Comments for this City Council meeting:
Besides appearing in person and offering public comments, members of the public may provide public comment via Zoom, or to the City Clerk by email at lwolfe@ci.benicia.ca.us. Any comment submitted to the City Clerk should indicate to which item of the agenda the comment relates. [BenIndy: This is item 16A.]
Specific information follows:
– Comments received by 2:00 pm on the day of the meeting will be electronically forwarded to the City Council and posted on the City’s website.
– Comments received after 2:00 pm, but before the start time of the meeting will be electronically forwarded to the City Council but will not be posted on the City’s website.
Canada’s Trans Mountain Pipeline is in its first month of supplying heavy tar sands crude from Edmonton to Canada’s west coast. According to a July 1 Reuters article (see below), Valero’s Benicia Refinery is among the first to buy and ship this volatile crude oil.
In an earlier June 12 article, Reuters reported that recent concerns have arisen over high sulfur content of this crude, and its high acidity and vapor pressure, “conditions that could damage refining equipment or increase air pollution.” Of course, Valero has joined with Chevron and Canadian oil companies in protesting current limits on vapor pressure.
Reuters reports the departure on July 1 of 20 ships loaded with crude oil, one of which was headed to our quaint village. How long does a ship take to get here? When did – or will – the ship slog along our Carquinez Strait and dock at Valero? Any of you know how to research this? – BenIndy
Reuters, by Arathy Somasekhar, July 1, 2024
About 20 ships loaded crude oil on Canada’s West Coast in the first full month of operation on the newly expanded Trans Mountain pipeline, according to vessel-tracking data on Sunday, slightly below the operator’s forecast.
Loadings from the pipeline expansion are closely watched because the Canadian government wants to sell the $24.84 billion (C$34 billion) line. Questions about oil quality, pipeline economics and loading challenges have swirled since its startup, spurring concerns over demand and exports of the crude.
The 20 vessels loaded were less than the 22 ships that Trans Mountain had initially expected to load for the month.
Total crude exports from Vancouver were around 350,000 barrels per day with the last two vessels for June-loading at the Westridge Marine terminal, as of Sunday.
“This first month is just shy of the 350,000-400,000 bpd we expected ahead of the startup. We are still in the discovery phase, with kinks being ironed out … but in the grand scheme of things, this has been a solid start,” said Matt Smith, lead analyst at Kpler.
The vessels, partially loaded Aframaxes able to carry about 550,000 barrels each, mostly sailed to the U.S. West Coast and Asia. Some cargoes were loaded onto larger ships for delivery to India and China, according to data providers LSEG, Kpler and Vortexa.
Reliance Industries bought 2 million barrels of Canadian crude for July delivery, a deal that involved four ship-to-ship transfers to load the oil onto a very large crude carrier offshore California. The oil is destined for Sikka, India, where the company operates the world’s biggest refining complex.
Phillips 66 acquired a cargo for its Ferndale, Washington, refinery, Marathon Petroleum Corp for its Los Angeles refinery, and Valero Energy Corp for its Benicia, California, refinery .
TMX did not immediately respond ahead of a long weekend in Canada. Phillips 66 and Marathon Petroleum declined to comment, while Valero did not reply to a request for comments.
The market was expecting about 17 to 18 loadings, said Rohit Rathod, market analyst at energy researcher Vortexa.
“Chinese demand has been below expectations, and if not for Reliance most of the barrels in June would have remained within the (West Coast) region,” Rathod added.
Trans Mountain this month revised standards for accepting crude oil on its recently expanded system, alleviating worries about the acidity and vapor pressure of the line’s crude oil.
Logistical constraints in a busy, narrow shipping channel after leaving the Westridge dock in Vancouver were also expected to impact loadings. To manage high traffic in the channel, the Port of Vancouver has restrictions on transit times.
The expanded Trans Mountain pipeline is running around 80% full with some spot capacity used. Trans Mountain forecasts 96% utilization from next year. It has capacity to load 34 Aframax ships a month.
(By Arathy Somasekhar in Houston; additional reporting by Nia Williams in British Columbia; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
[BenIndy: At last, the rumors have been confirmed. We won’t speculate as to what prompted the Valero Benicia Refinery’s exiting GM/VP to retire at 49; we will simply wish him good luck. The incoming GM/VP Lauren Bird, who has more than 37 years experience working in the oil refining industry, served as GM/VP for two other refineries and worked at the Benicia refinery when it was Exxon Benicia. This leadership transition bears careful attention, especially in light of the imminent votes on an Industrial Safety Ordinance for Benicia.]
From the Valero Benicia Refinery Community Update newsletter, sent May 31, 2024
Josh Tulino, Vice President (VP) and General Manager (GM) of the Valero Benicia Refinery has elected to retire. Josh began his career with Exxon as a process engineer at Benicia and became a Valero employee when Valero purchased the Benicia Refinery in 2000. Josh held different positions throughout the Valero Energy Corporation circuit and was promoted to VP & GM at our Memphis Refinery in 2017 and then transferred to Benicia as our VP/GM in 2020.
With Josh’s retirement, Lauren Bird will relocate to Benicia as VP/GM effective June 1, 2024. Lauren started his career at Exxon Baytown and later transferred to Exxon Benicia progressing through positions of increasing responsibilities. He joined Valero when Valero purchased the Benicia Refinery and was promoted to Director of Refinery Operations in 2002. Lauren was then promoted to VP and General Manager of Valero’s Meraux Refinery in 2012, he then relocated to Valero’s McKee Refinery as the VP and GM in 2014. We are excited that Lauren will be coming back to Benicia where he raised his family.
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