Biorefineries for producing renewable diesel and associated hydrocarbons have been popping up like mushrooms all over the world and it is more interesting when oil companies such as Total in Italy and now Phillips 66 in the USA are converting their old crude oil refineries into biorefineries.

Phillips 66, a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company, recently announced its plans to reconfigure its San Francisco Refinery in Rodeo, California, to produce renewable fuels using used cooking oil (UCO), fats, greases and soybean oils for feedstock. The Phillips 66 Rodeo Renewed project would produce 680 million gallons annually of renewable diesel, renewable gasoline, and sustainable jet fuel. Combined with the production of renewable fuels from an existing project in development, the plant would produce greater than 800 million gallons a year of renewable fuels, making it the world’s largest facility of its kind.

The project scope includes the construction of pre-treatment units and the repurposing of existing hydrocracking units to enable production of renewable fuels. The plant will utilize its flexible logistics infrastructure to bring in cooking oil, fats, greases and soybean oils from global sources and supply renewable fuels to the California market.

If approved by Contra Costa County officials and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, renewable fuels production is expected to begin in early 2024. Once reconfigured, the plant will no longer transport or process crude oil.

Phillips 66 also announced plans to shut down the Rodeo Carbon Plant and Santa Maria refining facility in Arroyo Grande, California, in 2023. Associated crude oil pipelines will be taken out of service in phases starting in 2023.