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02-21-2007, 01:14 PM
Refinery fire causes gas shortage at Ont. stations
CTV.ca News Staff
A recent fire at an Imperial Oil refinery is contributing to a supply shortage at some gas stations in southwestern Ontario, company officials confirmed Tuesday.
''There are some service stations that will, from time to time, be without product for a few hours in the next 10 days,'' Robert Theberge, a spokesman for Imperial Oil Ltd., told The Canadian Press on Tuesday.
"We do regret the inconvenience it's creating," Theberge said, noting the fire at Nanticoke, Ont. was one of several factors playing a role in the fuel shortage.
At some stations in Ontario, prices climbed past the 90-cent-a-litre mark while other locations temporary closed their pumps.
Other factor contributing to the supply shortage:
A dwindling supply caused by demand for ethanol
The CN Rail strike, which has left Imperial Oil trucks unavailable to help transport fuel
Cold weather, which has made it difficult for ships to transport fuel to Canada from the U.S.
Production problems at other refineries, including a blaze at the Sarnia, Ont. location in December
''It's the straw that broke the camel's back,'' Theberge said of the fire at the Nanticoke refinery, southwest of Hamilton on the north shore of Lake Erie.
The fire broke out Thursday at a crude-oil processing unit in the refinery, which produces about 118,000 barrels of fuel a day. It was put out in about two hours.
Imperial's competitors in the industry have come forward to say they can meet consumer demand, Theberge said.
The 28-year-old Nanticoke refinery produces unleaded gasoline, diesel fuel, heavy fuel oil, asphalt, propane and butane.
Last week's fire was the second one at an Imperial refinery in two months. A hydrocracking unit at the company's Sarnia, Ont. refinery was destroyed in an explosion and fire in mid-December.
Imperial is 69.6 per cent owned by Exxon Mobil Corp.
With files from The Canadian Press
CTV.ca News Staff
A recent fire at an Imperial Oil refinery is contributing to a supply shortage at some gas stations in southwestern Ontario, company officials confirmed Tuesday.
''There are some service stations that will, from time to time, be without product for a few hours in the next 10 days,'' Robert Theberge, a spokesman for Imperial Oil Ltd., told The Canadian Press on Tuesday.
"We do regret the inconvenience it's creating," Theberge said, noting the fire at Nanticoke, Ont. was one of several factors playing a role in the fuel shortage.
At some stations in Ontario, prices climbed past the 90-cent-a-litre mark while other locations temporary closed their pumps.
Other factor contributing to the supply shortage:
A dwindling supply caused by demand for ethanol
The CN Rail strike, which has left Imperial Oil trucks unavailable to help transport fuel
Cold weather, which has made it difficult for ships to transport fuel to Canada from the U.S.
Production problems at other refineries, including a blaze at the Sarnia, Ont. location in December
''It's the straw that broke the camel's back,'' Theberge said of the fire at the Nanticoke refinery, southwest of Hamilton on the north shore of Lake Erie.
The fire broke out Thursday at a crude-oil processing unit in the refinery, which produces about 118,000 barrels of fuel a day. It was put out in about two hours.
Imperial's competitors in the industry have come forward to say they can meet consumer demand, Theberge said.
The 28-year-old Nanticoke refinery produces unleaded gasoline, diesel fuel, heavy fuel oil, asphalt, propane and butane.
Last week's fire was the second one at an Imperial refinery in two months. A hydrocracking unit at the company's Sarnia, Ont. refinery was destroyed in an explosion and fire in mid-December.
Imperial is 69.6 per cent owned by Exxon Mobil Corp.
With files from The Canadian Press
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