Overview
- A power loss hit the Joliet, Illinois, refinery on Sunday at about 3:30 p.m. CT and triggered safety flares that led Exxon Mobil to take the 264,000-barrel-per-day plant offline.
- Company statements say power was restored the same evening but refinery units remain stabilizing and the facility is not yet back to normal production.
- Exxon Mobil is investigating the cause, has notified appropriate agencies, and is conducting air monitoring while workers complete safety and damage checks.
- Industry group IIR Energy says the plant could return to normal service by the end of the week, and market watchers warn the outage could tighten Great Lakes and Midwest gasoline and diesel supplies in the short term.
- The Joliet refinery makes about 11 million gallons of fuel a day, and rising diesel prices and other global supply strains mean shoppers in the Midwest may see higher pump costs in the coming days.