PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr. 16, 2009-- Sunoco, Inc. (NYSE: SUN) said today that it reached an agreement to sell its 85,000 barrel-per-day refinery in Tulsa, Okla., to Holly Corporation (NYSE: HOC) for $65 million. The transaction will also include inventory attributable to the refinery which will be valued at market prices at closing.

Under the terms of the agreement, Holly Corporation agrees to invest in several necessary upgrades, including installation of a distillate treating system and sulfur recovery unit, to ensure the long-term viability and environmental compliance of the refinery. In addition, Holly Corporation assumes all obligations regarding remediation and other operational issues.

The transaction is subject to normal conditions, such as regulatory and other approvals, and is expected to close on June 1, 2009.

Sunoco had previously announced in November 2008 that it would not proceed with a capital improvement project to upgrade the Tulsa refinery. Instead, Sunoco said it would continue to pursue a sale of the facility or convert it into a terminal by the end of 2009 if a buyer could not be found.

Speaking on the transaction, Sunoco Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Lynn Elsenhans said: “This sale demonstrates our continuing efforts to realign our portfolio of assets and represents another step toward improving our performance and competitiveness. It also keeps the refinery operating, provides for necessary upgrades to ensure the long-term viability of the facility, and protects approximately 400 jobs. We are grateful to the talented and dedicated employees at the facility who made it successful for so many years. In addition, we thank the public officials who supported our efforts to sell the refinery. We appreciate their work on behalf of the company, the employees at the facility, and the greater Tulsa community.”

The Tulsa refinery, which began production in 1913, became a part of Sunoco’s refining system through a merger with Sunray DX in 1968.

Sunoco, Inc., headquartered in Philadelphia, PA, is a leading manufacturer and marketer of petroleum and petrochemical products. With 910,000 barrels per day of refining capacity, approximately 4,700 retail sites selling gasoline and convenience items, approximately 6,000 miles of crude oil and refined product owned and operated pipelines and 43 product terminals, Sunoco is one of the largest independent refiner-marketers in the United States. Sunoco is a significant manufacturer of petrochemicals with annual sales of approximately five billion pounds, largely chemical intermediates used to make fibers, plastics, film and resins. Utilizing a unique, patented technology, Sunoco’s cokemaking facilities in the United States have the capacity to manufacture approximately 3.0 million tons annually of high-quality metallurgical-grade coke for use in the steel industry. Sunoco also is the operator of, and has an equity interest in, a 1.7 million tons-per-year cokemaking facility in Vitoria, Brazil.

Source: Sunoco, Inc.

Sunoco, Inc.
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