SOLAR FARMS TO HELP POWER REFINERIES
January 12, 2025
A leading refining company, Flint Hills Resources operates 3 refineries—the Pine Bend refinery in Minnesota and two refineries in Corpus Christi. That means the crude oil processing capacity from the three refineries combined is more than 700,000 barrels per day.
We are in a situation where nature has complete power over us. Solar energy depends on the Sun, and therefore a solar panel will hardly produce any energy at night. In some cases, when electricity demand is low, solar panels generate more electricity than what is required by homeowners. In some other cases, renewable energy generated is less than demand. The solar facilities will help refineries reduce the electricity demanded from the grid.
- Approximately 540 acres
- 246,500 Panels
- 105 MW
The Pine Bend refinery is located in the south of the Twin Cities. It is one of the Flint Hills Resources refineries, that provides the majority of the fuels that the people in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest need. The Pine Bend’s refining capacity is 375,000 barrels per day. The refinery operates continuously to supply transportation fuel—gasoline, ultra-low sulfur gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. It also provides heating fuel, asphalt, fertilizer, and chemical-building blocks for numerous other everyday products. According to Flint Hills Resources, Pine Bend has been ENERGY STAR® certified. This Refinery’s combined heat and power system can also generate electricity to power up to 40% of its operations.
- Solar Facility: Pine Bend
- Area: Approx. 350 Acres
- Commissioned: 2023
- Total Solar Panels: 120,000
- Capacity: 45 MW (About 30% of the refinery’s power needs)
- The equivalent of powering more than 8,400 homes each year
Flint Hills Resources announced in August 2024 that it will be building its 2nd solar installation to help power the company’s Corpus Christi West refinery. The Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system supplies about 30 MW of electricity. Corpus Christi West refinery will combine the power of the CHP and the solar installation to satisfy up to 60% of the refinery’s daily power needs.
- Solar Facility: Corpus Christi West refinery
- Area: Approx. 100 Acres
- Announced: August, 2024
- Total Solar Panels: 56,700
- Capacity: 27 MW (About 28% of the refinery’s power needs)
- Enough electricity to power more than 5,100 homes per year
In December 2024, Phillips 66 announced that the company will have a 30.2 MW solar facility to reduce the Rodeo Renewable Energy Complex’s grid power demand. Phillips 66 said the complex, located in the San Francisco Bay area, reached its full renewable feedstock processing capacity of 50,000 barrels per day, in June 2024. Lower-carbon intensity feedstocks, including used cooking oil, fats, greases, and vegetable oil, are transformed into renewable fuels—renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel.
Related: Phillips 66 - on the verge of producing 50,000 barrels a day of renewable fuels
- Solar Facility: Phillips 66’s Rodeo Renewable Energy
- Area: Approx. 88 Acres
- Announced: December 2024
- Total Solar Panels: 70,000
- Capacity: 30.2 MW (About 50% of the refinery’s power needs)
- Equivalent to the electricity required to power more than 23,000 electric vehicles per year.
