Refinery: St. Paul Park, Minnesota
Owner: Marathon Petroleum
Capacity: 103,000 b/d
Notes: A spokesman for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters at Marathon's 103,000 b/d refinery in St. Paul Park, Minnesota, Dec. 18 confirmed union workers at the plant last week voted unanimously to authorize a work stoppage after the contract expires at midnight on Dec. 31, 2021.
"The company has the desire to replace [some union workers] with outside contractors," said Dean Benson, a shop steward representing the plant's refinery workers, on the Dec. 18 media call to discuss the strike.
Benson, who has been a crude distillation unit operator at St. Paul Park for almost 17 years, said the replacement of union jobs with less skilled and less trained workers leaves him deeply concerned for the surrounding community given the plant is located in a well-populated area.
Safety and reliable operations are the key contract objectives put forth by the Teamsters and the sticking point in the contract negotiations, Benson said, with Marathon looking to change operating procedure which Teamsters feel will jeopardize the union goal.
Negotiations are continuing and will continue almost daily throughout the end of the year, Benson added.
Benson said there is no indication from the company that it will shut the plant down if the work stoppage goes ahead. While he had no exact numbers, the refinery has been running near full capacity, he said.
Marathon spokesman Jamal Kheiry said in an email as a precautionary measure the company has prepared for a work stoppage at the refinery.
"We have appropriate contingency plans in place, and are fully prepared to safely operate the refinery with trained and qualified personnel," he said.
Kheiry added the company did not expect any supply disruptions in Minnesota or the Midwest region the refinery serves.
