CITGO Lake Charles’ roots run deep, connecting to Cities Service Co. and the Lake Charles Manufacturing Complex, which began production in 1944 to provide aviation fuel for bomber aircraft during WWII.
The Lake Charles Refinery produces gasoline, diesel, kerosene, propane, butane, propylene, benzene, toluene, mixed xylenes and other industrial products.
Today, the Louisiana-based refinery produces gasoline, diesel, kerosene, propane, butane, propylene, benzene, toluene, mixed xylenes and other industrial products.
Leading CITGO Lake Charles, one of the top 10 largest refineries in the U.S., is Sterling Neblett. Neblett has newly been named vice president and general manager of CITGO Lakes Charles, but he’s far from new blood. In 1990, only two weeks after obtaining his degree in chemical engineering from the University of Arkansas, Neblett began working at CITGO’s Lake Charles Manufacturing Complex. He has also been general manager of Refinery Optimization and Excellence for CITGO in Houston. In 2021, he became general manager of Engineering and Business Services at the CITGO Lemont Refinery.
Neblett said he is excited to take on this role because he is surrounded by a strong team with whom he has worked for many years. He also expressed excitement about the short-term outlook for the refinery and its employees as they move forward from the pandemic and the hurricanes that devastated the region in 2020 and 2021.
According to Neblett, the most recent significant challenges for the site were responding to two major hurricanes (Laura and Delta) and COVID-19 all in the same year. Like most challenges, the response required good planning and execution from the site. It has also required commitment and perseverance by CITGO employees and the contractors at the refinery. Neblett praised the CITGO employees and contractors for their “amazing” responses to these challenges. He added that, going forward, the key issues facing the refinery are obtaining additional quality personnel to support the refinery and the competition from alternative fuels.
“We understand that it’s a privilege for us to operate in the communities we serve, not a right.” — Sterling Neblett, CITGO
Safety is imperative to operations for CITGO. In 2021, the Lake Charles Refinery had an OSHA recordable rate of 0.10, and so far, 2022 is tracking significantly lower than that, Neblett said. He attributes this performance to the “excellent safety culture” of the refinery’s employees and contractors. To improve safety, the site increased face-to-face training, improved safety procedures, conducted internal investigations of high-potential events, added more auditing and increased safety personnel in the field.
Social responsibility
Neblett explained that social responsibility is a key value at CITGO.
“We understand that it’s a privilege for us to operate in the communities we serve, not a right,” he said. “We’ve been active in the Lake Charles community for decades, supporting with funds and volunteers in a number of activities.”
In 2021, the Lake Charles Refinery had an OSHA recordable rate of 0.10 and 2022 is tracking significantly lower.
Some of the recent activities the refinery has participated in included CITGO E-Recycle Day in Lake Charles and CITGO Innovation Academies. In 2021, CITGO donated more than $1 million to local nonprofit organizations in Southwest Louisiana, including McNeese State University, SOWELA Technical Community College, CHRISTUS Ochsner Southwest Louisiana Foundation, SWLA Center for Health Services, United Way of Southwest Louisiana, The Muscular Dystrophy Association, four schools in the Calcasieu Parish Partners in Education program and more.
The Lake Charles Refinery also recently organized E-Recycle Day. The event provided residents with the opportunity to recycle their unwanted electronics free of charge. Items collected included TVs, cell phones, computers, batteries, household items containing mercury and other consumer electronics. This year, 564 vehicles drove through the event with collections totaling eight extra-large roll-off boxes, which equals approximately five semitrailers, over 1,000 light bulbs and numerous items containing mercury. Since 2009, CITGO E-Recycle Day has kept more than 492 tons of electronic waste out of landfills.
Following Hurricane Ida in 2021, CITGO contributed $50,000 to the relief efforts coordinated by the City of Lake Charles and United Way of SWLA. Additionally, TeamCITGO provided approximately 3,000 hot meals on-site to residents in Houma, Louisiana.
Looking to the future
Thinking about the industry’s future, Neblett is confident that fossil fuels won’t be vanishing anytime soon.
“We believe the world’s growing population will need all forms of energy, and fossil fuels will continue to be an important component of that energy mix well into the future,” he projected. “To that end, we plan to continue supplying quality transportation fuels and petrochemical products for both the U.S. and international markets. We are committed to providing these products through the consumer transition to new fuels such as hydrogen power and electric vehicles.”
Sterling Neblett, Vice President and General Manager, CITGO Lake Charles Refinery
He added that CITGO will continue to do its part by looking at energy reduction projects, carbon-capturing options and lower-carbon feedstocks for the refinery.
“We are optimistic that we can have a positive impact in the energy transition,” Neblett said.
For the Lake Charles site, Neblett said his expectation is that the team will craft a vision for maintaining relevance during the transition to alternate fuels. He added that while moving along this path of transition, the refinery must continue to improve upon its exemplary safety and environmental performance.
For more information, visit www.citgo.com or call (337) 708-6079.
