-Calumet Specialty Products will invest $25 million in a proposed gas-to-liquids (GTL) facility in Lake Charles, La. The $135 million, 1,100-barrel-per-day plant will be owned and operated by Juniper GTL — a venture co-owned by SGC Energia and Great Northern Project Development. Calumet will get a 22% stake in the facility, which will produce waxes, drilling fluids and other refined products.
-Chevron on Monday released a final environmental impact report for its planned refinery modernization project in Richmond, Calif. It awaits review by the City of Richmond Planning Commission. The report was released just a few days after an environmental advocacy group launched a new lawsuit designed to halt the project, which was first approved by city authorities in 2008.
-PPL Corp. and Riverstone Holdings will combine their merchant power generation businesses into a new independent power producer. Via Reuters, the new, publicly-traded firm will be known as Talen Energy Corp. and will own and operate 15,320 megawatts of capacity in the U.S.
-Shipments of oil by rail from Western Canada will more than triple by 2016, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers reported Monday. The Canadian oil industry is approaching a severe shortage of pipeline capacity as key projects such as Keystone XL continue to stall.
-OxyChem today announced the retirement of President Chuck Anderson, a 33-year veteran of the company who has held its top post since 2006. Senior Vice President Robert Peterson, who has held various senior roles in manufacturing, sales and marketing in his 18-year career with OxyChem, will succeed Anderson effective Aug. 1.