Site of explosion in 2005 that killed 15 people sold for $2.5bn, helping to pay for Deepwater Horizon fines
BP has agreed to sell Texas City refinery, one of its most troubled assets where 15 people died in an explosion in 2005, to Marathon Petroleum Corporation for $2.5bn (£1.55bn).
The sale also includes a part of BP's retail and logistics network in the south east US. The deal forms part of a $38bn selling spree BP embarked on after the Gulf of Mexico disaster.
The company has now made disposals worth more than $35bn, which will help pay for liabilities and fines related to the Deepwater Horizon spill. BP has also been keen to scale down its refining operations where profit margins are thin.
The energy giant recently sold its Carson refinery in California to Tesoro for $2.5bn but plans to hang on to three core US sites: Whiting in Indiana, Cherry Point in Washington and Toledo in Ohio. It also disposed of oil and gas fields in the Gulf of Mexico to Plains Exploration for $5.5bn.
"Today's announcement is the second major milestone in the strategic refocusing of our US fuels business," said Iain Conn, chief executive of BP's global refining and marketing business. "Together with the sale of our Carson, California refinery, announced in August, the divestment of Texas City will allow us to focus BP's US fuels investments on our three northern refineries."
