Houston Refinery Revival: Valero Buys 700-Acre Plant for $320.5 Million

Valero has agreed to purchase a shuttered refinery on the Houston Ship Channel to resume fuel production in the city. The acquisition involves a 700-acre facility formerly owned by LyondellBasell, which sits adjacent to Valero’s existing Houston operations.

Valero will pay $320.5 million for the site. The company expects to restart 165,000 barrels per day of light sweet crude processing capacity by the end of 2027. The transaction is scheduled to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and standard closing conditions.

LyondellBasell closed the refinery in February 2025 as part of its exit from the refining sector. The facility, which began operations in 1918, produced gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. It employed approximately 400 workers before the shutdown, with the company planning to lay off 345 of them. LyondellBasell had previously considered converting the property into an advanced recycling facility but deferred that decision while assessing market conditions.

Valero assumes responsibility for site operations and existing environmental, pension, and employee obligations. LyondellBasell CEO Peter Vanacker stated that the sale allows the company to realize value from a non-core asset while positioning the infrastructure and employees with a primary refiner. Valero CEO Lane Riggs called the purchase a strategic expansion of the company’s U.S. Gulf Coast footprint at a fraction of replacement value.

The sale coincided with LyondellBasell’s report of $758 million in third-quarter profit and $8.5 billion in revenue. Valero indicated it may later invest in equipment to process high-complexity, heavy sour crude, expanding beyond the initial restart scope. The 165,000 barrels per day figure represents the specific processing volume Valero intends to bring online by 2027.