Casey ups ante in refinery fight

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey is about to up the ante on Sunoco and ConocoPhillips.

The Democrat will be back in Marcus Hook for a noon press conference at which he is expected to discuss the impact the possible closure of the local refineries will have on the local workforce as well as energy prices on the East Coast.

Sunoco announced back in September that they were getting out of the refinery business. They indicated they would put their iconic Marcus Hook refinery up for sale, and that if no buyer came forward, they would shutter the facility. The same would hold true for their refinery in South Philly.

Two weeks later ConocoPhillips said they would do the same with their refinery in Trainer. Only they were speeding up the process, idling the plant and preparing to lay off workers.

Workers at the Sunoco plant were dismayed to hear from the company last week that there is no buyer interested in the Marcus Hook plant, despite discussions with as many as 150 suitors.

It’s also expected that Casey could call for Senate hearings into the potential plant closings.

We’ll have all the details from the press conference, which is set for the United Steelworkers Union Hall in Linwood, at 12:15.

And we’ll be back in the Hook tomorrow for another huge rally being held from 1-6 p.m. Stay with us as we stay on top of one of the biggest economic stories to hit the county in years.

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