United Steelworkers (USW) Union International Vice President Gary Beevers issued the following statement today on ConocoPhillips’ decision to close its Trainer, Pa., refinery in six months if a buyer is not found:

“We are disappointed to hear the news that ConocoPhillips will permanently close its Trainer, Pa., refinery in six months if a buyer is not found.

“Willie Chiang, senior vice president of ConocoPhillips Refining, Marketing, Transportation and Commercial, said in a company statement that product imports were one reason for the difficult environment faced by U.S. East Coast refiners. Our union stood ready to discuss product imports and received no response from ConocoPhillips or any of the other refiners. We were prepared to tackle this problem head on so we could save American jobs ... more