Valero Energy Corporation (Valero), incorporated on June 8, 1981, is an independent petroleum refiner and ethanol producer. The Company's segments include refining, ethanol and Valero Energy Partners LP (VLP). The refining segment includes its refining operations and the associated marketing activities. The ethanol segment includes its ethanol operations and the associated marketing activities, and logistics assets that support its ethanol operations. The Company owns logistics assets (crude oil pipelines, refined petroleum product pipelines, terminals, tanks, marine docks, truck rack bays and other assets) that support its refining operations. Some of these assets are owned by VLP, which is a midstream master limited partnership owned by the Company. VLP's assets include crude oil and refined petroleum products pipeline and terminal systems in the United States Gulf Coast and the United States Mid-Continent regions. The Company's refineries produce conventional gasolines, premium gasolines, gasoline meeting the specifications of the California Air Resources Board (CARB), diesel, low-sulfur diesel, ultra-low-sulfur diesel, CARB diesel, other distillates, jet fuel, asphalt, petrochemicals, lubricants and other refined petroleum products.
Refining
As of December 31, 2016, the Company owned 15 petroleum refineries located in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 3.1 million barrels per day. The Company sells its refined petroleum products in both the wholesale rack and bulk markets. These sales include refined petroleum products that are manufactured in its refining operations, as well as refined petroleum products purchased or received on exchange from third parties. As of December 31, 2016, the Company also sold its refined petroleum products in approximately 7,400 outlets under its brand names in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland. The Company's refineries have access to marine transportation facilities and interconnect with common-carrier pipeline systems, enabling the Company to sell products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and other countries.
The Company sells branded and unbranded gasoline and distillate production, as well as other products, such as asphalt, lube oils, and natural gas liquids (NGLs). The principal purchasers of its refined petroleum products from terminal truck racks are wholesalers, distributors, retailers, and truck-delivered end users throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland. The majority of its rack volume is sold through unbranded channels. The remainder is sold to distributors and dealers that are members of the Valero-brand family. As of December 31, 2016, the Company had approximately 5,700 branded sites in the United States, approximately 900 branded sites in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and approximately 800 branded sites in Canada. These sites are independently owned and are supplied by the Company under multi-year contracts. For branded sites, products are sold under the Valero, Beacon, Diamond Shamrock and Shamrock brands in the United States; the Texaco brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and the Ultramar brand in Canada.
The Company sells its gasoline and distillate production, as well as other products, such as asphalt, petrochemicals and NGLs, through bulk sales channels in the United States and international markets. Its bulk sales are made to various oil companies and traders, as well as certain bulk end users, such as railroads, airlines, and utilities. Its bulk sales are transported primarily by pipeline, barges, and tankers to major tank farms and trading hubs.
Ethanol
As of December 31, 2016, the Company owned 11 ethanol plants in the Mid-Continent region of the United States with a combined production capacity of approximately 1.4 billion gallons per year. It sells ethanol in the wholesale bulk market, and some of its logistics assets supporting its ethanol operations. The Company sources its corn supply from local farmers and commercial elevators. The Company sells its ethanol primarily to refiners and gasoline blenders under term and spot contracts in bulk markets, such as New York, Chicago, the United States Gulf Coast, Florida, and the United States West Coast. The Company ships its dry distillers grains by truck or rail primarily to animal feed customers in the United States and Mexico. It also sells modified distillers grains locally at its plant sites, and corn oil by truck or rail. The Company distributes its ethanol through logistics assets, which include railcars owned by it.
