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| Marcus Hook complex. Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Photographer DAVID SWANSON |
Betting
big on predictions of inexpensive and plentiful natural gas liquids in the Marcellus Shale in Western
Pennsylvania, the facility that once made Marcus Hook an oil town is turning
its attention to gas.
big on predictions of inexpensive and plentiful natural gas liquids in the Marcellus Shale in Western
Pennsylvania, the facility that once made Marcus Hook an oil town is turning
its attention to gas.
Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Caitlin McCabe writes:
Inside the complex,
hundreds of construction workers bustle every day, their hammering and drilling
echoing throughout the otherwise-quiet town.
The sprawling facility
in the tiny Delaware County borough of 2,400 wasn’t always this way: Just three
years ago, the complex – once the site of Sunoco Inc.’s oil refinery – sat
largely vacant, its smokestacks extinguished, and most of its more than 500
workers long laid off
.
in the tiny Delaware County borough of 2,400 wasn’t always this way: Just three
years ago, the complex – once the site of Sunoco Inc.’s oil refinery – sat
largely vacant, its smokestacks extinguished, and most of its more than 500
workers long laid off
.
For as long as residents
can remember, the refinery grounds that long belonged to Sunoco were not just a
presence in the borough. They defined it. Dominating the municipality’s one
square mile of land, the refinery shaped the lives of residents for
generations.
can remember, the refinery grounds that long belonged to Sunoco were not just a
presence in the borough. They defined it. Dominating the municipality’s one
square mile of land, the refinery shaped the lives of residents for
generations.
So when Sunoco abruptly
announced in 2011 that it was shutting down after more than 100 years,
thousands worried about the borough’s viability. Others worried about their
own.
Gradually, owing to
Sunoco Logistics, the sister company of Sunoco, new life at the once-busy
complex has begun.
Sunoco Logistics, the sister company of Sunoco, new life at the once-busy
complex has begun.
Close to 200 permanent jobs have returned to the small town south of Philadelphia.
A floundering economy – slowly – is forging ahead.
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