Murphy Oil eyes ethanol plant

Oil company Murphy Oil Corporation is said to be considering the acquisition of a shuttered fuel ethanol plant in Hereford, Texas, US, formerly owned by energy firm Panda Energy, after the Panda Group sold its subsidiary Hereford Biofuels and the unfinished plant to creditors earlier this year for $25 million (€18.9 million).

Murphy Oil is another of an increasing number of oil companies moving into the biofuels sector.

The news comes after the company’s Board of Directors last month approved plans for exiting its refining businesses and confirmed that its refineries at Superior, Wisconsin; Meraux, Louisiana and Milford Haven, Wales, along with the retail system in the UK, will be put up for sale.