The Tulsa Refinery started with humble beginnings in 1913, with only one office building and a few pressure stills. The original name of the refinery, Cosden and Co. was changed to Mid-Continent Petroleum Corp in 1925. The refinery continued to expand, producing “Diamond” and “DX” petroleum products to fill the demands of Mid-Continent’s extensive retail marketing network. In 1955, Mid-Continent merged with Sunray, an exploration & production company, and the refinery became known as Sunray Mid-Continent. In 1968, the site grew to become an important element in Sun’s refining system with the merger of Sunray DX and Sun Oil. With this merger came a newer, stronger Sun, now over 100 years old and a major oil company whose focus is on refining and marketing.

Today
Today Sunoco’s Tulsa refinery spreads over 800 acres and is the second largest refinery in Oklahoma. Sunoco is also the largest crude oil purchaser within the state. Sunoco supports numerous other Tulsa businesses by using local contracted equipment and specialized services. The Tulsa refinery processes 85,000 barrels of crude oil per day and produces products such as gasoline, lubricants, diesel, wax and coke. The Tulsa refinery employs 360 people and roughly 80 contractors.

What We Do….Our Products
Petroleum refining is a combination of processes that sort the hydrocarbons found in crude oil into “fractions.” The properties of the fractions are then improved to make petroleum products. Over 85,000 barrels of crude oil is processed daily.

Products generated from the Tulsa refinery are a part of our everyday lives, and include:

• Lubricant basestocks, specialty process oils and waxes that are used in hundreds of industrial and consumer applications including tires and rubber, coatings, agriculture, packaging, and adhesives. Sunoco is one of the largest suppliers of specialty oils in the world.
• Gasoline, for autos and trucks. During the summer, Sunoco’s lower vapor pressure gasoline helps the Tulsa metropolitan area comply with strict federal clean air standards.
• Kerosene/jet fuel for aircraft and diesel fuel for farming vehicles and railroads.
• Liquid petroleum gas (LPG) for heating and industrial/agricultural processes. An increasing amount is being used as a low-emission fuel for autos and trucks.