Indiana refinery fire not expected to affect gas prices much

CHICAGO (AP) - A major Midwestern oil refinery shut down by a fire should reopen in the next few days, its operators said, and industry experts said the brief shutdown is unlikely to have a major effect on gas prices in the region.

BP said Monday that it expects to resume refinery operations “in the coming days,” and that the company “has deployed all available resources and is working around the clock to bring the Whiting refinery back to normal operations as soon as safely possible.”

The Whiting Refinery is the sixth-largest refinery in the U.S. and provides about 20% to 25% of the gasoline, jet fuel and diesel used collectively in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin, according to Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers.

Evers said his administration is waiving regulations and taking other steps to minimize disruptions in fuel supply and “ensure that fuel keeps flowing at the terminal and the pump.” These include waiving vehicle hours-of-service rules and temporarily raising the summer vapor pressure allowance to allow the use of winter-blend fuel and take advantage of existing fuel supplies.