Oil and Gas

Houston refinery fire out; Lyondell cuts rates

Fire at LyondellBasell Houston plant
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Fire at LyondellBasell Houston plant

A fire at a LyondellBasell Industries refinery darkened Houston skies Friday morning.

A spokeswoman for Lyondell told CNBC that the fire occurred in the coker unit of the refinery, but is now out. She added that the company has the Houston Fire Department and response crews standing by and monitoring the situation.

Shares of Lyondell dipped briefly on the initial report, but were edging higher after the fire was put out.

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The company also cut rates by up to 25 percent at its 263,776 barrels per day refinery in Houston after the fire, sources familiar with plant operations said.

A coker damaged by the fire was shut with repairs expected to last up to a month, the sources said.

— Reuters contributed to this report.