California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) sent a letter to California Energy Commission (CEC) Vice Chair Siva Gunda, urging him to take action to ensure that the oil business remains in the state.
Newsom called for the CEC to “redouble the State’s efforts to work closely with refiners on short- and long-term planning, including through high-level, immediate engagement, to help ensure that Californians continue to have access to a safe, affordable, and reliable supply of transportation fuels, and that refiners continue to see the value in serving the California market, even as demand for fossil fuels continues its gradual decline over the coming decades.”
“Further, I am directing you, as my Administration’s lead representative on this issue, to reinforce the State’s openness to a collaborative relationship and our firm belief that Californians can be protected from price spikes and refiners can profitably operate in California — a market where demand for gasoline will still exist for years to come,” he wrote.
The letter comes as Valero recently shared its “current intent to idle, restructure, or cease refining operations at Valero’s Benicia Refinery by the end of April 2026.”
“We understand the impact that this may have on our employees, business partners, and community, and will continue to work with them through this period,” Valero CEO and President Lane Riggs said at the time.
Last year, Chevron announced it was leaving California to relocate to Texas. A year earlier, president of Chevron’s Americas Products business, Andy Waltz, wrote in a filing to the California Energy Commission that “California’s policies have made it a difficult place to invest so we have rejected capital projects in the state. Such capital flight reflects the state’s inadequate returns and adversarial business climate.”
