OREANDA-NEWS. Marathon Petroleum could increase access to natural gasoline at its largest refinery as a gasoline blendstock as the company ramps up its ability to export the fuel.

The US independent refiner has applied to Louisiana environmental regulators to build connections to a third-party supplier of natural gasoline and butane at its 562,000 b/d refinery in Garyville, Louisiana. The project, proposed to begin construction in January and come online in October 2016, would increase gasoline production by 80,000 b/d, according to the filing.

Marathon Petroleum acknowledged the project but did not otherwise comment on the plan. The natural gasoline supplier is not identified in filings.

Shale oil and gas development has produced a surge in natural gas liquids including natural gasoline and butane. Both are at their highest average US production in the more than 30 years of Energy Information Administration data.

Ample supplies mean the products offer an attractive blendstock in winter, when less rigorous federal gasoline standards allow the use of components that more readily evaporate at higher temperatures.

The company has increased its ability to produce and export gasoline, aiming to reach 395,000 b/d by the end of 2017 and up to 500,000 b/d by the end of 2018 through projects at Garyville and its 475,000 b/d refinery in Texas City, Texas.

Marathon Petroleum also proposed plans to maintain higher Garyville coking throughputs through minor modifications to those units. Upgrades would allow the company to purchase 7,500 b/d of cut resid blendstocks to send to two cokers to replace feed diverted to make asphalt when that product is profitable. Construction would begin next November and the project would come online July 2017, according to the filing.

Marathon last month said it had cancelled an up to $2.5bn upgrade converting residual oil to ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD), citing deteriorating margins on the project.