Plains All American Pipeline announced that it plans to renovate the current storage capacity and expand pipeline, marine and rail transportation capacity at the former Western Refining refinery in Yorktown.

"We anticipate our investment in 2012 for renovation and expansion to be approximately $35 million," said PAA spokesman Osama Khalifa. "Additional investment is anticipated, contingent upon obtaining the permits to complete the full expansion."

In announcing the refinery upgrade recently, PAA officials said the plan would likely more than double the number of workers there from the 30 now at work. Some of the workers are full-time PAA employees, Khalifa said, while others are contract employees.

The Yorktown terminal serves as a staging point for supplying various energy products to the region, Khalifa said, including gasoline, diesel, butane, ethanol and crude oil. "The facility’s function is the storage and transport of these products."

Roy I. Lamoreaux, director of investor relations for Houston, Tex.-based Plains, said that PAA earlier acquired the Yorktown facility from Western Refining for approximately $220 million.

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