In a stunning turn of events, Jamaica-based West Indies Petroleum Limited (WIP) has denied ownership of the Limetree Bay Refinery in St Croix, United States Virgin Islands.

The Virgin Islands Consortium published in a June 22 article that WIP denied its interest in the refinery which was purchased for US$62 million in late January. WIP, incorporated in 2012, started in the ship-bunkering business in the Caribbean and Latin American region, but has since expanded into final petroleum products and is targeting regional expansion.

“West Indies Petroleum Limited wishes to clarify that contrary to media reports it is not a stakeholder in the Limetree Bay Refinery in St Croix in the US Virgin Islands and was not the entity which purchased the refinery. Although an initial participant in the early bidding process, due to legal factors WIPL elected not to further pursue the initiative. Those factors also constrained WIPL from commenting sooner about the inaccurate reports in the media,” the response WIP provided to the consortium and other media entities in June.

When the Caribbean Business Report reached out to senior vice-president of WIP Danville Walker for comment on the matter, he said that he could not comment at the time and would respond once certain events have passed first. WIP listed around $5.63 billion or US$36.30 million in preference shares on the Jamaica Stock Exchange’s Private Market on December 31.

A Virgin Islands Daily News article had a WIP response stating, “The sale of the Limetree Bay Refinery was successfully closed earlier this year by Port Hamilton Refining and Transportation which is a consortium of United States and Caribbean based investors.”

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a notification on its website stated that WIP and Port Hamilton were the joint winners of the refinery in an auction held in bankruptcy court in December 2021. In a letter sent to WIP and Port Hamilton on March 2, the EPA summarised a number of requirements that had to be met before restarting the refinery. In a subsequent letter sent on March 22, the EPA stated that based on strong indicators, the refinery would need to obtain a Prevention of Significant Deterioration permit prior to the potential start-up of refinery operations.

The refinery had its operations paused in June 2021 after the EPA said that multiple air emissions incidents due to the imminent and substantial endangerment to public health or welfare of the environment posed by refinery’s continued operation. Limetree Bay Refining LLC filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in the United States after its operations were paused. WIP’s bid surpassed St Croix Energy’s which had bidded US$57 million consisting of US$30 million cash up front. The refinery has a capacity of 646,000 barrel per day (bbl/d).

Former WIP directors Courtney Wilkinson and John Levy are set to return to the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court later this month on charges relating to the Cybercrimes Act. Both men are still shareholders in WIP despite being removed as directors in February 2021.