Delta receives first Bakken crude shipment at refinery

Delta Air Lines has received its first shipment of Bakken crude oil at its refinery in Trainer, Pa., Gov. Jack Dalrymple of North Dakota said.

The crude oil will be refined into jet fuel for Delta’s airplanes.

The airline is the latest U.S. company to capitalize on North Dakota’s growing energy industry. It is using Bakken crude to improve profits and retain the 400 jobs at its refinery.

Delta’s subsidiary, Monroe Energy LLC, slowed production at the plant in November 2012. Monroe is now receiving crude shipments from the Bakken shale, which lies partly in North Dakota, instead of importing foreign crude at a higher cost.

Delta announced it was buying the refinery in April 2012 after the airline received $30 million from Pennsylvania as part of a deal to support job creation, according to The New York Times. Delta paid $150 million for the Trainer facility, which had been closed since October 2011.