Refinery backers want 2nd shot at tax exemption

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Backers of a proposed oil refinery in western North Dakota are taking another stab at a tax exemption for oil refined in the state.

The state House unanimously rejected a bill seeking an exemption from the 6.5 percent oil extraction tax for oil refined in North Dakota. Dakota Oil Processing Chairman and CEO Chester Trabucco says the bill was a "fiasco" and shouldn't have been introduced.

Trabucco says Dakota Oil Processing will instead seek an exemption that would occur only during months when the average profit for a refinery in the state dropped below $11 a barrel — a situation that hasn't occurred in the past three years.

Dakota Oil Processing says the proposed exemption would help secure private funding for a $200 million refinery near Trenton.

Tags: north dakota, north dakota legislature, news, money, energy, updates