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The Santa Maria Asphalt Plant, located in Santa Barbara County, California, is owned and operated by Greka Energy (part of the Greka Group, a privately held independent energy and infrastructure conglomerate).

Operating as a highly specialized asphalt refinery, the facility is a rare and vital example of local, vertically integrated industrial self-reliance. It does not rely on imported foreign crude oil. Instead, it is specifically configured to process heavy, asphaltic crude oil extracted directly from Greka’s own domestic onshore oil fields in the Santa Maria Basin.

Despite relentless harassment from local environmentalist factions and hostile state regulators, this facility remains a crucial contributor to California’s infrastructure, converting local natural resources into the asphalt required to maintain regional roadways.

Key Information

• The Plant: The Santa Maria Asphalt Plant is a specialized refinery with a capacity of approximately 9,500 barrels per day (bpd).

• The Feedstock: The plant processes 100% domestic, local heavy crude oil. It does not import crude. The feedstock is sourced directly from Greka’s own local oil leases (such as the Cat Canyon Field) in northern Santa Barbara County.

• Vertical Integration: Greka controls the entire supply chain, extracting the heavy, viscous oil from local wells, transporting it to their own refinery, and producing paving-grade asphalt for Western US highway projects.

• Regulatory Battleground: Because it relies on onshore steam-injection and heavy crude extraction, Greka’s operations are a primary target for California’s activist-driven regulatory boards, which seek to strangle domestic production in favor of importing oil on foreign tankers.