Shell Norco Manufacturing Complex (Norco Refinery)

Capability

Crude distillation 231,153 bpd operable, 231,153 operating (EIA-820, as of 2026-01-01). Downstream units below, barrels per calendar day.

Production capacity

Crude slate

Not stated in any document read.

Crude in & products out

Docks

The docks at this facility and, where a ship agent or port publishes it, the largest vessel each berth takes. Channel conditions change; these figures are a guide, not clearance to sail.

Shell Norco Docks 1, 2 and 4

• Shell Norco terminal, 15536 River Rd.
• The 47 ft draft is the maximum fresh-water transit draft for the terminal as a whole. Depth alongside was 55.1 ft when read.
• Limits are given as displacement, not deadweight: 120,000 at Dock 1, 130,000 at Dock 2 and 32,000 at Dock 4. The unit is not stated.
• Hoses: two 8-inch at Docks 1 and 2, one 8-inch at Dock 4. Dock 4 has a minimum parallel body length of 265 ft.
• What moves over each dock is not stated.

Source: Moran Shipping terminal page, Shell Norco, read 2026-10-11.

Shell Norco Dock 3

• Lower Mississippi River mile 126.
• A crane barge and a deck barge were moored at the dock in December 2024, when a tow struck them and the dock was damaged.
• No vessel limits are published for this dock.

Source: NTSB Marine Investigation Report MIR-25-43, read 2026-10-11.

Norco oil-transfer wharf, Berth 1 and Berth 1A

• Coast Pilot description of the same refinery waterfront, on the north side of the river 126.1 miles above Head of Passes.
• Berth 1 has 750 ft of berthing space and 45 ft alongside. Berth 1A has 465 ft of berthing space and 25 ft alongside. Deck height is 35 ft.
• Described as an oil-transfer wharf; crude and products are not separated.
• The Coast Pilot names Motiva Enterprises as operator. Shell has owned the refinery alone since May 1, 2017.

Source: NOAA Coast Pilot 5, read 2026-10-11.

Pipeline reach

By water

Substitutes

Other refineries injecting into the same pipelines — the supply that could backfill an outage here.

Events

1. 2024-12 other

   A tow struck a crane barge and a deck barge moored at the refinery's No. 3 dock at Lower Mississippi River mile 126. The refinery found damage to the dock and to both barges a few days later (NTSB report MIR-25-43). source

2. 2017-05-01 sale

   Shell and Saudi Aramco completed the split of the Motiva Enterprises LLC joint venture; Shell assumed sole ownership of the Norco and Convent, LA refineries, while Saudi Aramco retained the Motiva name and the Port Arthur, TX refinery. source

3. 2015 expansion

   Maurepas Pipeline system built in 2015-2016, connecting the LOCAP St. James terminal to Norco and directly linking the Norco and Convent refineries to support integrated operation of both plants. source