for friends and neighbors of the Pine Bend Refinery - Flint Hills ...

for friends and neighbors of the Pine Bend Refinery
Summer 2006 • Volume 8, Number 1
All-Star Efforts
Flint Hills Resources employees celebrate
an important safety accomplishment
- page 5
• Bald Eagles Call
Pine Bend Bluffs Home
- page 3
• Cleaner Fleets Hit
the Street - page 4
• Engineers in
Schools - page 6
• Science Museum
Camp-In - page 7

Jeff Wilkes
There’s a new fl ag fl ying over the refi nery’s main entrance. I’m
quite proud of the fl ag and the milestone it represents, which is Pine
Bend Refi nery’s MNSTAR status for outstanding safety programs
and performance. It was awarded to all our refi nery employees
by the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(MNOSHA) last December. In April, an offi cial ceremony, fl ag raising
and celebratory lunch were held at the refi nery for Flint Hills
employees and representatives from MNOSHA.
As part of our efforts to achieve this goal, we began working
with MNOSHA in March 2004 and set our sights on becoming
a MNSTAR worksite. Following MNSTAR guidelines, Pine Bend
Refi nery employees worked together to develop safety and health
management systems that went beyond OSHA’s basic compliance
standards and resulted in immediate and long-term prevention
of job-related injuries and illness. You can read more about the
MNSTAR accomplishment on Page 5. Flint Hills Resources is only the
16th MNSTAR worksite in Minnesota.
Another important safety milestone was also reached earlier this
summer – establishing a new record for consecutive days without
New Processing Units Start Up
One of the largest projects in refi nery history was completed
in May when Pine Bend’s new hydrocracker unit was brought
online. This $350 million project includes the new hydrocracker,
new hydrogen plant, storage tanks and expanded cooling water
capacity. The project was built so that the refi nery can begin
producing ultra low sulfur diesel fuel.
New federal regulations went into effect on June 1 requiring a
signifi cant reduction in the amount of sulfur in diesel fuel, which
will greatly reduce diesel fuel emissions. The amount of sulfur
in diesel fuel is being reduced from 500 parts per million (ppm)
to 15 ppm. The hydrocracker uses hydrogen gas to remove the
sulfur and other undesirable components from diesel fuel. The
hydrocracker will also allow Pine Bend to convert more diesel fuel
into gasoline to meet market demand.
S T R A I G H T T A L K
Employees Go Above and Beyond to
Earn MNSTAR Status
a recordable injury. Pine Bend employees worked over 300 days, or
1.3 million hours, without an OSHA recordable injury. This is one of
the best safety performances ever by a Flint Hills site.
Safety remains our top focus at Pine Bend, and over the past
several years we’ve been working day after day to create an injury
free workplace – one where everyone arrives home safely at the end
of the work day.
We’re pleased with the MNSTAR accomplishment and our recent
safety record. This is just the beginning, not an end, in our pursuit
for stellar safety performance.
Again – thanks to all employees and the United Steelworkers
Union for achieving MNSTAR status and their ongoing commitment
to safety. And, keep an eye out for the MNSTAR fl ag.
Sincerely,
R E F I N E R Y P R O J E C T S U P D A T E
Jeff Wilkes
VP Minnesota Operations and
Pine Bend Refi nery Manager
Construction on the hydrocracker project began in May of 2004.
Here are some interesting facts from the two-year project:
• 1,600 tons of structural steel
• 22 miles of large piping
• 5,109 valves
• 4,548 gaskets
• 29,260 bolts
• 26,355 components
• 353,850 pounds of cracking catalyst
• 1.4 million work hours on fi eld construction
• Peak workforce of 780 contractors
• Two large reactors, each weighing
approximately 1.5 million pounds
Crude Expansion Project
At the end of June, Flint Hills Resources received state permits
to increase the refi nery’s crude oil processing capacity by 50,000
barrels per day. Construction is now underway. The project is
scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2007.
Demand for gasoline, diesel fuel and other petroleum products
continues to grow in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota
and South Dakota. For example, demand for gasoline in the
5-state area is 21 million gallons per day, which is 3 million
gallons per day more than it was 10 years ago. Increasing the
refi nery’s capacity will help meet growing fuel demands.

Refi nery Receives Wastewater
Treatment Award
At a ceremony in March, Flint Hills Resources employees received the
Wastewater Treatment Operator Award from the Minnesota Pollution Control
Agency (MPCA). This award is given each year to a small group of waste water
plant operators in Minnesota for excellence in producing discharge waters that
meet strict permit requirements. Very few industrial facilities can meet the
selection criteria. On hand to receive the award for Flint Hills were Dustin Avery,
Todd Aalto, Jim Brown and Brian Hannon. Pine Bend has a sustained record of
excellent wastewater plant operations, having gone almost 7 years without an
effl uent permit limit exceedance.
Paul Wright, Flint Hills Resources, and Mark Martell,
Audubon Society, with one of the baby eagles nesting
near the refi nery’s barge dock.
3
Refi nery Receives DU Kudos
At the annual Ducks Unlimited (DU) State Convention, Flint
Hills Resources received the Golden Teal Award, which goes
to organizations that have contributed $150,000 to $250,000
to DU. Flint Hill’s support of Ducks Unlimited spans more
than 15 years and includes sponsorship of banquets the
organization holds throughout Minnesota. These banquets
help generate fi nancial support for DU and the conservation
work they do statewide.
From left to right Tony Follen, Rod Trunzo, Paul Stricker, Jeff
Wilkes & Dan Lewis. Not pictured but also present
at the awards banquet were Brad Jeska & Pat Enderline
from the Dakota County MAAG Team.
O P E N E R S
Representatives from the National Park
Service and Audubon Society recently visited
Pine Bend Bluffs property owned by Flint Hills
Resources to examine baby eagles in a nest
located near the refi nery’s barge dock.
The nest is in a cottonwood tree about 60
feet in the air.
Three baby eagles were in the nest.
Two were removed temporarily so that
blood samples could be taken, as well as
Local Law Enforcement
Recognizes Flint Hills
During its annual safety awards
banquet in February, Flint Hills
Resources was recognized by local
law enforcement for providing
training opportunities on property
the company owns near the refi nery.
An obstacle course has been built
that law enforcement groups use for
their annual physical agility training.
The site also allows these groups to
practice felony stops and use of force
exercises. Local departments that
have used the site include the State
Police Special Response Team; the
MAAG (Mutual Aid Assistance Group)
Dustin Avery, Todd Aalto, Jim Brown and Brian Hannon receive the
Wastewater Treatment Operator Award from Gaylen Reetz of the
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.
Bald Eagles Call Pine Bend Bluffs Home
measurements of the width of their talons,
beaks and wing span. All three eagles were
banded. One of the eagles weighed slightly
more than 10 pounds while the other one
weighed 10.5 pounds.
Fueling Good Conversation
Interested in learning more about Flint Hills Resources’
Pine Bend Refi nery, such as details on the products it makes,
the community projects it supports or its environmental
initiatives? Employees are available to speak to community
groups about topics relating to Pine Bend Refi nery as well as
the refi ning industry and energy markets.
Call 651.437.0584 to learn more or to schedule a speaker.
Team; Burnsville, Eagan and Richfi eld
Swat Teams; Dakota County Special
Operations group; Dakota County
Sheriff’s Department; the Drug Task
Force; and all Dakota County police
departments.
Flint Hills’ employee Harry Wickhorst
worked with local law enforcement
groups to develop the site. Refi nery
Manager Jeff Wilkes accepted a
plaque on behalf of the company
from members of the Minnesota State
Police Special Response Team.

4
Cleaner Fleets Hit the Streets
P R O J E C T G R E E N F L E E T
Area school buses transporting neighborhood Independent School
District 196 students are moving in the right direction to guarantee
cleaner air quality both inside and outside the vehicles. Thanks to
Project Green Fleet, bus retrofi ts are underway on ISD 196 buses, and
the program’s goal is to upgrade 500 buses throughout the state by
the end of 2007. Project Green Fleet improves air quality by installing
pollution control equipment on buses. Further emission reductions
will be realized as ultra low sulfur diesel fuel, which Flint Hills is now
producing, is introduced to the marketplace this fall.
Go On Green
The initiative was launched statewide last October as a
collaboration between businesses, government agencies and nonprofi
t organizations. Flint Hills Resources signed on as one of the fi rst
corporate partners, and ISD 196 was the fi rst school district to get on
board. In its fi rst year, Project Green Fleet has raised nearly a million
dollars and has over 200 school buses lined up for retrofi ts. Forty-two
buses from ISD 196 will be retrofi tted this summer.
“Project Green Fleet was a natural fi t for Flint Hills,” said Jeff Wilkes,
refi nery manager. “It is a way to build on previous emission reduction
efforts, like Blue Planet gasoline and our 50-percent refi nery emission
reduction initiative. By putting this equipment on buses, Minnesota
can begin to realize the benefi ts from the ultra low sulfur diesel fuel
we are now producing.”
“Project Green Fleet is compelling,” explained Bill Droessler, Clean
Air Minnesota director who oversees the statewide effort. “Through
the public-private partnership, the money we’ve raised locally to
retrofi t buses is helping provide cleaner air to all Minnesotans. It’s
purely proactive, considering Project Green Fleet has limited access
to federal funding.”
Two guests at the Flint Hills Community Partners
Luncheon get a closer look at the fi ltration that
is being installed on area school district busses
to help reduce air pollution as part of the Project
Green Fleets program.
Air Insurance
According to Droessler, today’s
Minnesota air quality meets government
standards, but not by much.
“Minnesota is considered in
attainment, which means the air is not
poor enough for the state to qualify for
federal funding to help implement air
quality programs such as Project Green
Fleet,” explained Droessler. “Pollution
reduction initiatives in place now are
meant to improve air quality and help us
avoid becoming a non-attainment area
which will save the state money down
the road.”
John Garrett from Donaldson Company points out how the pollution
control equipment, which is produced by the Twin Cities manufacturer,
has been installed on this retrofi tted Project Green Fleet school bus.
• Over 200 hundred school buses will be retrofi tted or
scheduled for retrofi ts by the end of 2006
• Forty-two of those buses are in the Rosemount/Apple Valley/
Eagan School District
• Nearly $1 million has been raised in the fi rst year
Clean Air Minnesota’s
effort to act now to
ensure a cleaner future
caught on as sponsors
and partners boarded the
cleaner-buses effort. In addition to
Flint Hills Resources, other sponsors
include the Donaldson Company, which
manufacturers the two pieces of retrofi t
equipment that are installed on the
buses, the Minnesota Pollution Control
Agency, Minnesota Power, Rochester
Public Utilities, the Mayo Clinic and Xcel
Energy. Other school districts receiving
bus retrofi ts include Duluth, Rochester,
St. Louis Park and Washington County.
Visit www.projectgreenfl eet.com for more information.

All-Star Employee Effort Recognized
In April, Flint Hills Resources employees celebrated an important safety accomplishment
– receiving designation into the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s
(MNOSHA) MNSTAR program. Every employee helped the facility garner MNSTAR status after
working closely with MNOSHA for almost two years to meet the requirements outlined in the
rigorous workplace safety program.
MNSTAR is a MNOSHA program that recognizes companies where managers and
employees work together to develop safety and health management systems that go
beyond basic compliance with all applicable
OSHA standards and result in immediate and
long-term prevention of job-related injuries
and illnesses.
“Flint Hills Resources is now recognized as
one of the state’s best worksites for safety and
health,” said Scott Brener, Department of Labor
and Industry commissioner. “We are pleased at the
commitment the company has shown to make
workplace safety and health a priority.”
Flint Hills Resources has worked with MNOSHA’s
Workplace Safety Consultation to aim for the
MNSTAR level and to help identify and eliminate
current or future safety hazards. Key elements of
this comprehensive program include:
• management leadership and
employee involvement
• allocation of resources to address
safety issues
• systems that identify and control
workplace hazards
• employee safety training
and education
“At Flint Hills Resources, safety is a top priority
and essential to our success as a business,” said
Jeff Wilkes, refi nery manager and vice president of
Minnesota operations. “ Recognition as a MNSTAR
worksite is a signifi cant safety accomplishment
by our employees, the United Steelworkers Union
and company management, and I thank everyone
for their ongoing commitment to safety.”
MNSTAR stresses the importance of cooperation
in the workplace. At participating facilities like
Pine Bend Refi nery, managers, employees and
union members must work together to develop
safety and health management systems that
go beyond OSHA’s basic compliance standards.
And the results – both immediate and long-term
– must center on job related injury prevention.
Under MNSTAR requirements, the refi nery
annually will perform a self-evaluation of
internal safety and health programs and fi le a
comprehensive report. The Minnesota OSHA
team will visit Pine Bend for a comprehensive
site evaluation in three years. MNSTAR began in
Minnesota seven years ago and is modeled after
the federal OSHA Voluntary Protection Program
(VPP), initiated in 1982.
S A F E T Y A L L - S T A R S
Flint Hills Resources employees (from left)
Al Nauer, Nick Jones and Sue Titel proudly
pose with the MNSTAR fl ag prior to the fl ag
raising ceremony.
Scott Brener, Commissioner, Minnesota
Department of Labor & Industry (pictured
second from right), talked with Pine Bend
Refi nery employees Mike Popek, Steve Orne
(center) and Nick Jones (right)about their
safety milestone.
Employees enjoy grilled steaks over the
lunch hour safety celebration
From left to right: Jim Mahoney, Brad Razook, Rick Johnson, United Steelworkers Union; Mike
Popek, Scott Brener, Department of Labor & Industry; Al Nauer, Steve Orne, Nick Jones, Sue Titel,
Jeff Wilkes, Joe Coco, Roslyn Wade, Department of Labor & Industry; Joe Allaben
5

E N G I N E E R S I N T H E S C H O O L S
Mentoring Program Ready to Expand
into Area High Schools
Here’s a quick quiz for parents and educators. What do you get when you match
a classroom of talented high school science students with engineer volunteers who
put scientifi c theory to the test on a daily basis?
The answer: Engineers in the Schools, a mentoring program that helps advanced
science students realize whether or not they’re well-suited for a career in the fi eld.
Pine Bend Refi nery engineers challenge students with real-life situations and
projects taken directly from their own “to-do” lists. Working side by side with the kids,
volunteers help them gain a better understanding of what an engineering career
entails. The program also includes a tour of the Pine Bend Refi nery as a wrap-up to
the year’s effort.
Flint Hills Resources’ Engineers in the Schools program has the resources –
meaning a willing group of engineer volunteers and corporate funding – to expand
the partnership to 10 additional schools over the next three years. The program
continues its longstanding 18-year history at Simley High School and it just started
this year in Eagan High School, explained Tom Church, a Pine Bend Refi nery engineer.
According to Church, the partnership has been exceptional in many ways,
- resulting in a jump in the number of top students selecting
engineering college programs;
- providing students an opportunity to work on a real world project
while in high school;
- allowing FHR engineers to utilize their skills to work with local
schools;
- and, enabling students to highlight their experiences on college
resumes and scholarship applications.
Church, who founded the program in 1987, encourages school educators, teachers
and parents to contact him for more information or to see if Engineers in the Schools
would be a good fi t for their schools. The basic requirements are that the partner
school offers an advanced physics or advanced chemistry class and that it has a
supportive network of parents and teachers who are already backing their budding
scientists. He can be reached at tom.church@fhr.com, or 651.438.1701.
Flint Hills Resources employees who most recently volunteered their time with
Engineers in the Schools include Annie Forsberg, coordinator; Cinda Lohmann
and Brian Hannon, engineer mentors at Eagan High School; and Laurie Vance and
Ambrey Gartner, engineer mentors at Simley High School.

Chad Pregracke, founder of Living
Lands & Waters, shared with
scholarship recipients the lessons
he has learned cleaning up rivers
around the country
Local high school graduates who made outstanding
contributions to both their schools and their communities were
honored by Flint Hills Resources recently when the company
hosted its annual Discovery Scholarship Banquet. Twenty-four
graduating seniors from schools in Dakota and South Washington
counties each received a $2,500 Discovery Scholarship to help
fund their future endeavors.
Students and their parents were recognized together at a
special awards banquet at the Science Museum of Minnesota on
June 6. Chad Pregracke, founder of the nonprofi t organization
Living Lands & Waters, was the keynote speaker.
“We congratulate these exceptional students and are honored
to help them achieve their best through this scholarship,” said
Jeff Wilkes, refi nery manager & vice president of Minnesota
operations for Flint Hills Resources. “They have realized many
signifi cant accomplishments in high school and we wish them
continued success in the future.”
D I S C O V E R Y S C H O L A R S H I P S T U D E N T S
2006 Graduates
Stand Out ’06 Grads Recognized with Discovery Scholarships
Discovery Scholarship
Recipients
Apple Valley High School Chad Gerber & Tyler Perleberg
Eagan High School Erik Hofstad & Richard Ducott, III
Eastview High School Cari Hesser & Jacob Siegel
Hastings High School Jacob Behnke & Kathryn Church
Henry Sibley High School Eric Ruggles & Lauren Olsen
Lakeville High School Caitlin Earp & Collin Smith
Park High School Matthew Briggs & Erin Gottfried
Rosemount High School Carly Hurley & Mackenzie Drutowski
School of Environmental Studies Jon Ertl & Amber Knutson
Simley High School Holly Edgett & Kellin Krick
Chad shared with the audience his compelling and funny
story about growing up on the Mississippi River and how his
experiences led to his unique vision to clean up America’s rivers.
Chad and his organization use volunteers, boats and barges to
remove garbage from rivers around the country, as well as work
on reforestation and teacher education programs. He challenged
the graduating seniors to set high goals, and his story illustrated
the important role hard work and persistence play in meeting
those goals.
Flint Hills Resources has sponsored the Discovery Scholarships
since 1992, awarding more than $500,000 in scholarships to
over 260 graduating seniors. The scholarships are awarded to
students because of their academic achievement, community
involvement and commitment to entrepreneurship. Scholarship
winners voluntarily serve in various organizations throughout the
community and excel at academics as well.
Parents, students, school representatives, local offi cials and
FHR employees gather at the Science Museum of Minnesota
to recognize this year’s Discovery Scholarship recipients.
South St. Paul High School Kyle Edsten & Nermin Shenouda
Woodbury High School Taylor Kobe & Cissy Li 7

S C I E N C E M U S E U M S L E E P O V E R
Museum Grounds Make Great Site to Learn & Camp
Nearly 900 fourth through sixth-graders
representing schools around the state
rolled out their sleeping bags for a chance
to camp-in at the Science Museum of
Minnesota last March. As part of an
educational science sleepover, classrooms
of kids explored the museum’s exhibits,
ate pizza with their local state legislator
and fi nally fell asleep under ancient
dinosaur bones.
Participating schools included:
Community of Peace Academy, St. Paul;
Holy Spirit School, Rochester; Peter, Paul
& Michael School, St. Cloud; St. Henry’s
School, Perham; St. Joseph’s School,
West St. Paul; St. Peter’s School, Hokah;
Cass Lake-Bena Elementary, Cass Lake;
Cleveland Public Schools, Cleveland;
Zumbrota-Mazeppa Middle School,
Mazeppa; and ACGC, Atwater.
Schools from both the metro area and
greater Minnesota apply to take part in
the overnight outing, which is part of
an educational program sponsored by
Flint Hills Resources. The funding enables
students and teachers who otherwise
might not be able to visit the museum
to take in the hands-on learning exhibits.
The educational program also includes
a school assembly at each school that is
put on by Science Museum educational
outreach staff. In all, the program reaches
3,500 students statewide. This program is
part of Flint Hills Resources’ support for
science education programs.
Community Matters
for friends and neighbors of the Pine Bend Refinery
Summer 2006 • Vol. 8, Number 1
Published by Flint Hills Resources for the friends and
neighbors of the Pine Bend Refi nery. For more information
about us check our website at www.fhr.com.
Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Please
call 651.437.0584 or write to Public Aff airs, Flint Hills
Resources, P.O. Box 64596, St. Paul, MN 55164-0596
Managing Editor: John Hofl and
Writer/Editor: Kim Harbinson
Graphic Design: Dustin Commer
Koch Creative Group
Photographers: Bruce Kluckhohn
Jonette Novak
Joe Treleven
Printed with recycled paper containing at least
10 percent post consumer waste.
Flint Hills Resources • P.O. Box 64596 • St. Paul, MN 55164-0596
Community Matters