U.S. EPA OKs waiver for gasoline at Exxon refinery

Sat Oct 1,11:54 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Environmental Protection Agency said on Saturday it would allow ExxonMobil's oil refinery in Baytown, Texas, to produce conventional gasoline with a higher sulfur content than normally allowed and the motor fuel could be sold in East Coast and Gulf Coast states.

The EPA said its temporary waiver from federal clean air requirements would last through Thursday to help prevent gasoline supply disruptions after Hurricanes Rita and Katrina left 12 refineries along the Gulf Coast shutdown.