TLDR
- President Trump announced the U.S. will build its first new oil refinery in 50 years in Brownsville, Texas
- India’s Reliance Industries is the backer, in a deal Trump called a “$300 billion” investment
- The refinery will process 168,000 barrels per day of U.S. shale oil, with groundbreaking planned for Q2 2026
- Reliance has signed a binding 20-year deal to buy the refinery’s output
- Industry analysts are skeptical, questioning demand and the need for a new Gulf Coast refinery
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that America First Refining will build a new oil refinery in Brownsville, Texas — the first new refinery in the United States in 50 years. The project is backed by India’s Reliance Industries, run by billionaire Mukesh Ambani.
President Trump announced plans for a new oil refinery in Brownsville, Texas, backed by India’s Reliance Industries. It would be the first new US refinery built in decades.
Trump described it as a $300 billion deal.
Follow: @AFpost pic.twitter.com/grGmHf9vAs
— AF Post (@AFpost) March 10, 2026
Trump called it a “historic $300 billion dollar deal — the biggest in U.S. history” on his Truth Social platform.
The refinery will have a capacity of 168,000 barrels per day and is designed specifically to process light, sweet shale oil produced in the U.S. America First Refining says construction could begin as early as the second quarter of 2026.
Reliance Industries has provided a nine-figure investment at a ten-figure valuation, though exact numbers were not disclosed beyond Trump naming Reliance publicly. The company has also signed a binding 20-year offtake agreement, meaning it will purchase the products the refinery produces.
Trump said the deal will offset $300 billion in the trade deficit with India. Reducing trade imbalances has been a recurring focus for his administration.
“For the first time in half a century, the United States will build a new refinery designed specifically for American shale oil,” said America First chairman and founder John V. Calce.
The Brownsville location sits on the southern U.S. border at a port. Analysts say its remote location raises questions about distribution.
Why Analysts Are Skeptical
Industry experts are questioning the need for the project. The Gulf Coast already houses eight of the ten largest refineries in the country.
Refined Fuels Analytics managing director John Auers said initial announcements like this “have a lot of hyperbole.” He noted that U.S. refining capacity was already at 18.4 million barrels per day at the end of 2024 and is expected to grow gradually through the 2030s.
Tom Kloza, principal analyst at Kloza Advisors, suggested the Brownsville location points to an export-focused facility. “There is not much local demand and there are not pipeline connections to take Brownsville product elsewhere,” he said.
The cost of building a refinery has averaged around $40,000 per barrel of capacity in recent years, putting the price tag for this project at roughly $6.7 billion.
Reliance’s Role
Reliance Industries operates the world’s largest refining complex in Jamnagar, India, with a capacity of 1.4 million barrels per day. The company reported $125 billion in revenue last year and also operates businesses in retail, digital services, and entertainment.
Reliance did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
Context and Recent Developments
The announcement comes as U.S. gasoline prices have risen since the start of the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. Two California refineries with a combined capacity of 284,000 barrels per day have permanently closed since late 2025, citing state regulations on fossil fuels.
America First Refining says the project will produce 50 billion gallons of refined products worth an estimated $175 billion, and process 1.2 billion barrels of U.S. shale oil worth $125 billion over the refinery’s life.
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