CITGO Petroleum Corp. has made two new hires — Dennis Willig will become the company’s new vice president of refining and Ryan Vining will take over for Willig as the vice president and general manager of the Corpus Christi Refinery.
Willig has been with CITGO for 28 years, with the majority of his career spent as the vice president and general manager at the Corpus Christi Refinery.
Vining, as he replaces Willig in that role, has spent the last 24 years at the CITGO Lake Charles Refinery, most recently as general manager of operations, maintenance and reliability.
Both hires are effective Feb. 1, 2024.
“Dennis Willig’s leadership skills, experience and commitment to operational excellence are an excellent fit for overseeing our refining network and maintaining continuity in our operations,” said CITGO chief operating officer and executive vice president Edgar Rincon. “And adding Ryan Vining as vice president and general manager Corpus Christi Refinery further strengthens our leadership team.”
Willig replaces Jerry Dunn, who will retire after more than 34 years with CITGO, spent primarily at the Lake Charles Refinery before serving as vice president of refining for nearly two years.
“Jerry is a well-respected, outstanding leader who has dedicated his entire career to CITGO,” said CITGO president and CEO Carlos Jordá. “On behalf of the executive leadership team and all the employees, I want to thank Jerry for always giving his best and making us a better refiner. We wish him well in the next chapter of his life.”
Willig joined the CITGO Lemont Refinery in 1995 and advanced all the way to vice president and general manager Lemont Refinery before assuming the same title at the Corpus Christi Refinery in 2022. He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Purdue University.
Vining joined the Lake Charles Refinery as a process engineer in 1999 after graduating with a chemical engineering degree from McNeese State University. He served in several engineering leadership roles, including general manager of operations, maintenance and reliability; general manager of engineering and technical services; area manager reformers and manager process engineering, among others.
CITGO owns and operates three refineries located in Lake Charles, La.; Lemont, Ill.; and Corpus Christi, Texas, and wholly and/or jointly owns 37 active terminals, six pipelines and three lubricants blending and packaging plants. With approximately 3,300 employees and a combined crude capacity of approximately 807,000 barrels-per-day (bpd), CITGO ranks as the fifth-largest and is one of the most complex independent refiners in the U.S.