US WCoast Products-Gasoline rises on Phillips work

HOUSTON, March 18 (Reuters) - Gasoline rose 2 cents a gallon in the Los Angeles wholesale market on Tuesday as Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX - news) was performing a planned overhaul at its southern California refinery, traders said.

March-delivery CARBOB gasoline traded as high as 4.5 cents a gallon under April NYMEX RBOB in L.A.

Phillips is performing a planned overhaul on unidentified units at its 139,000 barrel per day (bpd) Los Angeles refinery, which has plants in Wilmington and Carson, California.

When asked why gasoline rose in the L.A. market on Tuesday, a trader said, "Major Flaring at P66 Carson."

A refinery uses its safety flare to burn off hydrocarbons it cannot process normally like during an overhaul.

March CARBOB was 1.5 cents a gallon stronger at 2.5 cents a gallon under April NYMEX RBOB in the San Francisco Bay market on the Phillips overhaul.

CARBOB gasoline is mandated by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) for use in the state and meets more stringent anti-pollution standards than the gasoline required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in most of the country. CARBOB is made to blend with ethanol.

EPA gasoline in the Portland, Oregon market was up 1 cent a gallon at 8 cents a gallon under April NYMEX RBOB due to the planned overhaul underway at Royal Dutch Shell Plc (Xetra: R6C1.DE - news) .'s 145,000 bpd Anacortes, Washington refinery.

As with gasoline, CARB also requires a state-specific, ultra-low-sulfur diesel with a more stringent formula than EPA diesel.

March CARB diesel climbed 1.5 cents a gallon in L.A. to 5 cents a gallon under April NYMEX heating oil.

Bay market March CARB diesel rose 0.5 cent a gallon at 4 cents a gallon under April NYMEX heating oil.

Portland EPA diesel gained 1 cent a gallon at 2 cents a gallon over April NYMEX heating oil.

March jet fuel in L.A. gained 0.75 cent at 13.25 cents a gallon under April NYMEX heating oil. (Reporting by Erwin Seba)