Tesoro

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A teenager charged with hacking into an Orange County high school's computers with a fellow student to change grades has been sentenced to three years' probation and 200 hours of community service, authorities said Thursday. Tanvir Singh, 18, of Ladera Ranch pleaded guilty to one felony count of attempting to steal public records and one misdemeanor count of illegal computer access, said Susan Kang Schroeder, a spokeswoman for the Orange County district attorney's office. She said Singh's felony conviction could be reduced to a misdemeanor after one year if he follows the terms of his probation.

British oil giant BP can easily afford to pay the $4.5 billion in oil-spill settlement costs announced Thursday, but analysts said a more difficult task may be rebuilding its reputation. BP agreed to the fines and other payments to the federal government and others and pleaded guilty to 11 felony counts related to the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico that killed 11 workers in April 2010. It also agreed to a misdemeanor count under the Clean Water Act, a misdemeanor count under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and a felony count of obstruction of Congress.

Tesoro Corp., the largest refiner in the western U.S., is considering expanding a 100,000-barrel-a-day plant in the Los Angeles area, the company's chief economist said. The project could result in an increase of as much as 15% to 20% in the Wilmington plant's capacity, he said.

A San Antonio oil refiner is shaking up California's gasoline business by agreeing Monday to buy Shell Oil Co.'s Wilmington refinery and 390 Shell and USA gasoline stations for more than $2 billion. Tesoro Corp.'s buying spree, laid out in two separate deals, would make it California's second-largest refiner, and marks the company's return to the state's retail fuel market.

Mission Viejo Tesoro, in only its second year of existence, was a surprise winner Monday in the Southern Section South Coast Divisional boys' golf championship at El Prado Golf Course in Chino. Doug Bischoff and Jeff Grant each shot one-under-par 71 for Tesoro, which used four freshmen and a sophomore to shoot two-over-par 362 and win by three shots over Mission Viejo. Irvine Woodbridge, ranked No. 3 by The Times, shot 366 and did not advance to the Southern Section championships.

Cavalcade, an investor group based in Lubbock, Tex., proposed to buy Tesoro Petroleum for cash and securities that the group valued at between $20 and $25 a share, or $274.6 million to $343.3 million. Tesoro, based in San Antonio, is an oil and gas producer whose financial health has deteriorated recently because of the sharp decline in oil prices. The company also refines and markets petroleum products and provides oil field services.

Tesoro Corp., a U.S. refiner targeted in a $1.4-billion tender offer by Kirk Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp., suggested giving a Tracinda representative a seat on its board. Tesoro Chief Executive Bruce Smith, during a Nov. 13 meeting with Tracinda executives in Beverly Hills, said it might be "a good idea" for the investment firm to have a board seat, according to a public filing by Tracinda. San Antonio-based Tesoro also suggested entering into a shareholder agreement with the firm.

Tesoro Petroleum Corp. has renegotiated the price it will pay Valero Energy Corp. for a refinery and 70 service stations in California, and the deal will close this month, the companies said. The San Antonio-based oil companies said they agreed to trim the purchase price by $50 million to $1.075 billion and defer payment of $150 million. Last week, Tesoro Chief Executive Bruce A.

Tesoro Corp. said its board would review an unsolicited $1.4-billion offer by billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian to buy an additional 16% stake in the oil refiner. The Tesoro board will review the offer over the next 10 days, the company said. Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp., which already owns 4% of the company, offered Friday to buy an additional 21.9 million shares for $64 a piece, 12% more the stock's closing price Thursday.