Western's Yorktown refinery cuts rates after coker snag

NEW YORK, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Western Refining cut rates at its 62,000 barrel per day refinery in Yorktown, Virginia after a snag with the coker unit, a company spokesman said Monday.

The coker unit, which can process 19,000 bpd according to government data, released steam and hydrocarbons into the air over the weekend.

The company was unable to comment on how much rates were cut or when normal rates would be resumed. The spokesman said the incident, which resulted in no injuries or health hazards, was under investigation. (Reporting by Janet McGurty; Editing by John Picinich)