共和党州长候选人里克·杰克逊以12%的利率向一家计划建在德克萨斯州海岸的新炼油厂提供了2000万美元的贷款。唐纳德·特朗普总统称这一项目是他实现“能源主导权”目标的重要胜利。这位医疗保健行业的亿万富翁通过贷款以及持有该公司的股份，参与了美国第一炼油公司（America First Refining）的建设计划——这是美国半个世纪以来新建的最大规模炼油厂。杰克逊与该项目之间的关联，已成为决定谁将领导这个美国第八大经济体的关键因素。
GOP gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson loaned $20 million dollars at 12% interest to a new oil refinery planned for the Texas coast that President Donald Trump has hailed as a major victory in his quest for “energy dominance.”The healthcare billionaire’s loan and ownership stake in America First Refining’s plan to build the first new, major US refinery in half a century were disclosed in a federal tax court hearing earlier this year. Jackson’s ties to the project have become a flashpoint in the contest to decide who will lead the nation’s eighth-largest economy.
他在11月3日选举中的民主党对手凯莎·兰斯·博顿斯（Keisha Lance Bottoms）发布了广告，严厉批评他在该化石燃料项目中的角色以及他与特朗普的关系。《亚特兰大宪法报》（Atlanta Journal-Constitution）的一项民意调查显示，这场竞选实际上处于势均力敌的状态。
His Democratic opponent in the Nov. 3 election, Keisha Lance Bottoms, has unveiled ads slamming his role in the fossil-fuel installation as well as his ties to Trump. An Atlanta Journal Constitution poll ranks the race effectively a dead heat. Trump has been a robust supporter of America First’s proposed fuel-making complex in the Texas city of Brownsville roughly 25 miles (40 kilometers) from Elon Musk’s Starbase launch complex.
特朗普一直大力支持美国第一炼油公司在德克萨斯州布朗斯维尔（Brownsville）建设的炼油厂。该炼油厂预计将在本世纪末投入运营，主要处理德克萨斯州的原油。
The refinery will process solely Texas crude when operations begin toward the end of the decade.
由于伊朗和乌克兰的战争导致全球油价飙升，白宫一直在努力提高美国的燃料产量。自2月底美伊冲突爆发以来，零售柴油价格已经上涨了近70%，上个月末达到了每加仑6.50美元的历史最高水平。
The White House has been seeking to boost domestic fuel output as wars in Iran and Ukraine spike prices globally ahead of the midterm elections. Retail diesel has soared almost 70% since the US-Ian kicked off in late February, touching an all-time high of more than $6.50 a gallon late last month.
特朗普对美国第一炼油公司的发展充满信心，甚至将该项目列为白宫在制造业和工业领域的最大投资项目，其价值被估定为3000亿美元。小唐纳德·特朗普（Donald Trump Jr.）还称赞杰克逊为该炼油厂的融资工作提供了支持。
The president is so bullish on America First’s development that the project is listed on the White House website as the single largest investment in US manufacturing and industry, pegging its value at $300 billion. Donald Trump Jr. has praised Jackson for stepping up to help finance the refinery.
杰克逊在为这家炼油厂提供资金方面的角色，是在他针对美国国税局提起的税务诉讼中披露的。该诉讼涉及与低成本电影制作相关的税收抵扣问题。当被问及他的投资公司“杰克逊投资集团”（Jackson Investment Group）提供的贷款是否取得了特别好的回报时，他提到了拟建的布朗斯维尔炼油厂（Brownsville refinery）。
Jackson’s role in financing the refinery emerged during testimony in his United States Tax Court suit against the Internal Revenue Service over deductions tied to low-budget movie productions. In response to a question about whether any loans made by his investment firm, Jackson Investment Group, have been particularly successful, he alluded to the proposed Brownsville refinery.
“我们提供了一笔2000万美元的贷款，”杰克逊在《彭博新闻》（Bloomberg News）查阅的庭审记录中说道，“其中1000万美元是在三年前提供的，另外1000万美元是在去年提供的。他们每月支付1%的利息，目前这项投资运作得很顺利。”他补充说：“这是美国50年来第一家即将投入运营的炼油厂。”杰克逊当时表示自己持有这家名为“America First”的公司的15%股份，并估计该公司上市后的市值将达到20亿美元，这意味着他将从中获利3亿美元。
“One is that we’ve invested a loan of $20 million,” Jackson said in a trial transcript reviewed by Bloomberg News. “It was $10 million about three years ago and another $10 million last year. They’re paying 12% interest, 1% a month interest and it’s been working.”“It is the first oil refinery in the United States in the last 50 years that’s going to turn on,” he added. At the time, Jackson said he owned 15% of closely held America First and estimated the company would be valued at $2 billion upon going public, giving him a $300 million stake.
杰克逊的竞选团队以及“America First”公司均通过发言人拒绝就此事发表评论。白宫方面也没有立即回应相关询问。
The Jackson campaign and America First declined via spokespeople to comment for this story. The White House didn’t immediately respond to an inquiry.
曾任亚特兰大市长、后来在拜登政府期间担任白宫顾问的博茨（Bottoms）正在发布广告，指责杰克逊通过高油价牟取暴利。这些广告似乎特别提到了印度能源巨头瑞莱森斯工业有限公司（Reliance Industries Ltd.）的参与——该公司与该炼油厂签订了为期20年的燃料采购协议。需要明确的是，这家炼油厂预计要到2029年才能开始正式生产。
Bottoms, a former Atlanta mayor who went on the become a White House adviser during the Biden administration, is running ads accusing Jackson of getting rich off of high pump prices. The ads appeared to key in on the involvement of Indian energy titan Reliance Industries Ltd., which has a 20-year deal to buy fuel from the plant. To be clear, the refinery isn’t slated to begin production until 2029.
“里克·杰克逊也投资了石油公司，”博顿斯在9月30日由CSPAN播出的媒体发布会上表示。“就在我们说话的这一刻，他正在向印度运送柴油。我们看到该州的农民和卡车司机们正面临着巨大的经济压力——他们根本无力支付燃油费用，无法让他们的卡车正常运行，也无法让农用设备正常工作。”博顿斯的竞选发言人证实，这些广告和CSPAN的录像内容确实与杰克逊对‘America First’组织的投资有关。《亚特兰大宪法报》于周三首次报道了杰克逊贷款的相关细节。
“Rick Jackson also invests in petroleum companies,” Bottoms said in a Sept. 30 media briefing aired by CSPAN. “He is sending diesel fuel to India as we speak. We are watching our farmers across this state, our truck drivers across this state struggle to be able to afford to put gas, to put diesel fuel in their trucks, to get their farm equipment up and running.”A Bottoms campaign spokesperson confirmed the ads and CSPAN clip were referring to Jackson’s investment in America First. The Atlanta Journal Constitution first reported some details of Jackson’s loan on Wednesday.
政府还在采取其他措施来支持新的炼油产能建设。副总统J.D.万斯最近宣布，位于德克萨斯州东部的Delek US Holdings炼油厂将根据冷战时期的《国防生产法》获得政府资助。‘America First’组织也表示有兴趣通过该法案获得财政支持。
The administration is taking other steps to support new refining capacity. Vice President JD Vance recently announced that a Delek US Holdings refinery in East Texas will receive government funds under the Cold War-era Defense Production Act. America First has said it also is interested in securing financial support under the DPA.
在上周于德克萨斯州海岸举行的一次会议上，‘America First’组织的首席商务官汤姆·拉姆齐表示，摩根士丹利正在负责该项目的股权和债务融资工作。不过，会议上的幻灯片资料中并未提及杰克逊的贷款事宜。
At a conference on the Texas coast last week, America First Chief Commercial Officer Tom Ramsey said Morgan Stanley was leading an equity and debt fundraising. The slide deck made no mention of Jackson’s loan.