Fire hits crude unit at Northern Tier Minnesota refinery HOUSTON (Reuters) - A Sunday morning fire hit a crude oil unit at Northern Tier Energy's 81,500 barrel per day (bpd) St. Paul Park, Minnesota, refinery, according to a statement issued by the company. No injuries were reported due to the fire, the company said. "Today at approximately 11:30 am CDT (1630 GMT), our St. Paul Park refinery experienced a fire in one of its crude units that originated at a reduced crude pump," Northern Tier said in a statement issued Sunday evening. "The fire was in a small part of the refinery," said St. Paul Park Assistant Fire Chief Mike Kramer. The fire remains under investigation. Firefighters from the refinery, St. Paul Park and two neighboring communities battled the blaze, Kramer said. The fire was out by 2:16 p.m., Northern Tier said. "The refinery has begun to investigate the cause of the fire and is assessing the damage," the company said. St. Paul Park is a suburb of St. Paul, Minnesota. Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by James Dalgleish and Nick Zieminski