PES has accepted a bid for the property, but there are complications.
Building trade workers rallied outside City Hall last week to press their case for keeping the refinery a refinery.
"We are prepared to fight until we get our jobs back and we want them to hear us: Save our jobs," one speaker yelled.
Another speaker said 36,000 workers made part or all of their salary from the refinery.
"$16 billion per year in economic activity was created by the refinery. The loss of the taxes paid by the refinery and the refinery workers will be devastating to the city," the speaker continued.
Last month, PES accepted a bid from a Chicago company called Hilco, which planned to repurpose the site — much to the relief of environmentalists, community members and city officials.
But the PES unions and other unsecured creditors plan to challenge the deal on the grounds that it was not the highest bid. A Justice Department trustee has also filed objections. And, advocates for retaining a refinery say there are also deed restrictions which limit how the site can be repurposed.
Hilco officials visited Philadelphia last week but did not respond to requests for comment.
Judge Kevin Gross will have to sort out the competing claims at the hearing this week.