8-K

                                  UNITED STATES
                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549




                                    Form 8-K



                                 CURRENT REPORT
     Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934



         Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): July 8, 2003



                          Tesoro Petroleum Corporation
             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)



          Delaware                        1-3473               95-0862768
(State or other jurisdiction     (Commission File Number)    (IRS Employer
      of incorporation)                                    Identification No.)


         300 Concord Plaza Drive                              78216-6999
            San Antonio, Texas                                (Zip Code)
 (Address of principal executive offices)


       Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (210) 828-8484








Item 7.   Financial Statements, Pro Forma Financial Information and Exhibits

         (a) Financial statements of businesses acquired.

             Not applicable.

         (b) Pro forma financial information.

             Not applicable.

         (c) Exhibits.

99.1     Press Release issued on July 8, 2003 by Tesoro Petroleum Corporation


Item  9.  Regulation FD Disclosure

     The following information, which is intended to be furnished under Item 12
"Results of Operations and Financial Condition," is being furnished under this
Item 9 in accordance with SEC Release No. 34-47583. This information shall not
be deemed "filed" for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), or incorporated by reference in any
filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except
as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such a filing.


     On July 8, 2003 Tesoro issued a press release (the "Press Release")
announcing an update of its debt reduction goal through the 2003 second quarter.
The foregoing is qualified by reference to the Press Release which is filed as
Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated herein by
reference.




                                   SIGNATURES



     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf
by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.


Date:    July 8, 2003


                                          TESORO PETROLEUM CORPORATION



                                         By:  /s/ Gregory A. Wright
                                             --------------------------------
                                             Gregory A. Wright
                                             Senior Vice President
                                             and Chief Financial Officer








                                Index to Exhibits


Exhibit Number       Description


    99.1             Press Release issued on July 8, 2003 by Tesoro Petroleum
                     Corporation.

EX-99

                                                                    Exhibit 99.1

                    Tesoro Continues Debt Repayment


    SAN ANTONIO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 8, 2003--Tesoro Petroleum
Corporation (NYSE:TSO) announced that it reduced total debt by $168
million during the second quarter bringing the total debt reduction
since the end of the second quarter of 2002 to $322 million. In
addition, the company had over $74 million of cash invested as of June
30, 2003. Total debt, net of cash, at the end of the quarter was $1.7
billion compared to $1.9 billion at the end of the first quarter.
    "I am very pleased with this demonstration of our continued focus
on debt reduction," said Bruce A. Smith, Chairman, President and CEO
of Tesoro. "As expected, our new credit agreement allowed us to
recapture most of the cash which had been invested in support of trade
credit. After we closed on the acquisition of the Golden Eagle assets
last year, we set a goal of repaying $500 million of debt by the end
of 2003. Since that time, we have achieved nearly 75% of the goal
while reducing our debt load from a high of almost $2.1 billion and we
are committed to continued debt reduction."
    The company also announced that it has met the excess availability
threshold on its revolving credit agreement that will allow Tesoro to
take advantage of a 50 basis point reduction on the revolver borrowing
spread over LIBOR and letter of credit expense.
    Tesoro Petroleum Corporation, a Fortune 500 Company, is an
independent refiner and marketer of petroleum products and provider of
marine logistics services. Tesoro operates six refineries in the
western United States with a combined capacity of nearly 560,000
barrels per day. Tesoro's retail marketing system includes
approximately 600 branded retail stations; of which over 200 are
company operated under the Tesoro(R) and Mirastar(R) brands.

    This press release contains certain statements that are
"forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934. These forward-looking statements contain expectations
regarding the Company's plan for continued debt reduction. For more
information concerning factors that could cause actual results to
differ from expectations, see the company's annual report on Form
10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and other reports, filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. The company undertakes no
obligation to publicly release the result of any revisions to any such
forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or
circumstances that occur, or which the Company becomes aware of, after
the date hereof.


    CONTACT: Tesoro Petroleum Corporation, San Antonio
             Investors:
             John Robertson, 210/283-2687
             or
             Media:
             Tara Ford, 210/283-2676