5th March downstream update: Europe, USA and New Zealand

Europe

Switzerland

Swiss firm Burkhardt Compression is in the process of setting up a new sales and service centre at Taratala, India. This is the company’s second such unit in the country, after Vadodara.

The company has invested approximately Rs 50 lakh and plans to move to a bigger facility next year.

New Zealand

New Zealand Refining Co. (NZRC) has said that the expansion of its 107 000 bpd Marsden Point refinery at Northland on the North Island’s east coast remains on track.

Engineering designs for the project have been completed, and reviews conducted in December 2013 confirm the project is on time and budget for targeted commissioning in December 2015.

Fabrication and delivery of key units to the refinery are also well advanced.

NZRC has additionally confirmed that it raised NZ$ 48 million in capital funding on 28^th February in a placement of new shares, which will provide additional funding flexibility for the project.

USA

California

Tesoro Corp. can now restart a unit that was shut down following a chemical spill that injured two employees.

Cal-OSHA officials have said that they reviewed worker safety and training in order to prevent a repeat of the 12^th February incident at the Golden Eagle refinery in Martinez.

Tennessee

Valero Energy Corp.’s Memphis refinery has been forced to move maintenance to April from march after losing a key parts supplier.

The six weeks of work will now commence on 7^th April.

Approximately half of the refinery will be idled as work is performed in the crude unit at the East plant, the fluid catalytic cracker, an alkylation unit, and a sulfur unit.

Edited from various sources by Emma McAleavey.

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/gas-processing/05032014/downstream_news_233/