Global downstream news: 7th March 2014

USA

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator, Gina McCarthy, has declined to say whether the agency would launch a rule making to set carbon emissions standards for refineries.

‘We are simply focused right now on the power plant rule’, McCarthy said, referring to an upcoming proposal to set standards for the nation’s power plants.

Louisiana

Motiva Enterprise LLC’s Convent refinery has restarted a hydrotreaters after repairing fire damage. The H2U2 unit was restarted yesterday for the first time since the 24^th February blaze.

The Convent refinery is to complete planned maintenance next week and begin restarting units, including the smaller of two crude units and a sulfur unit. The 100 000 bpd crude vacuum distillation unit was shut on 6^th February for an estimated 40 days of scheduled repairs. One of five trains at the refinery’s sulfur plant were also closed.

Texas

Trigeant Ltd. has been accused by rival BTB refining LLC of interfering with a court directive to allow BTB access to a disputed refinery.

In court papers filed on Wednesday, Trigeant denied the charges. Trigeant’s lawyers said the company ‘of course permitted BTB access to remove its personal property’.

Trigeant also accused BTB of making false statements and alleged that BTB refining has taken countless actions to damage and obstruct the refinery.

Italy

The President of Unione Petrolifera, Italy’s principal downstream association, has said that all Italian oil refineries, even the most efficient or technologically advanced, risk closure amid narrowing margins and greater international competition, that has eroded output by 24% since 2008.

Italian companies active in the refining and downstream sectors have incurred losses totalling approximately US$ 9.61 billion in the past few years.

In the past three years, refineries in Rome, Mantova, Marghera and Cremona have been either closed or transformed into logistics hubs, while other refineries have suspended production or limited production lines to stave off thin margins and fierce competition from emerging markets.

Indonesia

Iran is to construct a refinery in Indonesia in a project headed by PT Kreasindo resources Indonesia and the Teheran-based Nakhle Barani Pardis.

Indonesia will own 70% of the refinery, designed for a capacity of 300 000 bpd.

Initial capacity will be 150 000 bpd and cost will be US$ 3 billion.

Russia

An investigation is being carried out into a fire that broke out on 3^rd March at TAIF Group’s 7 million tpy Nizhnekamsk refinery in Tartastan.

The fire, which occurred in the catalytic cracking unit of the refinery’s gasoline plant, was quickly extinguished, with no injuries reported.

Damage assessments remain ongoing. Preliminary investigations suggest that the fire may have been caused by a release of heavy fuel oil from a depressurised flange on the unit.

Edited from various sources by Emma McAleavey.

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/gas-processing/07032014/downstream_news_247/