Page 15 - DMEA Week 49

DMEA REFINING DMEA

Kuwait launches its biggest CDU

KUWAIT KUWAIT has brought on stream its largest progressively continue the hand-over and com-
crude distillation unit (CDU) at the Mina Abdul- mission each unit safely to complete the refinery
The CDU has a refining lah refinery. mega project.”
capacity of 264,000 The unit was launched as part of Kuwait’s In total some 12 new processing units will be
bpd. Clean Fuels Project (CFP), which involves the added as part of CFP. At the height of construc-
upgrade of the Mina Abdullah and Mina Al tion work there were more than 15,000 people
Ahmadi refineries to increase their output and onsite, Bokil said, with more than 125 cranes and
create cleaner and higher-value products. The over 1,600 items of construction machinery and
UK’s Petrofac, Germany’s Samsung Engineering equipment present.
and CB&I Nederland are undertaking the $3.7bn “Meanwhile, an exemplary safety record has
project for state-owned refiner Kuwait National been maintained, with more than 64.5mn work
Petroleum Co. (KNPC). hours without a lost-time incident since May
The CDU has a refining capacity of 264,000 2018,” the director said.
barrels per day (bpd), Petrofac said. Its crude Petrofac and its partners won an engi-
column is 75 metres long, 13 metres wide and neering, procurement and construction
weighs 900 tonnes. (EPC) contract for CFP in 2014. The goal is
“The successful operation of the CDU is very to expand throughput capacity at the Mina
much the gateway to this important project for Abdullah and Mina Al-Ahmadi refineries to
Kuwait’s refining industry,” Petrofac project 800,000 bpd.
director Prashant Bokil commented. The work Kuwait is also developing a new 615,000 bpd
was completed “despite the many recent opera- refinery in Al-Zour in its south. The facility is
tional challenges due to the pandemic. We are now estimated to be 97% complete, and oil began
focused on the remaining work ahead, as we flowing to the plant last week. ™

Explosion rocks South

African oil refinery

SOUTH AFRICA AN explosion rocked Engen’s oil refinery in Dur- bpd refinery owned by local fuel supplier Astron
ban, South Africa, on December 4, local emer- Energy in Cape Town, leaving two dead and
The extent of the gency services reported, injuring seven people. seven injured.
damage is unclear. The blast occurred at 05:10 GMT and the The Engen refinery was built in the 1950s.
ensuing fire was put out by 06:45 GMT. Local Its fate is uncertain, with local media recently
residents described seeing a large fireball at the reporting that the facility could be shut in 2023
centre of the refinery, followed by billowing and converted into a fuel storage terminal.
black smoke. Several other fires have occurred at the plant
The extent of damage to the facility, capable of over the years. One in 2005 broke out at one of
processing up to 120,000 barrels per day (bpd) of its solvent plants, causing a short shutdown. It
oil, is unclear as of press time. Operator Engen, had to be closed down for lengthy repairs in 2008
majority-owned by Malaysia’s Petronas, issued a after another one.
statement saying it was investigating the cause The refinery has also been mired with contro-
of the incident. versy for decades over its environmental impact.
South Africa hosts six refineries in total, four Specifically, local residents have raised health
of which run on crude oil and two on synthetic concerns about its pollution levels. It has also
fuel. But the country is a net importer of petro- been the target of protests over Engen’s failure to
leum products. hire local contractors.
The country’s biggest refinery SAPREF, a “Engen will provide an update about the inci-
joint venture between BP and Royal Dutch Shell dent as soon as further information is available,”
that is located nearby to the Engen plant, said its a spokesperson for the refinery’s operator said
operations were unaffected by the incident. The in a statement to local press. “Safeguarding the
two facilities form part of the same petrochem- health, safety and well-being of our people, com-
ical hub. munity and environment remains our utmost
Another fire broke out in July at a 100,000 priority.” ™

Week 49 10•December•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P15