Page 18 - FSUOGM Week 42

FSUOGM PROJECTS & COMPANIES FSUOGM

Russia's Komi region declares emergency

after Lukoil oil spill

RUSSIA AUTHORITIES in Russia’s northern Komi was fined some RUB614mn ($18.5mn at the
province have declared a regional emergency time) in 2014 for nine spills that occurred in the
Lukoil has been blamed after oil spilled into the Kolva river in the neigh- previous three years. As recently as early August,
for many spils in the bouring Nenets region. some 50 barrels of oil were spilled onshore in the
Russian Arctic over the In a statement on October 18, Lukoil-Komi, area, after a pressure pipeline was damaged dur-
years. a subsidiary of Russian oil giant Lukoil, blamed ing repair work.
an accident at a pipeline crossing the river that Regional emergency authorities have
carries oil from the Kharyaginskoye field it reported that four rows of containment booms
operates. The size of the spill has not been con- have been installed on the Kolva since the lat-
firmed by either the company or authorities, est accident was first reported on October 17.
although local residents reported that the oil Preparations to install a fifth row of booms are
slick had extended 40 km downstream from underway, authorities said on October 19.
where it occurred. Kolva begins in the Nenets region and flows
Just four months ago Russia suffered its sec- into the Usa river, which in turn flows into the
ond-largest oil spill in modern history in the Pechora river in the Komi region. Pechora runs
northern Krasnoyarsk region, when thousands into the Barents Sea. Emergency measures
of tonnes of diesel leaked from a power plant that are underway mainly relate to the town of
run by mining group Norilsk Nickel. Author- Usinsk, which gets its water from Usa.
ities are seeking almost $2bn in damages from Lukoil operates one section of the Kharyagin-
the company. skoye field, while another part is controlled by a
Lukoil has been blamed for many spills in the consortium of Russian firms Zarubezhneft and
Russian Arctic over the years. Its Komi division Nenets Oil and France’s Total. ™

Ukraine's Kremenchug refinery launches

new isomerisation unit

UKRAINE UKRAINE’S Ukrtatnafta announced last week year.
it had launched a new isomerisation unit at the Its owner Ukrtatnafta is a joint venture
The Kremenchug Kremenchug oil refinery, the country’s only such between Privat Group, a large industrial hold-
refinery is owned facility in operation. ing controlled by Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolo-
by Privat Group and The unit took three years to build at a cost of moisky, and national oil and gas group Naftogaz.
Naftogaz. $30mn, in co-operation with France’s Axens and Ukrtatnafta sources its oil from domestic
US firm Honeywell UOP. It will produce 350,000 fields but also receives some imports from Azer-
tonnes per year (tpy) of isomerate, helping to baijan, the US and Libya.
improve production of high-octane gasoline. The company was initially a joint venture
This will allow the plant to save some $50mn between Naftogaz and Russian oil supplier Tat-
annually on imports of methyl tert-butyl ether neft. But the latter was forced out of the venture
(MTBE). Ukraine imported some 31,600 tonnes during a hostile takeover in 2007. Privat now has
of MTBE in the first nine months of this year, a 56% stake in the venture, while Naftogaz has
according to customs data, all of which came 43%. Ukraine is required to pay around $150mn
from Russia. to Tatneft for its complicit role in allowing Privat
The share of A-95 gasoline in Kremenchug’s and Naftogaz to wrest control of the plant. ™
total gasoline output can potentially increase to
80% thanks to the new unit, replacing some A-92
volumes. The sulphur content of fuels will also
be reduced.
The Kremenchug refinery was built in the
1960s in the eastern Poltava region and has
a nominal throughput capacity of 18mn tpy
(360,000 bpd). But its actual capability is under-
stood to be a mere fraction of this. It handled
roughly 2.5mn tonnes (50,000 bpd) of oil last

P18 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 42 21•October•2020