Bharat Petroleum Plans Maintenance Shutdown at Kochi Refinery

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources India (Delhi, India)--India's government-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) (BSE:500547) (Mumbai, Maharashtra) has planned an inspection and maintenance turnaround at the 50,000-barrel-per-day (BBL/d) Diesel Hydrodesulfurization unit and the 71-tonne-per-day sulfur complex at the company's 214,000-BBL/d refinery in Kochi, Kerala.

The 30-day turnaround is scheduled to begin in March 2013. The major work to be carried out in the unit involves tray-replacement in fractionators, heat exchanger cleaning, catalyst changeover, column repairs and inspection of reactors.

The turnaround will also include the maintenance of the amine regeneration unit and sour-water stripping unit. Both these units will be completely derated during the turnaround.

In addition, the aromatic complex may also undergo a major turnaround in the first quarter of 2013, depending on the fuel demand in southern India.

To meet the growing demand from the domestic and overseas markets, and to conform to the stringent environmental norms, BPCL has rolled out a major expansion drive with new and innovative technology for primary and secondary units. The project will increase the capacity of the existing refinery by 120,000 BBL/d, which will lead to the increased production of refined products and he implementation of clean fuel technology.

The Kochi refinery, which is at Ambalmugal, near the port city of Kochi in Kerala, is one of BPCL's two refineries. The refinery presently has a crude oil refining capacity of about 200,000 BBL/d. The product portfolio of the refinery stands at 190,000 BBL/d, which includes petrochemical feedstock and specialty products, in addition to the mainstream fuel products.

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