Citgo's $900 Million in Projects Aim to Upgrade, Reopen Key Refineries

---

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Citgo Petroleum Corporation, a subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) (Caracas, Venezuela), continues to face fallout from wide-ranging allegations of corruption involving PDVSA and Venezuela's unprecedented political chaos, but the 750,000 barrel-per-day refiner still maintains a steady slate of North American growth projects. Industrial Info is tracking more than $900 million in active projects involving Citgo, the bulk of which are scheduled to begin construction within the next 12 months.

Click on the image at right for a map of Citgo's active, U.S.-based refining projects.

Early this year, the Trump administration brought sanctions against PDVSA in hopes of pressuring President Nicolas Maduro to leave office; the U.S. is among dozens of countries that no longer recognize Maduro as Venezuela's legitimate leader. Oil output from Venezuela already had been falling for years due to the country's economic turmoil, and the sanctions only accelerated the decline. The U.S.-based arm of Citgo quickly agreed to halt payments to PDVSA, but tensions escalated last month when the Department of Justice subpoenaed Citgo as part of an investigation into bribery in Venezuela.

Citgo's Lake Charles Refinery in Westlake, Louisiana, is the sixth-largest refinery in the U.S., according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), and the focus of much of the company's construction and maintenance efforts. The facility, which marks its 75th anniversary this year, is considering a proposed debottlenecking of Sulfuric Acid Alkylation Unit A, which could boost the 23,000-barrel-per-day (BBL/d) unit's capacity by 20% to 30%. If approved, the project would kick off in first-quarter 2020 and possibly lead to a second-phase debottlenecking that would further improve operations.

Nearer-term projects at Lake Charles include a string of upgrades, optimizations and replacements at sulfur recovery units A and E, which respectively have capacities of 60 and 120 tons per day, and a heat exchanger replacement at a hydrocracker unit that processes 38,000 BBL/d. For more information, see Industrial Info's reports on Sulfuric Acid Alkylation Unit A's Phase I and Phase II projects, as well as sulfur recovery units A and E and the hydrocracker unit.

The Lake Charles Refinery also has a series of maintenance-related projects scheduled to kick off in the third quarter, including at its:

• Delayed Coker Unit 2, which processes 60,000 BBL/d; see project report
• Hydrocracker, mentioned above; see project report
• Sulfur-Recovery Unit E, mentioned above; see project report
• Continuous Catalytic Reformer C, which processes 52,000 BBL/d; see project report

Other upgrade projects are in the works at Citgo's refinery in Corpus Christi, Texas, including a proposed upgrade to Fluid Catalytic Cracker Unit 2, which processes 69,000 BBL/d. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Industrial Info is tracking about 30 maintenance-related projects at U.S.-based Citgo facilities, including those at Lake Charles, that are set to begin within the next two years. Click here for a list.

Citgo breathed a sigh of relief in March when the Trump administration agreed to give the U.S.-based subsidiary a further 18 months to buy crude and make debt payments, despite sanctions against its parent, according to Reuters. That was especially good news for Citgo's refinery in San Nicolas, Aruba, which resumed an estimated $650 million refurbishment project it had halted following the U.S. sanctions. Citgo and Aruba's government hope to reopen the 290,000-BBL/d refinery, which former owner Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) (San Antonio, Texas) had mothballed in 2012. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

In addition to the 18-month relief from the Trump administration, Citgo also secured a $1.2 billion loan in March to fund its daily operations from at least 35 financial institutions, according The Houston Chronicle. The loan alleviated concerns that the U.S. sanctions would prevent Citgo from refinancing.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com/.