HPCL Plans Maintenance Turnaround at Visakhapatnam Refinery in June 2012

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (New Delhi, India)--India's state-owned refiner Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (BSE:500104) (HPCL) (New Delhi, India) is preparing to carry out a 40-day planned maintenance turnaround at its 166,000-barrel-per-day (BBL/d) Visakhapatnam Refinery, located at Visakhapatnam in the country's southern coastal state of Andhra Pradesh. The turnaround drive is expected to start from the first week of June 2012. The overall cost of the turnaround has been pegged at $15 million. The units that will undergo maintenance include the 60,000-BBL/d Crude Distillation Unit III; the 20,000-BBL/d Visbreaker Unit; the 18,600-BBL/d Fluid Catalytic Cracker Unit-I (FCCU); and the 15,000-BBL/d Merox Unit.

The major work to be carried out in the refinery involves the replacement of the turbine in the reactor of FCCU I, as well as maintenance and repair work for the heat exchanger, tubes, reformer, column, burner, refractory and reactor.

Visakhapatnam Refinery is designed to process 'Arab Mix Crude.' It also has the flexibility to process other types of Middle East Crude, with its state-of-the-art units. the refinery has three crude distillation units, a vacuum distillation unit, a visbreaker unit, two FCCUs, a diesel hydrotreater, a diesel hydrodesulfurization unit, a hydrogen unit, a naphtha hydrotreater, a CCR reformer unit, an isomerization unit and a sulfur recovery unit.

HPCL currently, has a refining capacity of 296,000 BBL/d from its refineries in Mumbai and Visakhapatnam, with capacities of 130,000 BBL/d and 166,000 BBL/d, respectively. HPCL is also planning the 180,000-BBL/d Ratnagiri project, which on completion will increase its production base to 476,000 BBL/d. The refinery is being set up in Maharashtra and is expected to cater to the increasing demand in refined petroleum products in the Western region of the country.

HPCL is also in the process of reviving its $10 billion, 315,000-BBL/d export-oriented crude oil refinery and 22,500-BBL/d petrochemical plant in Visakhapatnam to target Southeast Asia and Middle Eastern markets. HPCL is also planning to expand the throughput of Vishakhapatnam Refinery from 166,000 BBL/d to 300,000 BBL/d.

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