PDVSA Performs Turnarounds as Part of Puerto La Cruz Refinery Optimization

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Puerto la Cruz Refinery, owned by Venezuela's state owned oil company, PDVSA, and located in Anzoategui State, in the northeastern area of the country, will perform a series of unit turnarounds and revamp work as part of the upgrading project called "Valcor", which aims at increasing the refinery's processing capacity and allowing it to obtain higher quality products. The company expects to have all three DA (Atmospheric Distillation) units revamped by 2011.

DA-1 Crude Unit's last planned turnaround took place in November 2007; therefore, the next one is to take place in 2011 when plant officials will also perform revamp work, which is to include not only maintenance, but also all the necessary modifications to allow the DA-1 to process heavier crude oil. At the moment, this crude unit processes Mesa 30 Crude oil and after the modifications they will be able to process Merey Crude oil (16°API). The date for this turnaround and revamp work depends on the procurement of the necessary materials and the construction of a new 80,000 barrel per day furnace that is to work together with this crude unit. PDVSA expects to have the furnace ready by third quarter 2010. At the moment, conceptual engineering is being performed.

DA-2 Crude Unit underwent its last turnaround in September 2006 and the next one is scheduled to take place in 2011. Puerto la Cruz authorities still need to decide on the date because they do not want turnarounds in the Crude Distillation units to overlap. Modifications will be performed to allow DA-2 to process heavier crude oil as in DA-1.

DA-3 Crude Unit underwent its last planned turnaround in 2002 and it was scheduled to have a 45-days-shutdown in August 2008 which was then moved to September 2008. However, they have decided to postpone the turnaround until the first quarter of 2009 since the unit is in good general conditions. In this way, they will be able to work on the infrastructure and perform the revamp and maintenance work.

The Units in the Middle Conversion Area (FCC, HF Alkylation and STG-Gas Treatment) will undergo a turnaround together with the Hydroprocess area, CCR, HDT Diesel, HDT Naphtha and Environmental units (Aromatics, SRU, Amine, Sour Water Stripper ), in the third quarter 2009. The shutdown is to last sixty days; although they are studying the possibility for the shutdown to last around forty-five days. They will perform this maintenance work in this time of the year to take advantage of summer time weather conditions.

All the units at Puerto la Cruz have been processing without further shutdown since last April when a major power outage affected 40% of Venezuela causing the plant's hydroprocessing area to go offline and the remaining units to produce at minimum rates. For more details view related, May 5, 2008, news article-- PDVSA: Only One Refinery Affected by Last Week's Major Blackout in Venezuela.

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