Fire halts production at Lukoil’s Russian petrochemical complex

A fire that occurred on Feb. 26 at Lukoil’s 350,000-tonne/year Stavrolen petrochemical complex in Budennovsk, Russia, has been contained, the company said.

The fire, which broke out in the plant’s ethylene production unit gas separation area, has resulted in suspension of production processes at the complex, according to a release from Lukoil.

While the incident has posed no threat to the environment, 15 workers were injured, Lukoil said.

The cause of the fire, the nature and scope of the damage, as well as the timetable for resuming production at the plant will be determined by a special commission in cooperation with the representatives of the state supervisory authorities, according to the company.

In 2012, Lukoil announced project plans for the Stavrolen industrial site designed to equip the complex to process gas produced in the northern Caspian.

Commissioning of the first stage of a 2 billion cu m/year gas processing plant and modernization of existing ethylene and polyethylene units at the complex are scheduled for 2015, Lukoil has said (OGJ Online, Sept. 25, 2012).