OMV Petrom wraps coke-drum replacement project at Petrobrazi refinery

OMV Petrom SA, Bucharest, has installed new coke drums to ensure long-term upgrading capabilities of coking operations at its 4.5-million tpy Petrobrazi refinery in southeast Romania, near Ploiesti City.

Completed as of Aug. 23, the project involved installation of four coke drums to replace existing drum equipment at the refinery, the operator said.

Manufactured in Romania, the new 6-m wide, 30-m tall drums—each weighing nearly 200 tonnes—are designed to operate at full capacity under high-temperature conditions for at least the next 20 years to transform heavier hydrocarbon components into higher-value products at the site, OMV Petrom said.

Replacement of the coke drums also will improve efficiency and safety of operations at the Petrobrazi refinery to enable its ongoing provision of high-quality fuels to the Romanian and regional markets, according to Radu Căprău, OMV Petrom executive board member responsible for the operator’s downstream business.

Initiated in 2021 and executed during the refinery’s planned turnaround during second-quarter 2023, the coke-drum replacement project—which was completed at an investment of about €70 million ($76 million)—comes as part of OMV Petrom’s ongoing modernization of the Petrobrazi refinery to help meet regional demand for conventional and alternative transportation fuels, as well as  reduce the site’s environmental impact in line with the company’s broader Strategy 2030 program to support a cleaner energy future in Romania (OGJ Online, Oct. 13, 2022).

Originally scheduled to last for 42 days, the Petrobrazi refinery’s 2023 turnaround was extended by 2 weeks following discovery of additionally required maintenance work during the initially planned 8-week turnaround period, OMV Petrom said in its second-quarter 2023 earnings report to investors.

Ongoing projects currently still under implementation at the refinery include installation of a new crude oil tank and a new aromatics unit, the company said.