Bad weather and additional repairs have led to a delay in planned maintenance that began in March at New Zealand Refining Co. Ltd.’s (NZRC) 107,000-b/d Marsden Point refinery at Northland on the North Island’s east coast (OGJ Online, Mar. 4, 2014).
While work on a number of key units related to the shutdown is already finished, inclement weather and the need for additional repair work has delayed completion of the scheduled maintenance on the refinery’s hydrocracker and associated units until this week, NZRC said.
The company previously had expected the planned maintenance project, which included work to improve yields from the hydrocracker, to be completed in early April (OGJ Online, Mar. 4, 2014).
During the extended shutdown period, NZRC said it has been working closely with customers on supply planning and will continue to do so for the duration of the shutdown.
The refinery continues to produce fuel products through key processing units that have not been affected by the shutdown, NZRC said.
The extended shutdown of the refinery’s hydrocracker will result in an undisclosed impact on NZRC’s margin, as the ability to upgrade lower-cost feedstock into high-value products remains limited with the unit still off line, the company said.
