Gazprom Neft progresses on Moscow refinery’s upgrade project

Russia’s PJSC Gazprom Neft, St. Petersburg, has reached 89% completion on construction of its previously announced project to build a Euro+ combined oil refining unit (CORU) as part of the ongoing modernization and upgrade of its 12.15 million-tonne/year Moscow refinery (OGJ Online, May 5, 2017; June 2, 2016).

The operator has completed installation of all large-scale equipment for Euro+ CORU, including installation of the highest section of the catalytic reformer, which will enable production of high-performance Euro 5-quality gasoline—a key project in the Moscow refinery’s second-stage modernization work under way since 2011, Gazprom Neft said.

To date, Gazprom Neft has installed 37,000 cu m of reinforced concrete and 23,000 tonnes of metal structures, laid 7,600 tonnes of process piping, and mounted 559 pieces of equipment to foundation for the Euro+ complex.

The operator said it currently is completing installation of components for distribution, including the laying of 582 km of power-supply cables and 380 km of instrumentation and equipment cabling, as well as started testing of electrical equipment ahead of connecting the Euro+ complex to the electricity network.

The Euro+ CORU project, which will replace outdated equipment and be fully compliant with Russia’s current ecological standards and environmental regulations, will include the following once completed:

• A 6 million-tpy primary atmospheric-vacuum distillation unit (CDU-VDU 6).

• A 1 million-tpy gasoline reforming unit.

• A 2 million-tpy diesel (distillate) hydrotreating unit, which will include an iso-dewaxing unit.

• A gas fractionation unit.

• An amine regeneration unit.

Alongside reducing the refinery’s total environmental impact from processing activities by 11%/tonne of crude processed, the project will improve the complex’s operational energy efficiency as well as increase its intermaintenance period to 4 years from a current 2 years (OGJ Online, July 23, 2015).

The Euro+ CORU project remains on schedule for startup by yearend, with the entirety of its more than 250 billion-rubles second-stage modernization program on target for completion in 2020, Gazprom Neft said.

Total investment in the Euro+ CORU project to date stands at 98 billion rubles, the operator said.

Contact Robert Brelsford at [email protected].