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Europe

Swiss, Egyptian groups make top bids for Petroplus oil refinery in France

The Petit-Couronne refinery in Western France, now in receivership, was among a string of industrial facilities new French President Francois Hollande had promised to protect before being elected. The two bids deemed serious come from investors in Egypt and Switzerland, the newspaper said.

ABB to extend eni Taranto refinery export terminal

The contract is part of eni’s plan to improve the refinery infrastructure and to ensure a reliable connection with the onshore Tempa Rossa oil plant. ABB is responsible for the engineering, procurement and construction of the new installation, including project management and pre-commissioning.

Neste Oil to expand Porvoo refinery in Finland with new isomerization unit

The investment, valued at €65 million, is intended to increase the output of high-octane gasoline and improve refining flexibility at the site. The isomerization unit will have a capacity of 600,000 tpy. Construction will begin this year, and the unit is due to come on stream in spring 2015.

Dutch chemical plant strike cuts Sabic production

The decrease in production at the Sabic Europe Chemicals plant located in the Dutch city of Geleen began January 31 due to a proactive measure taken by the union workforce as a consequence of no finalized agreement regarding work conditions, Sabic said in a statement.

Refinery optimization: Closing the gap between planned and actual performance

Aspen Technology Inc.: Petela, E.

Plant managers should remember that small, incremental changes can make huge differences to the competitiveness of a refinery in today's international marketplace.

New residue-upgrading complex achieves Euro 5 specifications

Criterion Catalysts and Technologies: de Haan, D.
Shell Global Solutions International BV: Street, M.
Grupa LOTOS GdaƄsk refinery: Orzeszko, G.

In late 2010, Grupa LOTOS SA completed construction of a major residue-upgrading project at its refinery in Gdańsk, Poland. Its 10+ Program was designed to unlock a step change in the facility’s long-term profitability. After two years of operating, this project has had a profound effect on the refinery’s economics.

How to choose a refiner for your precious metals catalyst

Sabin Metal Corp.: Beirne, K. M.

The criteria to consider when selecting a precious metals refiner include procedures associated with the refiner's sampling, assaying, processing and logistics arrangements.

Select new production strategies for FCC light cycle oil

Selective adjustments to FCC operating variables and catalyst quality can significantly increase LCO production, which refiners can then upgrade into diesel blendstock.

Use an innovative cracking catalyst to upgrade residue feedstock

Tamoil S.A.: Jollien, Y.-A.
BASF Corp.: Keeley, C.  |  Mayol, J.  |  Riva, S.  |  Komvokis, V.

Tamoil’s Collombey refinery worked very close with a new catalyst supplier to remove the main operating constraint and significantly improve the unit profitability. Several project goals were set and attained.

Consider advanced technology to remove benzene from gasoline blending pool

Calumet Superior LLC: Thom, T.
Badger Licensing LLC: Birkhoff, R.  |  Moy, E.
ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Co.: El-Malki, E-M

As more regions increasingly adopt clean-fuel regulations, the challenge for refiners is to meet these tightening gasoline specifications for benzene cost-effectively without significant octane loss.