September 11, 2016:

The owner and prime financial backer of a project to build a $22 billion oil refinery near Kitimat says he’s disappointed it is being sent to a federal review panel before a decision is made on whether or not to give it environmental approval.  Kitimat Clean Ltd. president David Black said the panel announcement made late Sept. 9 by federal environment minister Catherine McKenna will add close to two years to the project and cost his company approximately an additional $2.5 million along the way.  “I won’t say it’s a roadblock, but it is a hurdle,” said Black last week.  The review to be conducted through the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency calls for the panel to be established within three months, which will then submit a report back to the agency 16 months after that. Then McKenna will make her decision within five months after that.  The 16-month panel review will include a series of public hearings and submissions from interested parties.

McKenna’s announcement of the review panel was short on specifics.  Follow up information referred to the assessment agency receiving “71 comments from the public and indigenous groups relating to the potential significant adverse environmental effects of the project, including a request that the environmental assessment be referred to a review panel.”  Those comments were received after Kitimat Clean submitted its project proposal in the spring, but they have yet to be released.  “The project has the potential to cause significant adverse environmental effects to fish and fish habitat, marine species at risk, the current use of lands and resources for traditional purposes and trans-boundary effects related to greenhouse gas emissions from refinery operations,” the assessment agency said.  Black said the assessment agency hasn’t provided him with any details of the above.  He said the project proposal sent in the spring answers any questions raised about the impact of the refinery project and how it will produce refined petroleum products to be shipped to it by rail from Alberta oil producers. He had expected the project to move to detailed    approvals and permits as opposed to it being sent to a review panel.  “What this will do is clean the environment up,” said Black of the refinery process, which he describes as the cleanest in the world.  C02 emissions will be vastly reduced compared to those to be produced should crude oil be shipped to Asia and refined there, he said.  “If it was to be refined in Southeast Asia, that would produce 23 million tonnes of (C02) emissions a year. That’s the equivalent to the emissions of six million cars of Canadians a year,”  said Black.  “So any delay means we’re not taking the equivalent of those cars off the road each year.”  Black also said it is far more environmentally preferable to ship refined petroleum products from the north coast than any existing plan to ship crude.  Should there be a spill, the impact of refined products will be far less than is the case with heavy oil, because they will evaporate, he added.  Black also said a refinery will add billions of dollars worth of economic activity within the country and generate thousands of jobs within the northwest and beyond.  Black’s been selling the refinery project, officially introduced in 2012, as a nation-building exercise to add value to a raw resource rather than simply having bitumen exported for processing overseas.  The study forecasts taxation revenues of up to $1 billion a year for various levels of government and the creation of 1,250 direct jobs, 1,250 contract jobs tied to operations and thousands of indirect ones through the region.

A five-year construction window is forecast with as many as 7,000 workers needed as well as a large camp facility located at the refinery location.  At full capacity the refinery would process upwards of 400,000 barrels a day of bitumen, producing diesel, jet fuel and gasoline to be delivered to the marine export terminal via pipeline.  The fuels would be pumped aboard large tankers with one scheduled to leave the marine export terminal every four days for the trip to Asia.  The refinery would be located on approximately 1,000 hectares of mostly Crown land 13 kilometres north of Kitimat, as well as on associated works such as rail spurs, a tank farm, a marine export terminal on the Douglas Channel near Kitimat, and on a 23-kilometre long corridor containing three pipelines to carry refined fuels from the refinery to the terminal for tanker export overseas.  Black has been the sole investor of the project and has yet to attract energy companies who instead favour their own refineries. He’s also the owner of Black Press, the newspaper company which owns The Terrace Standard and other newspapers  in northwestern B.C. and beyond.

By Terrace Standard

September 11, 2016:

The Star oil refinery in Turkey owned by the Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR plans to complete construction of the oil receiving marine terminal before late 2016, Director General of the refinery Ibrahim Palaz told reporters in Izmir, Turkey.  “All the major work concerning the terminal will be completed until the end of 2016,” Palaz said. “The two other terminals intended for shipment of finished oil products will be ready for operation in September 2017.”  The annual naphtha production volume, used by Petkim as the main raw material, will amount to 1.66 million tons at the STAR refinery.  Along with naphtha, the new oil refinery will produce diesel fuel with ultra-low sulfur to the amount of 5.95 million tons, aviation kerosene - 500,000 tons, reformate - 500,000 tons, petroleum coke - 630,000 tons, liquefied gas - 240,000 tons, mixed xylene - 415,000 tons, olefin LPG - 75,000 tons and 145,000 tons of sulfur. The refinery will not produce petrol and fuel oil.  It is planned to refine Azeri Light, Kerkuk and URALS oil at the plant.  At present, the share distribution in the project is as follows: 60 percent is owned by Rafineri Holding A.?. (100 percent owned by SOCAR Turkey Enerji A.?.), which had previously acquired all the remaining 18.5 percent share of Turcas Petrol in the project, and 40 percent belongs to SOCAR.

By TODAY.AZ

September 10, 2016:

Chris Pate works in the same wood-paneled office on Fort Worth’s north side where his great-grandfather A.M. Pate Sr. founded Panther Oil & Grease Manufacturing Co. in 1922.  Much has changed since. The company was renamed Texas Refinery Corp. in 1947 since customers outside North Texas wouldn’t relate to the “panther” reference. Environmental Protection Agency rules changed the way the company does business. And in November 2015, as the Trinity River Vision Project moved into its neighborhood, the company moved its grease and lubricant production plant from Fort Worth to Mansfield.  The headquarters, however, will stay on North Main Street in Fort Worth, where Chris Pate — a fourth-generation company man — will run the business. An accountant by trade, Pate has worked other jobs, from running hospitals to banking, but oil and grease feel like home to him.  “Having a history of it being my family, I didn’t want to be the generation that let this thing go,” said Pate, who came back to Texas Refinery six years ago to become its president and CEO. For 94 years, the company has manufactured grease, oil and lubricants that keep gears and motors going throughout North America. Texas Refiner will fulfill orders of all sizes, no matter how small, an important niche that’s allowed it to build a solid fan base over the decades.  Its iconic red, white and blue barrels have become a staple of barrel racing at the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo, one of the few businesses in Fort Worth that have been around longer than Texas Refinery.  The company celebrated its 94th anniversary on Friday with a grand opening for the new Mansfield plant.  

‘Rejuvenated the company’  

The company’s founders probably never envisioned that the old Panther Oil & Grease Manufacturing Co. factory would someday be displaced by the Trinity River Vision Project — including the Panther Island development — nearly 100 years later.  The project prompted Texas Refinery Corp. to sell its plant and look for a new home.  Dennis Parks, executive vice president of Texas Refinery, said company officials originally wanted to stay in Fort Worth. But that changed when they found an old glass factory in southwest Mansfield.  The idea of moving had been in the works for a decade, but Pate’s return really accelerated the process, Parks said.  “It wasn’t that Texas Refinery Corp. was stagnant, but he brought all these fresh, new ideas,” Parks said. “In the last four or five years he’s really rejuvenated the company. We were under the gun to get this done not only on time but at budget.”  It took years of engineering and problem solving to build a plant that could conform to EPA regulations, said Patrick Walsh, executive vice president of Texas Refinery.  “How do you scrub that air so you don’t release the pollutants into the air?” Walsh said, describing one issue. “It’s got the latest and greatest state-of-the-art technology for containing spills.”  The plant has an intricate pipeline grid that moves chemicals, oil and grease to various kettles and storage tanks. Outside are 29 storage tanks with a total capacity of 890,000 gallons.

‘You’re your own boss’  

The Pate family has done whatever it takes to keep Texas Refinery viable through the decades, through the Great Depression of the 1930s, the rationing of gasoline during World War II and the ups and downs of the oil industry.  At one point things got so tough that the founder’s wife, Marie Farnsworth Pate, affectionately known as “Mama Pate,” had to borrow money against her wedding ring to make payroll. ‘She called her employees her “kids” and cared about them like family.  That mentality continues today as many of the employees have logged 30, 40 or even 50 years with Texas Refinery.  “The company actually sought out those types of people,” Walsh said. “We don’t toss you out to pasture once you turn 65 years sold. We find there’s a lot of tread left on the tires once people turn 65.”  Texas Refinery also has an army of 575 commissioned salespeople in the United States and Canada. They sell to loggers, farmers, construction companies — the sky is pretty much the limit. “You’re your own boss; you hold your income in your own hand,” Walsh said. “How many people in today’s world would like to be their own boss and not have a limit on how much they can earn? Anywhere you have products that need lubrication or need to be cleaned or maintained, we’re there.”

‘We saw an opportunity’  

Texas Refinery has also continued its tradition of giving back to the community. Before closing in 2009, the Pate Museum of Transportation in Cresson displayed historical aircraft to the public.  As Texas Refinery moved into Mansfield, company owners learned about the efforts to build a concert venue in the city’s historic downtown.  “They had a great vision; they had a great plan,” Walsh said. “What they didn’t have was a driving force to get that vision off the ground and moving. We saw an opportunity to help them.”  Texas Refinery made a “sizable donation” to The LOT, which opened this year and now hosts mostly free concerts, movies and other events. The Texas Refinery logo is displayed prominently on the LOT sign.  The LOT, or Live Outdoor Theater, draws visitors to downtown Mansfield and could spark other new development in the historic area.  “The LOT was going to be the linchpin of that entire change,” Walsh said. “This was a fantastic way for us to show our appreciation to the city of Mansfield.” 

By Star-Telegram

September 10, 2016:

Deputy oil minister has announced the final agreement between Iran and China’s Sinopec for development of Abadan Refinery.  Touching upon the latest Iran-China oil deal, Managing Director of National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company (NIORDC) Abbas Kazemi said “final agreement has been reached with Sinopec (China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation) to implement the first developmental phase of Abadan Refinery as the country’s largest refinery complex.  The official, while announcing that the new deal was reached with a subsidiary of Sinopec, said the project follows several objectives including reduction of fuel oil production, increasing production capacity for gasoline and diesel with Euro-IV standard.  Kazemi pointed to the need for a 1.2-billion-dollar investment in the first development phase of Abadan Refinery renovation.  “The last round of negotiations with the Chinese side revolved around reopening of credit lines for the refinery project,” noted NIORDC head estimating that the Chinese will begin executive operations by December.  He went on to add that the project will require about four years of time reiterating “reduction of fuel oil to less than 10 per cent marks the most important aim pursued in the developmental project of the massive Iranian refinery.”  Recently, a Chinese financer was removed from development project of Isfahan Refinery and a relevant deal was inked with Daelim of South Korea to replace the Chinese side. Accordingly, the Chinese have gained the upper hand in talks over development of Abadan Refinery.  Almost a year ago, Abbas Kazemi announced the issuance of an ultimatum to a Chinese company on the developmental contract of Abadan Refinery.  NIORDC managing director said due to considerable stalling for time on the part of the Chinese firm, they have received a tough ultimatum; “the Chinese side has been warned that a substitute contractor would be hired if they use any more delaying tactics.”  The capacity consolidation project in the 100-year-old Abadan Oil Refinery aims to produce products under Euro 5 standard, reduce environmental pollution, increase production of gasoline by improving production technology, reduce fuel oil production in addition to collecting obsolete tanks and installations.

By MEHR News Agency

Septeber 2, 2016:

The Turkish Tekfen Insaat ve Tesisat A.S will conduct the electromechanical work as part of the construction of Star refinery in Turkey, Turkey’s Public Disclosure Platform (Kamuoyunu Aydınlatma Platformu - KAP) said in a message posted on its website Sept. 2.  According to the message, the work is planned to be conducted within 17 months.  The annual naphtha production volume, used by Petkim (where the Azerbaijani state oil company (SOCAR) has equity participation) as the main raw material, will reach 1.66 million tons at the Star refinery.  Along with naphtha, the new oil refinery will produce diesel fuel with ultra-low sulfur to the amount of 5.95 million tons, aviation kerosene - 500,000 tons, reformate - 500,000 tons, petroleum coke - 630,000 tons, liquefied gas - 240,000 tons, mixed xylene - 415,000 tons, olefin LPG - 75,000 tons and 145,000 tons of sulfur.  The refinery will not produce petrol and fuel oil.  It is planned to refine Azeri Light, Kerkuk and URALS oil at the plant.

By Trend News Agency