Pemex halts operations at Salina Cruz refinery following earthquake, fire

Mexico’s Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) has halted operations at its 330,000-b/d Antonio Dovalí Jaime refinery in Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, in the wake of a fire that broke out at the site following a major earthquake which struck Mexico’s southern coast on June 23.

As a result of high vibrations occurring in electric turbogenerators and steam-generating boilers during the 7.5 magnitude earthquake, the refinery was entered into a safe-stop mode as part of the site’s automatic protection measures, which subsequently led to the outbreak of a fire at Alto Vacío 2, one of the refinery’s two vacuum distillation units, Pemex said in a release.

While the fire was quickly controlled and extinguished by the refinery’s fire department, one employee who fell from a high structure during the earthquake and was transported to a hospital later died, according to the operator. As of late June 23, Pemex said technicians and specialists at the site were making preparations to restart processing installations at the refinery as soon as conditions would allow.

Pemex has yet to disclose details regarding either the extent of damage to Alto Vacío 2 unit or a definitive timeframe for the refinery’s restart.