Petrobras restores full operations at Replan refinery

Feb. 1, 2019
Petrobras has resumed full production rates at the operator’s 434,000-b/d Replan refinery in Paulinia, Sao Paulo, following a late August 2018 fire that led to a temporary suspension of operations at the complex. The refinery’s return to 100% of its nominal production capacity follows restart of the complex’s atmospheric distillation unit (U-200), which was back in operation as of Jan. 25.

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) has resumed full production rates at the operator’s 434,000-b/d Replan refinery in Paulinia, Sao Paulo, following a late August 2018 fire that led to a temporary suspension of operations at the complex (OGJ Online, Aug. 24, 2018).

The refinery’s return to 100% of its nominal production capacity follows restart of the complex’s atmospheric distillation unit (U-200), which was back in operation as of Jan. 25, Petrobras said.

Restart of U-200 followed Brazil’s National Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels Agency’s (ANP) Jan. 16 approval for Petrobras to safely resume operations at the unit.

A precautionary suspension of processing operations at the site occurred after a fire broke out on Aug. 20, 2018, following an explosion in a tank of one of the acidic water units associated with the U-220A catalytic cracking unit, which also impacted U-200.

Other units temporarily shuttered because of the incident were restarted in the days following the fire.

Contact Robert Brelsford at [email protected].