Pavlodar oil refinery to be suspended for repairs this summer

Pavlodar oil refinery is to be suspended for repairs this coming summer. “The repairs are planned from mid-June to mid-July. The refinery is likely to suspend its work for the period”, Interfax – Kazakhstan reports. Atyrau-based refinery was already repaired from March 15 to April 25 without suspension. When speaking before the country’s Majilis (lower chamber) May 11, Kazakhstan’s O&G Minister Sauat Mynbayev said that Kazakhstan may start construction of a new oil refinery in 2020. “Before the year 2020 processing capacities of the current three refineries [based in Pavlodar, Atyrau and Shymkent] can meet the domestic demand”, he said. As of today, according to him, Kazakhstan-based refineries process a bit over 13 million tons a year. Plans are there to increase oil processing up to 17 million tons by 2015. The three facilities are to go through overhauls within the program to modernize oil processing facilities in 2010-2014. In 2010, the three refineries processed a total of 13.7 million tons of crude, 570 000 tons over the plan. Pavlodar refinery is capable of producing 7.5 million tons of oil a year. The facility was constructed in 1978 and is currently owned by Refinary Company RT (KazMunaiGas subsidiary) (58%) and Samruk-Kazyna Sovereign Wealth Fund (42%). Shymkent oil refinery is expected to suspend its operations for repairs in autumn. The repairs are scheduled for October 5 to November 4. 49.5% in the oil refinery is owned by KazMunaiGas Processing and Marketing, while the controlling stake is held by PetroKazakhstan (a joint venture between KazMunaiGas and CNPC).