The Shymkent oil refinery completed its maintenance work on April 7 ahead of schedule and launched production for the domestic market, reported the Kazakh Energy Ministry’s press service.
Car owners complained about the shortage of diesel fuel at Almaty filling stations in March associated with the planned maintenance at the Shymkent oil refinery.
Repair works, originally planned to run from March 15 to April 8, were completed on time, with some ahead of schedule. The crude oil distillation unit was operated a day earlier, while the fluid catalytic cracking unit was launched five days earlier than planned.
The repair work included replacing and restoring individual parts and adjusting equipment for crude oil distillation, catalytic reforming, diesel fuel hydrotreating, kerosene hydrotreating, and catalytic cracking.
Conducted by 22 contractors and 1,305 specialists, the work was to ensure the operability of the refinery’s equipment.
Last year, the Shymkent oil refinery processed its most considerable amount of 6.2 million tonnes of oil.
Owned by PetroKazakhstan Group of Companies, the Shymkent oil refinery processes 366,000 tonnes of oil, produces 110,100 tonnes of gasoline, 114,800 tonnes of diesel fuel, 15,100 tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas, 19,300 tonnes of jet fuel and 77,600 tonnes of fuel oil in April.