Many European oil and chemical firms have been looking to sell domestic refineries since last year as demand for fuels and petrochemical products has fallen more sharply in Europe than in most other parts of the world, hitting profit margins.
Following are the refineries around Europe that have been sold or are up for sale:
Lindsey, UK
• French major Total is looking to sell the 221,000 barrels per day refinery.
• Swiss refiner Petroplus said it has proposed
buying it.
• It is Britain's third largest refinery, which began operation in 1968. Employs about 500 people.
• A relatively simple refinery, with an undersized gasoline making catalytic cracking unit relative to its crude processing
capacity.
• Has high middle distillate yield.
• The plant can process 40 different types of crude oil, while North Sea crude accounts for 85-95% of its crude
oil slate, according to the corporate website.
• Total invested £200 million in the HDS-3, or hydrodesulphurisation unit, to make ultra low sulphur diesel. The construction will be completed in spring 2010. Total has not said when it will come onstream.
Harburg, Heide, Germany
Stanlow, UK
Gothenburg, Sweden
• Royal Dutch Shell said about 560,000 bpd, or 15% of its global total refinery capacity was under review.
• Shell has been in talks with India's Essar Oil on the sale of the three refineries.
• Essar will consider buying them in May or June after its planned initial public offer in London. It said it had no
proposal to use the $2.5 billion to be raised from the IPO to buy them.
• Last year, sources said. Essar has been in talks with UBS, Citigroup and JPMorgan for a loan of up to $750 million if it
wins the bidding for the three refineries.
• Harburg has a capacity to process 5.2 million tons of crude oil a year (roughly 110,000 bpd). It is moderately complex
and its key units are a catalytic cracker for gasoline making and lubricant systems.
• Heide can process 4.5 million tons a year (93,000 bpd). It is an integrated, petrochemical oriented plant.
• Stanlow has a capacity to process 267,000 bpd.
• Gothenburg has a capacity to process about 78,000 bpd.
Pembroke, UK
• U.S. major Chevron said it would sell the 210,000 barrels per day plant in Wales.
• The plant came on stream in 1964.
Grangemouth, UK
• Located in Scotland, the plant processes about 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
• Current operator British chemicals maker Ineos bought the plant from BP in 2005.
• Chinese oil firm PetroChina is in talks to invest in the Grangemouth refinery.
• Grangemouth is a moderately complex refinery equipped with both hydrocracking and catalytic cracking systems, giving it flexibility to produce gasoline and middle distillates, such as diesel, according to market demand.
• The plant is connected to the North Sea Forties pipeline, which delivers about 650,000-700,000 bpd of crude oil, roughly half of the UK's daily production.
• Morgan Stanley has a deal with Ineos for product marketing and some crude oil purchase.
