Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 11 / Trend E.Ismayilov /
In 2010, the construction of a new oil refinery company (ORP) belonging to the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) will begin near the large Turkish petrochemical complex Petkim. SOCAR is a co-founder of Petkim.
The new plant will meet Petkim's raw material needs. The remaining oil products will be sold on the local market and in Europe.
"Construction of the plant is scheduled for 2010. The plant is expected to be put into operation in 2014," the source added.
The Turkish government has already approved a report on the evaluation of the plant's impact on the environment. Presently, work on preparing a feasibility study and obtaining permission to build the plant is underway.
SOCAR's Turkish representation also confirmed that the Turkish government has approved the assessment of environmental impacts.
The feasibility study of SOCAR's ORP oil refinery will soon be completed, SOCAR Turkey Office head Seymur Agayev told Trend earlier.
"The company is now working to obtain building permits and is developing a feasibility study for the ORP construction in Turkey," he said.
The plant's initial capacity is specified at 10 million tons per year to prepare a pilot feasibility study. However, a higher capacity will likely be announced later, Agayev added.
The planned capacity of the ORP to be built in Turkey will amount to 10-15 million tons of oil annually, SOCAR head Rovnag Abdullayev said at a news conference in Kiev earlier.
Formerly the Turkish Privatization Administration approved the SOCAR-Turcas Petrol-Injaz alliance as the winner of a tender to sell a 51-percent share of Petkim.
Turkey currently imports 70-75 percent of its chemical products, but while developing Petkim, the alliance will provide an opportunity to increase imports to 30 percent.
The Petkim Petrokimya Holding specializes in the production of plastic packages, fabric and detergents and is only producer of these goods in Turkey, exporting one-fourth of the output.
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