Azerbaijan, Baku, April 10 / Trend A. Akhundov /
The output of the oil and gas processing and petrochemical production complex will comply with Euro 5 standards, deputy head of SOCAR complex construction project Shamil Hakimov said at the forum in Baku today. The forum is dedicated to the creation of a new complex for oil and gas processing and production of petrochemical products in Azerbaijan.
He said that the complex will include a gas processing plant with a capacity of 10 billion cubic meters per year, an oil processing plant - 10 million tons and a petrochemical plant - 900,000 tons per year.
"The purpose of the complex construction is to ensure domestic demand for petroleum and petrochemical products, to establish facilities in this sector, to strengthen export potential, to become a regional leader in this field," he added.
He said that methane refined at the gas processing plant will be used to meet the needs of the population in the natural gas, as well as for export purposes. Ethane and propane will be transported as a raw material for the petrochemical plant.
"It is planned to produce up to 3 million tons of gasoline per year at oil refinery (80 percent fall to A-95, 20 percent - AI-98), aviation fuel - 1.7 million tons, diesel - 3.5 million tons, bitumen - 500,000 tons and so on," he said.
He said that a heat-and-power engineering center with a total capacity of 250 megawatts will be built to ensure the energy needs of the complex. The center will operate on natural gas. Excess energy produced there will be supplied to the gas distribution network of the country.
About 40 technological units are planned to be installed to implement 27 technological processes at the complex. The oil refining depth at the new complex will hit 95 percent, output of light products - 85 percent.
At present, the feasibility study of the complex has been prepared. The process of getting the license will begin in April.
Geological and engineering operations are underway in an area of 1,500 hectares allotted for the complex construction.
"The design of gas processing plant will be launched in 2012, the construction in 2013," he said. "The plant is expected to be commissioned in mid-2017. The design of other two plants will be launched in 2013, the construction - in 2014. The complex will be fully commissioned by late 2020."
According to the feasibility study of the project, total investments in the project will amount to $15 billion. The payback period is seven years.