STAR refinery launches testing works in summer

Baku. 7 March. REPORT.AZ/ STAR Oil Refinery of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR), which is under construction in Aliağa, Izmir city of Turkey, will carry out testing and adjusting works in summer.

Report informs citing the Turkish media, Director General of STAR Refinery Inc. Mesut Ilter said.

"Starting from July, trial works will begin on the devices. After completion of the test works, the plant will be commissioned in the third quarter 2018. The very first product of the plant is expected to be loaded on tankers in last week of September. The first crude oil tanker in June will reach STAR port”, he said.

Ilter noted that 97.9% of construction works have been completed. According to him, 98.7% of total works were implemented on the project. "Total of 100 million man-hours performed in construction of the plant, which employs about 16,000 people. Over the next 15 million man-hours expected to be executed. Our goal is to complete the STAR plant in a timely and safe manner”, he added.

Ilter noted that steam boilers will be put into operation in the next few weeks: “The first electric power to the STAR plant was supplied in August 2017, and energy is already being provided to all systems in the area. Cleaning works have started in steam lines. In the next few weeks, the first steam boilers will be put into operation”.

Notably, the foundation of STAR Oil Refinery was laid on October 25, 2011, by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Plant will have crude oil processing capacity of 10 mln tons per year. The plant annually will produce annual 1.6 mln tons of naphtha, 5 mln tons of diesel, 1.6 mln tons of jet fuel, 300,000 tons of LPG, 160,000 tons of sulfur and other products.