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CHAPTER THREE
Arab And World Developments
In Japan, JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp. announced that it had
shut down some units at its 240,000 b/d Mizushima refinery and
will permanently close the 140,000 b/d Sakaide refinery in Western
Japan.
Showa Shell Sekiya has announced that it had permanently closed
its 120,000 b/d Ogimatchi refinery near Tokyo. Also Idemitsu Kosan
Co. announced that it will close permanently 120,000 crude distillation
units at its Tokuyama refinery, west of Japan in March 2014.
In October, JX Nippon also announced that it will close permanently
one of the crude distillation units at its Hokkaido refinery in March 2014.
The wave of closing the refineries follows government regulations
that encourage refining capacity cuts amid falling local demand for
the petroleum products.
In Australia, Caltex Australasia Ltd. has announced that it will
close its 125,000 b/d Kurnell refinery on Botany Bay, south of
Sydney in March 2014. The company will convert the location into a
fuel import terminal at a cost of $705 million.
Also Shell Australia announced that it has a plan to close its Klyde
refinery in 2013. By this closure Australia refining industry will lose
27% of its capacity.
In May 2012, the biggest refining story in North America centred
on the massive expansion at Motiva refinery in Texas. The expansion
project, the largest at USA in nearly 40 years, is aimed at raising
the capacity from 325,000 b/d to 600,000 b/d and improving the
flexibility of the refinery to process several types of crude oils. The
refinery is a joint venture owned by Saudi Aramco and Royal Dutch
Shell.
