Mazeikiu Nafta prepares for general repair
Aiming to ensure the continuous and secure performance of the AB Mazeikiu Nafta refinery, the Lithuanian company will soon commence the general renovation of its production facilities. The investment is scheduled to begin on 22nd September 2007 and finish within approximately six weeks. The total repair and modernization cost is estimated at USD 80m.
The extensive general repairs will employ around 4,000 employees from both Lithuanian and international companies. The investment will include the repair and replacement of ovens, heat exchangers, pipelines and other parts of the installation. “It must be stressed that our investment is made up not only of general repairs but also for our modernization projects” – said Aleksandr Lobanov, Head of General Repairs for Mazeikiu Nafta.
In the course of its preparation for the general repairs, the company is building inventories of refinery products. Sigitas Zakalskis, Head of Marketing at MNTH – a daughter company of Mazeikiu Nafta that specializes in wholesale operations, said that the outage of the refinery had been planned, and therefore clients across the Baltic States will not suffer from product shortages.
At present Mazeikiu Nafta is continuing the reconstruction of its crude distillation unit which was destroyed by last year’s fire. “Currently the inner column is being settled within a 300-tonne column. After its final placement, hydraulic tests will be undertaken and pipelines, wiring, pumps, and other peripherals will be connected” – said Aloyzas Noreika, Construction Manager. The reconstruction of the unit is scheduled for Q4 2007 and will allow daily crude throughput to be increased from 20,000 to 28,000 tonnes.
