Sinopec unit begins construction of 500,000 tpa aromatics plant at Kazakhstan

12-Apr-11

China's Sinopec Tenth Construction Co. has started building a 500,000 tpa aromatics facility at Kazakhstan's Atyrau oil refinery, as per Platts. Sinopec Tenth Construction is contracted to build the aromatics facility, nine storage tanks for storing heavy and light refined oil products, reformate and xylenes, a power distribution facility and other related facilities. Sinopec Engineering was awarded a US$1.04 bln engineering, procurement and construction contract by Kazakhstan's state-owned KazMunaiGaz in 2009, to construct the facility. The facility was planned with capacity to produce up to 133,000 t of pa benzene and 496,000 tpa paraxylene. It will be built in two phases and is scheduled to be online by 2013. The project will also enable the 120,000 bpd Atyrau refinery to produce gasoline meeting Euro-3 and Euro-4 standards, as well as additional volumes of hydrogen.