BPRP running two crackers at Gelsenkirchen at reduced rates

01-Feb-10

BP Refining & Petrochemical’s (BPRP) is running its two crackers at Gelsenkirchen, Germany, at reduced rates caused by a glitch due to fouling of the internal pipes system, as per ICIS. A 10% reduction in deliveries to its customers has been announced for an indefinite period. This reduced run rates comes amid robust demand, as its customers were nominating maximum contract volumes as the cracker margin outlook for February has begun to look good. The No 4 cracker has a nameplate capacity of 525,000 tpa of ethylene and is scheduled to go into a planned maintenance turnaround in September, while the No 3 cracker has the capacity to produce 540,000 tpa of ethylene.