Dangote refinery receives crude cracker, begins equipment installation

The Dangote Oil Refining Company (DORC) Limited, said it took delivery of one of the major components of its refinery equipment; the regenerator for the residual Fluid Catalytic Cracker last week.

The Fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit is one of the most important conversion equipment refining processes. It is widely used to convert the high-boiling, high-molecular weight hydrocarbon fractions of petroleum crude oils into more valuable gasoline, olefinic gases, and other products.

The company has also commenced the installation of equipment for the 650,000 barrel-per-day crude oil refinery, which has continued to receive heavy equipment, through the Dangote jetty, located close to the refinery in the Lekki Free Trade Zone.Recall that the jetty, constructed by Dangote Oil Refinery received its first ship of 132 metres long, 9,755 tonnes general cargo ship last year, to deliver essential equipment for the ongoing construction.

The refinery is being designed to accommodate multiple grades of domestic and foreign crude, which would be processed into high-quality gasoline, diesel, kerosene, and aviation fuels that meet Euro V emissions specifications, plus polypropylene.

Other components of the refinery will include a crude distillation unit, single-train residual FCCU, diesel hydro-treating unit, continuous catalyst regeneration unit, alkylation unit, and a polypropylene unit. The refinery will also be able to adjust the production of different products to match market demand.

The Head, Quality Assurance/Quality Compliance and Construction, DORC, Rama Putta, said the sand filling of the site has been completed, adding that 60 per cent of the land was swampy.

“…The refinery equipment are coming in semi-finished shape, and we will finish them off here at the sight. The remaining ones are being manufactured in various countries, including China, India, America, South Korea, Singapore, and Malaysia.”

Also, Executive Director, Dangote Group, Devakumar Edwin, said the 650,000bpd refinery would stimulate economic development in Nigeria, as it is designed to process a variety of light and medium grades of crude.

Edwin noted that usually, the sulphur in petroleum fuels results in vehicle exhaust emissions that have negative impact on health and the environment, adding that the Dangote plant has invested in the most advanced technology to produce Euro V fuel, to help Nigeria meet the European standard for gasoline.

He said the project would provide thousands of direct and indirect jobs, and add value to the Nigeria’s economic development, while leading to significant skills transfer and technology acquisition opportunities in the country.