Oil Refineries Ltd. (TASE:ORL) today announced that its hydrocracker is operational, after passing acceptance tests, and that it is producing the required quality of refined oil products in commercial quantities.
The hydrocracker is part of a strategic plan that Oil Refineries decided on in 2007. The company invested $500 million in the facility, which is the main component of the $1 billion plan. Other parts of the plan include upgrading the sulfur scrubbers from diesel, and other facilities to expand and upgrade hydrocracking refining and the production of fuel and petrochemical products.
The hydrocracker for the production of clean fuels is operating as planned at an at an input of 25,000 barrels of oil a day. It produces cooking gas, naphtha, kerosene, and high-quality diesel.
Oil Refineries believes the hydrocracker will improve its refining margin and business results, in addition to the streamlining, improvements, and cost cutting that the company recently announced.
Oil Refineries CEO Pinhas Buchris said, "We are pleased by the operation of the hydrocracker, which is an important part of the realization of the company's strategic business plan. The hydrocracker is a very complex facility, which cost $500 million and took three years to build. We consider its operation as a business, technological, and organizational achievement. The start of the hydrocracker's operations at Oil Refineries premises will enable us to produce higher quality refined products that exceed strict environmental standards, and to improve our competitive position in the world. We believe that the hydrocracker will enable us to maximize Oil Refineries' production function so that it will have a positive effect on the operating efficiencies, and therefore improve the company's financial results."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 3, 2013
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