I am sure all of it is insured [at Byco] but the cost of repairs could be a burden,” said a seasoned refinery executive PHOTO: BYCO.COM.PK
KARACHI: Byco’s 120,000-barrel-per-day refinery has been closed since October 27 when a fire damaged its crude oil heater, but production is expected to resume by February 2016, officials told The Express Tribune.
Initially, the company had doused reports of any extensive damage to the plant and insisted that operations would resume soon. But, industry officials say, the refinery is still shut.
Industry people say the complex piping system in the crude oil heater of a refinery is vulnerable to such incidents and the fire was nothing extraordinary.
“I am sure all of it is insured [at Byco] but the cost of repairs could be a burden,” said a seasoned refinery executive.
Byco also has a smaller 35,000-bpd refinery, which - along with a marketing company with over 260 retail outlets - is listed at the stock exchange as Byco Petroleum.
Earlier this year, Byco announced its plan to merge the unlisted bigger refinery and Byco Petroleum.
“The recent accident occurred in our new refinery that is BOPL,” said the Byco spokesman. “This company is 100% owned by us and not listed on the stock exchange. The incident occurred during startup of the second section of the furnace of this refinery.
“Since the company was not 100% operational therefore, it would not have any major impact on the supplies of products. Hopefully, it will be operational soon, as our technical teams are working day and night. “As far as the expenditure is concerned, it is not possible for us to share this information at this point in time.”
Published in The Express Tribune, November 18th, 2015.
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