Iraq’s Oil Ministry expects to launch tenders in 2012 for its planned $5bn-plus new Kirkuk refinery in the north of the county.

A feasibility study and front-end engineering and design (feed) work is being carried out by the US’ Shaw Group. According to a source close to the project, the study is in its final stage and feed will be finalised before the end of December.

The refinery, located about 300 kilometres north of Baghdad, will use Kirkuk blend crude oil. It includes a 400 megawatt (MW) power plant at the site. Proposed units are:

• 150,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) atmospheric distillation unit
• 60,000 b/d vacuum distillation unit
• 42,900 b/d naphtha hydro-treater
• 29,600 b/d reformer
• 13,200 b/d Isomerisation unit
• 23,900 b/d fluid catalytic cracker

The refinery will produce about 225 tonnes a day (t/d) of liquid petroleum gas (LPG), along with 85,000 b/d of gasoline, 28,000 b/d of kerosene, 51,000 b/d of gasoil and 2,000 b/d of fuel oil. It will also produce 490 t/d of asphalt and 292 t/d of sulphur.

The Oil Ministry plans to build a number of new refineries to meet local fuel demand. It plans to build a 300,000 b/d refinery at Nassiriya and another 150,000 b/d refinery at Missan in the south of the country. An agreement was also signed with a consortium in June for a 200,000 b/d refinery at Karbala (MEED 27:7:11).