The new coking unit has been a major investment for Naftan — in scale of size and funds. The 130 tonne unit (21m long and 6.5m in diameter) left from Klaipeda, transported by BelDorTyazhTrans JSC, which won the tender. Director Valery Pristavka tells us that the journey took ten days, although preparation work took 7-8 months. Naftan’s specialists helped choose the best route, checking the road; the size of the load required the lifting of 212 electric lines — including around a hundred on Belarusian territory. Moreover, oil workers have also deepened passages under overhead roads and a Czech 14-axis modular trailer was used to transport the construction, travelling at a speed of no more than 25 km/h (just 2-3 km/h along some sections).
Naftan had other parts of the coking unit delivered previously: 24 parts of two coking chambers for high refinery of oil-tar and a fractionation column (weighing 180 tonnes and having a length of 45m) were delivered by the same route in September.
The total volume of injections stands at around $733m, with Naftan being the single investor. The unit should be ready for launch by late 2015, enabling Naftan to increase its degree of oil refinery to at least 92 percent. The delayed coking unit would produce an absolutely new product: oil coke (sought after by the cement, aluminium and energy-related branches). Importantly, the realisation of the project will result in higher efficiency and quality, meeting high European standards.
