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KAR Group, an Iraqi integrated oil and gas company, has announced the third expansion of their Kalak Refinery to 185,000 barrels per day (BPD). Process units and utilities are being provided by Ventech Engineers LLC of Pasadena, Texas. Ventech has provided modularized crude-distillation units, naphtha hydrotreaters, catalytic reformers, isomerization units, demercaptanization systems, gas plants, and supporting utilities to the project. The announcement was made by Baz Karim, KAR’s President, at the 1st International Energy Arena, an event recently held in Erbil, Northern Iraq.
This is the refinery’s third expansion and is a continuation of the utilization of Ventech’s modular construction methods. Kevin Stanley, Ventech’s CEO, has emphasized, “Modularization minimizes supply-chain logistics, shortens the project schedule, and results in lower project costs. Fabricating modules under roof in our Pasadena, Texas facility produces a project quality vastly superior to traditional in-field construction. Much of the project’s construction is already complete when the modules are ready for shipment. This manufacturing technology virtually eliminates weather delays and enhances safety in the construction process.”
The first phase utilized 26 process modules to add 20,000 BPD of refining capacity to KAR’s existing 20,000 BPD plant. The subsequent second phase provided an additional 60,000 BPD of total refining capacity and was completed in 2011.
The third expansion consists of two 30,000 BPD modular complexes at the same site, as well as a 15,000 BPD Condensate Processing Facility. Once this latest phase is complete and operational, total capacity at the Kalak Refinery will be over 185,000 BPD – and it will remain the sole producer of unleaded gasoline in the country as well as the largest privately owned refinery in Iraq.
KAR Group is a full-spectrum integrated oil company and energy producer working throughout Iraq providing expertise in engineering and construction to the oil industry.
Ventech Engineers LLC is the global leader in the design and construction of new modular refineries, gas-processing systems, and existing-plant relocations.
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