Specialized Equipment For Refinery Arrives from Turkey

In an effort to complete the Dos Bocas refinery on time, construction equipment from Turkey has landed in Mexico.

Happy Sky, a Dutch ship carrying construction equipment manufactured in Turkey by Cimtas enterprise landed in the Veracruz harbor. The ship transported mine regenerators, atmospheric columns, 85m hull fractioned towers and bitter waters agitators. The equipment was unloaded and transported to the refinery´s reception areas.

Some modules that weight more than 700tonnes and need special equipment to transport them have already been installed in the catalytic plant. “With an exact precision all processing plant modules are being installed on the foundation bases. Next week these bases will be incorporated in the modules we received more than 10 days ago”, said Rocio Nahle, Mexico’s Minster of Energy.

Despite these developments, the government’s flagship mega-refinery Dos Bocas will reportedly cost more than 40 percent than the previous budget estimate and will likely not be finished in 2022, according to the government’s predictions. Analysts say the original price tag has increased significantly and now stands at US$12.5 billion. Once completed Dos Bocas will have capacity to process up to 340,000 barrels of oil per day.

Nevertheless, Rocio Nahle has a different perspective: “Dos Bocas is being built in record time. Opinions around the world are very positive.”. Manuel Rodríguez, president of the Energy Commission, told MBN the commission has   contributed by authorizing the yearly budget for the refinery, which would initially cost US$8 billion. Today it is running US$ 3.6 billion over budget.

In addition, some experts believe that "the biggest restricting factors that occurred due to the refinery’s construction have already passed. We believe that 2022 will be a good year for the industry and the Dos Bocas environment in general,” said Pablo Nieto, Vice President of Operations, Roca Ventures.

Some industry members have also been concerned about the impact on traffic the construction may cause, while privately owned docks have not suffered any major consequences.

Pablo Nieto told MBN that given the private state of their dock they can give priority to their clients and do not have an obligation to attend ships that enter the port to aid the construction process. Moreover, Nieto claims that the project is well-planned and is likely to be a success despite the traffic mark it will leave on the area. The refinery has put Dos Bocas port on the radar consequently having a positive impact on Roca Ventures activities. The recent exchange of technology and data have also taken place thanks to the construction process.