The Marsden Pt Oil Refinery will start turning off its major fuel processing units next week in readiness for a 22-day shutdown, with flaring from its chimneys the only real sign that something other than oil production is going on.
Major process units will begin shutting down at the Refining NZ's site on April 20 in readiness for the planned maintenance.
The shutdown is needed to regenerate catalyst on the platformer, replace catalyst in the ultra-low sulphur diesel unit and to carry out maintenance on sulphur removal and recovery process units, with the maintenance carried out by 300 employees and contractor staff working round the clock for 22 days.
"The most visual impact will be flaring, which we limit to periods around shutting down and starting up of process units. It is an integral part of the refinery safeguarding system that allows hydrocarbons to be vented safely and should not cause any concern," refining manager Peter Gubb said.
"Locals may also notice increased traffic movements during this time. We have a robust health, safety and environment plan in place to ensure essential maintenance is carried out without any negative impact on the community or the environment.
"Every detail of shutdown work is carefully planned and managed months in advance, because it is crucial to the safety and reliability of operations," he said.
The maintenance includes regenerating catalyst on the platformer unit to extend catalyst "life" for a further 18 months. If the proposed $365 million Continuous Catalyst Regenerator project receives approval from the NZ Refining Co shareholders on April 27, this unit will be replaced by a more modern piece of kit.