THE SOVIET OIL REFINING INDUSTRY: LAGGING ADJUSTMENTS TO CHANGING REQUIREMENTS

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• Publication Date: April 1, 1985
• Content Type: REPORT

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Directorate of Secret
Intelligence
to Changing Requirements
The Soviet Oil Refining
Industry: Lagging Adjustments
Secret
SOV 85-10065
IA 85-10036
April 1985
copy 4 61
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to Changing Requirements
The Soviet Oil Refining
Industry: Lagging Adjustments
technical support from
This paper was prepared by the Resource
Management Branch, Office of Soviet Analysis, with
Office of Imagery Analysis.
Division, SOV8
Comments and queries are welcome and may be
directed to the Chief, Economic Performance
Secret
SOV 85-10065
IA 85-10036
April 1985
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Summary
Information available
as of 31 December 1984
was used in this report,
to Changing Requirements
The Soviet Oil Refining
Industry: Lagging Adjustments
units.
With domestic oil production leveling off at about 12.2 million barrels per
day (b/d) in 1984 and then possibly declining to 1 1-12 million b/d by 1990,
the USSR can no longer rely as heavily as in the past on expansion of pri-
mary refining capacity to satisfy the demand for refined products. Growing
requirements for high-quality light products (gasoline, jet fuel, diesel fuel)
will call for a marked shift in refinery yields and greater processing
flexibility. A substantially larger portion of heavy fuel oil (mazut), now
used primarily for electric power generation and in industrial boilers, will
have to be converted to light products by processing in secondary refining
was less than 40 percent in 1983.
The long-run trend in the refinery product mix, however, has run counter
to the direction the Soviets would like to take:
? The average yield of heavy fuel oil from a barrel of crude oil has climbed
from about 35 percent in 1970 to about 40 percent in 1983.
? Since 1970 the yield of gasoline and diesel fuel has dropped slightly and
about 120 percent in the United States.
As a result of a lengthy examination ofl (Soviet 25X1
refineries, we estimate that:
? In mid-1984 the 50 major refineries in operation had a primary
distillation capacity of about 10.5 million barrels per operating or stream
day (b/sd).
? Secondary processing capacity in 1983 (excluding thermal cracking,
which produces lower quality products) amounted to more than 3 million
b/sd.
? The USSR's secondary processing capacity in 1983 was equivalent to
about 30 percent of total primary distillation capacity, compared with
raise the yield of light products, has been small.
During the past 15 years, the USSR has made considerable progress in up-
grading its refinery technology. Unit capacities have increased markedly in
primary distillation as the Soviets followed Western developments, al-
though with an appreciable lag. In secondary refining, an emphasis on
catalytic reforming and hydrogen treating has paved the way for an
improvement in the quality of refined products. At the same time, the
increase in catalytic-cracking and hydrocracking capacity, which would
iii Secret
SOV 85-10065
IA 85-10036
April 1985
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The shortfall in installing secondary processing facilities in oil refineries
has not had serious consequences so far. This is because shortfalls in the
production of coal and delays in commissioning nuclear power plants and
building gas pipelines to industrial sites have kept the demand for heavy
fuel oil at a higher level than the Soviets anticipated. By 1990, however, we
expect the demand for light products in the Soviet Union to be I million
b/d higher than in 1980. Because only about 90,000 b/sd of catalytic-
cracking capacity has been added since 1980, we judge that continued
delays in commissioning catalytic crackers and hydrocrackers would result
in growing shortages of light products in the USSR
Changing the product mix of Soviet refineries to meet prospective demand
for light products will require large capital expenditures and an accelerated
effort to improve technology, possibly involving substantial acquisitions of
equipment and technology from the West. Several options are available to
the Soviets:
? They could import from the West 15 catalytic-cracking units-or a
combination of catalytic-cracking and hydrocracking units-on a turn-
key basis.
? They could buy one or two Western catalytic-cracking or hydrocracking
units and concurrently build domestic units to increase secondary
processing capacity.
? Alternatively, they could install unsophisticated thermal-cracking and
delayed coking equipment (which Soviet industry can manufacture) to
increase the yield of light products.
? If expansion of cracking facilities is delayed, they might consider
importing light products from nonsocialist countries.
Each course of action has advantages and disadvantages. Importing all
needed cracking units from the West would be fastest and technically most
efficient but would require hard currency outlays of at least $1 billion.
Importing a few cracking units and attempting to build sufficient addition-
al domestic units would probably not increase capacity enough to meet
1990 needs for light products. Relying on installation of more thermal
cracking and delayed coking units would require upgrading-in catalytic-
treating units-the poorer quality products derived. The product yields and
operating efficiencies would be lower than those obtainable from the other
options but so would the costs. As for relying on Western refineries as a
source of light products, we doubt that the USSR would be willing to
accept this kind of dependence for strategically important products such as
gasoline, diesel fuel, and kerosene. In sum, whatever the Soviets do,
implementation will be time consuming and expensive, but some Western
involvement will almost certainly be required if the USSR is to obtain a
fuel mix suitable for future needs.
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Introduction
Current Status of Refining Capacity and Technology
3
Primary Distillation
3
Estimates of Refinery Capacity
3
Location of Plants and Concentration of Capacity
3
5
Secondary Processing
6
Types of Units on Stream
7
Level of Technology
10
Support From Eastern Europe
10
Imports From the West
10
Outlook for t
he Remainder of the 1980s
10
10
11
Implications for the Economy
11
A.
Glossary of Major Refining Processes
13
B.
USSR: Catalogue of Major Units Used in Primary and Secondary
Refining of Oil
15
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A modern petroleum refinery consists of a number of
processing units designed for physical and chemical
conversion of crude oil into various petroleum prod-
ucts in volumes roughly proportionate to market
demand. Refineries differ in the types of crude oil
processed and the mix of products
The first and fundamental step in refining is distilla-
tion, which accomplishes the rough separation of
crude oil molecules according to their size and weight
by the use of heat. Primary distillation takes place in
towers (fractionating units) as high as 30 meters.
These towers contain perforated trays, set one above
the other. Crude oil is heated to more than 370?C
and pumped into these units in vaporized form. The
lighter fractions of the vapor rise highest in the tower,
and, as the vertically stratified vapors cool and
condense, they are collected in the trays at different
levels. The resulting light, medium, and heavy prod-
ucts are piped separately to other parts of the
refinery.
"cracked " into smaller molecules by heat and pres-
sure, often in the presence of a catalyst. The most
efficient processes for such cracking operations are
catalytic cracking and hydrocracking. Thermal
cracking, visbreaking, and delayed coking also per-
form the same function without the use of catalysts,
but provide lower rates of conversion and lower
product quality than are obtainable with catalytic
cracking and hydrocracking.
The quality of various products can be improved by
such processes as catalytic reforming and hydrogen
treating. Catalytic reforming provides a high-octane
motor gasoline and/or aromatic hydrocarbons-ben-
zene, toluene, xylene-for chemical uses. Hydrogen
treating is used primarily to lower the sulfur content
of jet fuel and diesel fuel and to prepare stocks for
manufacture of lubricating oil. Unlike the cracking
processes, however, these processes only improve the
quality of distillation products-they do not increase
the yield of light products from a barrel of crude oil.
Distillation can separate crude oil into its fractions,
but it cannot produce more of a particular fraction
than nature put into the crude oil. But the demand
for various products does not necessarily conform
with the proportions found in the crude oil. Refiner-
ies, however, can resort to secondary processes to
produce additional amounts of gasoline and other
high-quality fuels and to upgrade product qualityF
To increase the yield of light products by secondary
processing, the heavier hydrocarbon molecules are
A complete refining installation will include an array
of nonprocessingfacilities: adequate tankage for stor-
ing crude oil, as well as intermediate and finished
products; a dependable source of electric power and
steam for use in refining; materials-handling equip-
ment; workshops and supplies for maintaining round-
the-clock operation; waste-disposal and water-
treating and cooling equipment; and product blending
facilities.
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The Soviet Oil Refining
Industry: Lagging Adjustments
to Changing Requirements
In the refining industry the basic yield of residual fuel
oil from primary distillation of crude oil is about 45
percent. Because the growth in petroleum product
consumption has been driven primarily by the demand
for gasoline and middle distillates (die:el fuel, gas oil),
refiners have been upgrading their plants to convert
residuals to lighter products. (See inset for explana-
tion of refinery operations and appendix A for defini-
tions of the major refining processes.) At the present
time the average worldwide yield of residual fuel after
primary and secondary processing has been reduced
to 25 percent. In the United States, where gasoline
accounts for about 45 percent of total output, the
yield of residual fuel has been lowered to less than 10
percent.
The USSR, however, produces a rather simple mix of
petroleum products, reflecting a relatively undevel-
oped domestic market and a technological level in
refining that lags that in the West. After primary and
secondary processing, the gasoline yield is only about
17 percent, and 35 to 40 percent of the yield of
petroleum products still is in the form of residual fuel
oil (mazut).
Until the mid-1960s Soviet priorities were directed
toward expansion of basic refining operations (prima-
ry distillation) to handle the rising volume of crude oil
being produced. Since then, efforts have been made to
intensify processing with secondary units and to up-
grade product quality. Currently, the Soviets want to
build combination systems employing catalytic-
processing units to reduce the yield of mazut and
increase the yield of high-quality light products.
Until the late 1970s the USSR was able to increase
the output of gasoline and other light products by
producing more crude oil and building more primary
distillation units in refineries to process it. Catalytic-
reforming and hydrotreating units were installed in
refineries to upgrade the quality of these light prod-
ucts. The recent decline in crude oil production (from
about 12.3 million b/d in 1983 to 12.2 million b/d in
1984) and the rise in the share of heavier crudes in
total oil production are now foreclosing the option of
installing additional primary units to increase light-
product output. The rate of increase in the output of
petroleum products is declining sharply (see table 1);
and, if our projection of crude oil production for
1990-11-12 million b/d-is correct,' product output
also is likely to decline by the end of the 1980s.
As demand for high-quality light products increases,
the need for secondary processing units to reduce the
high yields of mazut will rise. A significant shortfall
in plans for the construction of such units has oc-
curred during the 1981-85 plan period. According to a
1982 Izvestiya article, the share of oil refined using
"deep" refining processes has been decreasing. As a
result, larger volumes of mazut are available and
continue to be used as a boiler fuel at many power
plants and industrial facilities where coal and natural
gas were to have been substituted. Another Soviet
newspaper reported that during the first eight months
of 1982 the refining industry produced millions of
tons more mazut than planned.
This paper outlines the problems with the product
mix, provides an overview of recent developments in
Soviet refining capacity and technology, and assesses
the options available for expanding the technological
base of the refining industry during the remainder of
the 1980s.
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Table I
USSR:
Estimated Output of Petroleum Products, 1960-83
Thousand barrels/day
2,275
3,440
5,035
470
670
975
1,260
1,390
1,440
1,470
1,485
1,495
Kerosene
280
295
405
505
555
565
575
565
565
Diesel fuel
560
945
1,290
1,675
1,930
2,050
2,105
2,120
2,135
Other light products
55
75
110
205
245
280
290
315
315
Lubricating oil
100
135
160
190
215
220
225
230
230
Fuel oil
730
1,215
1,910
2,855
3,360
3,595
3,630
3,630
3,610
Other residuals
350
395
350
370
360
360
Total
100
100
100
100
100
100
100
100
100
Gasoline
20.7
19.5
19.4
17.9
17.2
16.9
17.0
17.1
17.2
Kerosene
12.3
8.6
8.0
7.2
6.9
6.7
6.6
6.5
6.5
25.6
23.8
23.9
24.1
24.3
24.4
24.5
Other light products
2.4
2.2
2.2
2.9
3.0
3.3
3.3
3.6
3.6
Lubricating oil
4.4
3.9
3.2
2.7
2.6
2.6
2.6
2.6
2.6
Fuel oil
32.1
35.3
37.9
40.5
41.5
42.3
41.9
41.7
41.5
5.0
4.9
4.1
4.3
4.1
4.1
a Total products shown in this table exclude gas and losses, which
amount to about 8 percent of the crude oil charge.
Indeed, the long-run trend in the distribution of
refinery products has run counter to the direction the
Soviets would like to take. The average yield of mazut
from a barrel of crude oil input to the refining process
has continued to increase, rising from about 35 per-
cent in 1970 to about 40 percent in 1983, despite
Soviet plans and proclamations aimed at reducing its
share.2 Meanwhile, the yield of all light products from
a barrel of crude oil has averaged 45 to 50 percent
since 1970, with the yield of gasoline remaining at a
relatively low 17 percent. With the addition of consid-
erable catalytic-reforming capacity since 1970, the
octane rating of Soviet gasoline has increased sub-
stantially, however.
The use of diesel fuel also will increase sharply. Diesel
engine vehicles in the USSR represent about one-
fourth of the Soviet motor vehicle inventory, and
having more diesel engines in the truck inventory is an
important element of Moscow's energy plans. The
estimated yield of diesel fuel from a barrel of crude
has averaged 22 percent during the past decade,
although the quality has improved as the Soviets have
installed numerous hydrotreating units to produce a
low-sulfur product. Because of technical limitations
on increasing yields of light products from primary
distillation, the output of gasoline and diesel fuel is
increased by utilizing the various cracking processes.
In recent months Soviet technical journals have re-
ported that the growing demand for diesel fuel and
2 The product shares in the text are percentages of the total crude
oil charge. The shares in table 1 relate the output of each product to
a "net" barrel of crude oil; that is, after deduction of approximately
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the consequent possible reduction in gasoline con-
sumption will require adjustments of catalytic-
cracking operating conditions (reduction of reactor
temperature and feed contact time with the catalyst)
to obtain a higher yield of diesel fuel at the expense of
gasoline fractions
For some time winter diesel fuel has been in especially
short supply, especially in northern regions. This fuel
is obtained by increasing the volatility of summer
diesel fuel to permit easier combustion in engines
operating in cold temperatures. In many instances,
the Soviets have been adding gasoline to summer
diesel fuel to provide a substitute for winter diesel
fuel. This product, however, does not meet the product
specifications and reduces the service life of engines in
which it is used.
Finally, the yield of lubricating oils has remained at a
level of about 2.5 percent during the past decade, as
the volume of production increased by about 25
percent. Neither the total output nor the quality of
lubricating oils produced has been adequate to meet
all domestic needs, thus necessitating some imports.
The Soviets have long been deficient in producing
additives for high-quality lubricants to meet the stan-
dards for automotive transport. Despite attempts to
correct the problem, it is far from being solved,
resulting in continued dependence on imports and
efforts to acquire equipment from the West to pro-
duce more additives.
Primary Distillation
Large distillation units and a concentration of high-
capacity plants have marked the development of
Soviet refining. For example, the average crude oil
charge (primary distillation) capacity of a Soviet
refinery in 1984 was about 200,000 barrels per stream
day (b/sd), compared with about 75,000 b/sd for a
US refinery.'
Estimates of Refinery Capacity. In mid-1984 the
USSR had 50 major refineries in operation with a
primary distillation capacity of about 10.5 million
, This unit of measurement is based on an operating day of a
process unit (as opposed to a calendar day). A stream day includes
b/sd.
is a new CIA estimate. It represents a total capacity
that is adequate to process the net supply of crude oil
as calculated from officially reported production less
exports, estimated losses, changes in stocks, and field
use. The bulk of the information used to derive the
capacity figures was
correlated with
data in Soviet technical journals and books that
provide sketches and diagrams of typical units with
varying design capacities. Reports from emigres who
are experts in refining have also been used to verify
capacities of various standard units that operate above
design capacity. This estimate of primary distillation
capacity is slightly lower than the 11-million-b/d
estimate currently held by DIA, but it appears to be
within the limits of error inherently probable from the
use of alternative estimating procedures.
additional pri-25X1
mary distillation capacity of about 440,000 b/sd is
under construction at two new refineries Chimkent
and Chardzhou and at Saratov, where an existing
plant is being expanded. The units at Chimkent and
Saratov are likely to be on stream in early 1985, and
that at Chardzhou in 1986-87. The augmented capac-
ity should enable the USSR to process enough crude
oil to meet domestic demand and provide 700,000 to
800,000 b/d of petroleum products for export during
the next few years. A rising share of these exports is
likely to be heavy fuel oil if the buildup in catalytic-
cracking facilities lags as it has in the current five-
year plan period.
Location of Plants and Concentration of Capacity.
Almost 70 percent of total crude oil charge capacity
(primary distillation) is concentrated near the major
centers of consumption west of the Ural Mountains
and north of the Caucasus Mountains (see table 3). In
the past, most refineries were built near oilfields in
western regions of the USSR, specifically in the
Volga-Urals area and in the Caucasus and Caspian
Sea regions. The bulk of the country's crude oil was
produced in these areas until the 1970s, when output
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from West Siberia increased sharply and production
in the older areas began to decline. Many of the
refineries in the older oil-producing regions are now
processing crude oil from West Siberia to meet needs
for petroleum products. In the future, as the eastern
regions undergo industrial development and an in-
creasing share of crude oil production comes from the
West Siberian fields, expansion and modernization of
the four major Siberian refineries are likely.
Some refineries lack the flexibility to provide all of
the products needed to meet seasonal demands in
their regions. As a result, spot shortages of some
products occur, especially in the late summer and
early fall when the demand for diesel fuel for the
agricultural harvest is at its peak. Shortages of proper
grades of fuels and lubricants are chronic in the
remote northern areas of Siberia, where important
extractive industries are located.
Level of Technology. Soviet developments in primary
distillation technology have followed those in the
West, but with some lags. (The major types of Soviet
equipment used in primary and secondary processing
of oil are listed in appendix B.) In the I950s and I960s
primary distillation units installed at new plants had
capacities ranging from 22,000 to 66,000 b/sd. By the
late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, primary stills
with capacities of 130,000 to 180,000 b/sd were built
in new refineries and added to existing plants. Ac-
cording to Soviet emigres, the conservative practices
followed by designers of Soviet distillation units have
made it possible for refineries to operate these units at
rates usually in excess of the design capacities.
Plans since the mid- I970s have called for installation
of primary distillation units with a capacity of
260,000 b/sd, but we have no evidence that these
units have been built. Currently, the Soviets are
emphasizing the use of combined processing systems
(large primary distillation units and catalytic-
processing facilities in tandem).
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Table 3
USSR: Regional Concentration of
Petroleum Refineries, 1984
Of which:
Ufa c
Primary Distillation Percent
Capacity a b of Total
(thousand b/sd)
10,500 100.0
Kuybyshev d 570
European USSR and north 2,800
Of which:
Polotsk 530
Kirishi 465
Siberia and the Far East 1,440
Of which:
Omsk 575
Angarsk 420
Caucasus 1,180
Of which:
Baku d 620
Groznyy c 400
Ukraine 1,020 9.7
Of which:
Kremenchug
Central Asia
Of which:
Pavlodar
Fergana
360
620 5.9
a Capacity expressed as barrels per stream day (b/sd) is based on
the actual period in which the distillation units are operating. This
capacity exceeds barrels per calendar day (b/cd) by a factor of
about 10 percent because of the normal annual downtime and
turnaround time for pipe-still operations.
b This total also includes about 90,000 b/sd of topping-plant
capacity located at various oilfields in West Siberia and the Volga-
Urals region. Although no specific locations are given, reports
indicate that some petroleum products for oilfield and gasfield use
are obtained from local facilities, not from major refineries.
c Three separate plants near city listed.
d Two separate plants near city listed.
Note: USSR total and regional subtotals are rounded to three
significant digits.
Table 4
USSR: Estimated Capacity of
Modern Secondary Processes
Thousand barrels/
stream day
Total
620
1,650
2,270
2,900
3,230
Catalytic cracking
230
420
460
500
545
Hydrocracking
0
0
0
25
25
Catalytic reforming
200
720
1,040
1,260
1,370
Hydrogen treating
130
290
460
710
830
Delayed coking
60
220
310
405
460
The USSR relies primarily on its own facilities to
manufacture the crude oil distillation units used in its
refining industry. Since 1976, however, East Germa-
ny reportedly has been supplying the Soviets with
primary distillation units with a capacity of 130,000
b/sd that are based on Soviet designs. According to
Soviet foreign trade statistics, since the 1970s the
USSR has imported a total of 125-190 million rubles'
worth of refining equipment annually from East
European countries and from a few West European
nations, but no data are available breaking down the
amounts spent on primary and secondary processing
equipment and/or technology.
Secondary Processing
Secondary processing capacity in the USSR, exclud-
ing thermal cracking, is estimated at more than 3
million b/d, equivalent to about 30 percent of total
primary distillation capacity (see table 4). In contrast,
the capacity of similar types of secondary processing
units in the United States is about 120 percent of
primary capacity. The far greater demand for light
petroleum products in the United States accounts for
much of the difference. US automobiles use 45 per-
cent of the crude oil in the form of gasoline, whereas
the percentage in the USSR is much less because of
the relative scarcity of passenger cars. Nevertheless,
the low level of Soviet secondary refining capacity
results in sporadic shortages of light fuels and limits
the flexibility available to planners for adjusting the
product mix in response to seasonal fluctuations in
demand.
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Types of Units on Stream. During the past two
decades the Soviets have emphasized installing
catalytic-reforming and hydrogen-treating processes
for upgrading product quality. At the same time, the
Soviets lagged in the addition of catalytic-cracking
and/or hydrocracking facilities to reduce the yields of
heavy fuel oil and increase the proportion of light
distillates (gasoline, kerosene, light diesel fuel) from a
barrel of crude oil. The USSR now has a total
cracking capacity of about 1.5 million b/sd, of which
about 900,000 b/sd consists of thermal cracking and
only 570,000 b/sd consists of catalytic cracking and
hydrocracking. This level of catalytic conversion rep-
resents only 5 percent of the estimated primary
distillation capacity. By comparison, the United
States has a total catalytic-cracking and hydrocrack-
ing capacity of about 6.5 million b/sd, or about 38
percent of current crude oil charge capacity.
The Soviets have had some success in modernizing
their secondary units, improving the catalysts used,
and increasing the sizes of the newer units installed.
For example, several refineries are being revamped to
expand feed capacity of individual catalytic-cracking
units from 750,000 tons per year (about 17,000 b/sd)
to 1.2 million tons (27,000 b/sd), and to convert them
to use zeolite catalysts, which can provide gasoline
yields of up to 45 percent of the feedstock. New units
installed during the current five-year plan have a feed
capacity of about 2 million tons per year (about
45,000 b/sd).
Capacities of catalytic-reforming units installed
have increased from 300,000 tons per year (7,800
b/sd) to 1 million (26,000 b/sd), and new, more
efficient bimetallic catalysts are being used. Hydro-
gen-treating facilities, used primarily to upgrade the
quality of diesel fuel, are being expanded from
900,000 tons per year (almost 19,000 b/sd) to 2
million tons (45,000 b/sd). Delayed-coking units,
which provide electrode coke for industry and reduce
the yields of residuals, are being designed and built to
reach charge capacities of up to 1.5 million tons per
year.
The refining industry has employed a variety of
technologies in its efforts to build combination sys-
tems for "deeper" refining of crude oil at new plants
and to replace facilities at older plants. One system
being installed to increase the yield of light distillates
and reduce the yield of heavy fuel oil (the GK-3) uses
vacuum distillation, catalytic-cracking, visbreaking,
and gas fractionation units. There are two operating
at the Kremenchug refinery in the Ukraine and one at
the Angarsk refinery in East Siberia.
The Soviets continue to allude to a greater-than-
planned yield of mazut from refining operations.
Considerable publicity is given to the need for addi-
tional catalytic-cracking capacity, but the program is
lagging badly. The delays in implementing the crack-
ing program probably stem from several factors that
affect Soviet oil supply and demand:
? Officials of the Ministry of the Refining and Petro-
chemical Industry have been led to believe that oil
reserves are adequate and that crude oil production
goals will be met, thus assuring that the refining
industry will be able to meet the demand for light
products from current capacity.
? The failure to substitute coal and natural gas for oil
as planned at thermal electric power plants has
resulted in a greater-than-expected consumption of
mazut and less-than-planned availability for second-
ary processing.
? In recent years the USSR has been able to sell
several million torts of mazut annually for hard
currency in Western Europe, where many refineries
have been upgraded and can switch between crude
oil and heavy fuel oil as feedstocks; Soviet mazut
has been a valuable source of supply from which
these sophisticated plants can obtain light-product
yields of 70 percent. 25X1
hat the Soviet refining industry is having
trouble developing and assimilating secondary pro-
cessing technology. The time required to build and
put secondary units on stream far exceeds that for
similar units built in the West]
Although secondary processing capacity is not being
increased at a rate that would handle the substantial
volumes of mazut planned to be freed by the substitu-
tion of gas and coal as boiler fuel, increases in
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secondary capacity at the end of the five-year plan
period appear to be keeping pace with the slow rate of
expansion of primary distillation capacity. By the end
of 1985 about 70 percent of the 440,000 b/sd of new
primary distillation capacity now under construction
is likely to be on stream. The total additional yield of
heavy fuel oil from this capacity may approximate
60,000 b/sd in 1985, assuming full operation for the
second half of the year. Secondary capacity that has
recently been completed or will be in 1985 includes
two catalytic-cracking units, a hydrocracker, and two
delayed-coking units. These units would have the
capacity to process the prospective additional yield of
mazut into light products.
The two catalytic-cracking units have a similar design
and capacity (45,000 b/sd each) and were completed
in late 1983 and early 1984 at the Moscow and
Pavlodar refineries, respective) One
additional catalytic cracker is in the early stages of
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construction at the Groznyy refinery but is unlikely to delayed-coking units, with a feedstock capacity of
be completed in 1985 about 30,000 b/sd each, are under construction at the 25X1
construction is being steppe up-on the Kuybyshev and Baku refineries, respectively, and are 25X1
y rh d ocrac c r at the Omsk refinery, and this unit, with likely to be completed in 1985. 25X1
a charge capacity of about 25.000 b sd could be
operating sometime in 1985 The two
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Level of Technology. The Soviets are aware of West-
ern developments in secondary processing but have
been slow to adopt many of these processes in their
industry, partly because of the different character of
oil-product demand in the USSR. As the need for
high-quality light products has increased in recent
years, however, the refining industry has been criti-
cized in the Soviet press for failing to provide the
necessary equipment and catalysts. Soviet emigres
report that difficulties have been encountered in the
manufacture of reactors and regenerators for
catalytic-cracking and hydrocracking units. The Sovi-
ets have had particular problems in meeting the
specifications for special alloy steels with high resis-
tance to corrosion. Soviet technical journals also
describe numerous operating problems that occur in
the USSR's secondary processing units. Catalytic
reformers are shut down frequently for repairs; new
bimetallic catalysts cannot be used at times because
of inadequate removal of salt and sulfur from the
feedstock. In the hydrotreaters used for upgrading
diesel fuel, poor-quality catalysts are often used;
pumps and compressors do not operate properly; the
feedstock contains too many light fractions; and the
use of excessively high temperatures reduces the
USSR during the last decade. The only known com-
mercial hydrocracking unit operating in the USSR
has a capacity of about 1 million tons per year (25,000
b/sd) and was built by a French firm (Technip) at the
Ufa refinery in the mid-1970s. The Soviets have
attempted to build a similar unit, but with a larger
feedstock capacity, at the Omsk refinery in West
Siberia. Under construction since 1976, it remains
incomplete-although
work has been speeded up and initial operation cou
begin in 1985.
Soviet priorities for expanding secondary processing
capacity include the use of Western equipment and
technology for hydrocracking, fluid-catalytic crack-
ing, alkylation, and desulfurization processes. The
USSR acknowledges that US technology and equip-
ment are the best in the world, but, because of US
export restrictions, Moscow is seeking such know-how
from non-US firms. Numerous offers have been made
to Japanese, French, and Italian companies for pur-
chase of refinery equipment during the past five or six
years, but no contracts have been signed to date.
volume of throughput.
Support From Eastern Europe. The USSR has relied
on Eastern Europe for some of its catalytic-reforming
and hydrogen-treating units. During the 1960s and
1970s Czechoslovakia supplied 14 complete catalytic-
reforming installations for producing high-octane gas-
oline and 11 diesel fuel hydrotreating units. These
facilities, designed according to Soviet technical speci-
fications, reportedly added a total of 27 million tons of
secondary oil refining capacity. During the same
period, East Germany delivered 16 complete catalyt-
ic-reforming units and two diesel fuel hydrotreating
facilities. A recent article in the Soviet press indicated
that Czechoslovak engineers will assist Soviet special-
ists in construction at the Groznyy refinery of one of
the country's largest hydrotreating units for produc-
ing high-quality diesel fuel.
Primary Capacity
Soviet information on primary refining of crude oil is
given only in terms of index numbers. These index
numbers show primary refining capacity in 1980 up
67 percent from 1970; in 1985 (planned), up 84
percent from 1970. Using our estimate of primary
capacity in 1970 of almost 6.1 million b/sd and
applying the Soviet index numbers, the corresponding
capacities for 1980 and 1985 would be about 10
million and 11 million b/sd, respectively. Our current
estimate for 1984 is 10.5 million b sd.
Iwe
estimate that primary distillation capacity in 1985
Imports From the West. Western firms, especially
French companies, have installed a number of com-
plete catalytic-reforming and aromatics extraction
units and diesel fuel hydrotreating facilities in the
25X1
25X1
25X1
25X1
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may reach 10.8 million b/sd, slightly less than the
capacity obtained by using the 1985 Soviet index
were initiated at once, the full complement of conver-
sion units planned for 1981-85 probably could not be
225X1
number with our 1970 estimate as a base.
If crude oil production levels off and then gradually
declines by 1990, there will be no need for an
expansion of primary capacity. More likely, a number
of small, older units in existing refineries will be
replaced by larger, more efficient ones of equivalent
total capacity. Therefore, primary distillation capaci-
ty in 1990 could well remain at or about the 1985
level of 10.8 million b/sd.
The Soviets have announced that during 1981-85
almost one-third of the new primary refining equip-
ment to be installed will replace obsolescent units to
improve performance and efficiency. At the Baku
refinery, for example, old distillation units were dis-
mantled in 1981 and replaced by an atmospheric-
vacuum distillation unit with a capacity of 120,000
b/d. Other efforts under way to improve distillation
operations include installation of additional desalting
and dewatering units at existing stills; improvement of
heat exchangers, pumps, and condensers; use of more
efficient trays in the stills; and better insulation of
furnaces to conserve fuel and to provide more heat to
the distillation process.
Another logical step would be to build topping plants
near oilfields in West Siberia to provide a local source
for some of the basic products required there and to
eliminate the costly transport of these products from
refineries at Omsk, Achinsk, or Angarsk. The savings
in transport could be substantial; for example, a
diesel-powered drilling rig reportedly consumes three
tons (about 23 barrels) of diesel fuel every operating
day. Moreover, power plants and construction sites
near the oilfields could readily use the products
obtained from such topping plants.
Secondary Capacity
Soviet plans for 1981-85 focused on the more econom-
ical use of crude oil through development of complex
deep-refining systems, development of new catalysts
to be used in secondary processing, and increasing the
yields and qualities of light products, especially high-
octane gasoline and low-sulfur diesel fuel. But-as
noted above-the program is far behind schedule.
Even if an all-out construction and investment effort
put on stream before the end of the 1980s.
More than 20 units for processing heavy fuel oil,
including seven catal} tic-cracking and two hydro-
cracking units, were to be installed in 1981-85. In
1982 V. S. Fedorov, Minister of the Oil Refining and
Petrochemical Industry, acknowledged the five-year
plan goals but admitted that serious shortcomings-
constraints on capital construction and investment,
failure to introduce scientific and technological
achievements, and inadequate methods of control-
might limit plan fulfillment. Indeed, our estimate (set
out above) is that only two catalytic-cracking units
and one hydrocracking unit, the latter under construc-
tion since 1976, will be completed by the end of 1985.
Implications for the Economy
Because the demand for mazut has remained higher
than expected, the delay in construction of secondary
processing facilities to reduce the yield of mazut has
not had serious short-term consequences. In the longer
run, however, these delays may result in constrained
availability of light products from domestic refineries.
We anticipate that the demand for light products in
1990 will be some 1 million b/d higher than in 1980,
but only about 90,000 b/sd of catalytic-cracking
capacity has been added since 1980.
As Soviet refiners attempt to step up residual conver-
sion to increase the supply of light products during
1986-90, they have several options available to solve
their secondary processing dilemma. The USSR could
undertake a priority program of importing turnkey
cracking facilities from the West. Such a program
could get the job done more rapidly and efficiently
than relying on domestic manufacturing plants, which
have not been dependable in supplying the necessary
equipment. But Western equipment and technology
would require large outlays of hard currency. For
example, the capital cost of a fluid catalytic cracker
with a feed charge capacity of 22,000 b/sd is about
$50 million, and a hydrocracker with the same charge
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capacity is about $70-80 million. The installation of
15 catalytic-cracking units-or a combination of
catalytic-cracking and hydrocracking units-to meet
the need for light products by 1990 would require a
capital investment of at least $1 billion.
Alternatively, the Soviets could install relatively unso-
phisticated thermal units-thermal crackers, vis-
breakers, delayed cokers-to increase the yield of
light products by treating residual feedstocks. How-
ever, the yields of the desired light products would
be lower than those obtainable from the catalytic-
cracking and hydrocracking processes, and the prod-
ucts would have to be upgraded by the use of
hydrotreating and catalytic-reforming facilities. This
alternative-though slightly less expensive and possi-
ble to implement with indigenous equipment-is less
efficientJ
A combination of options might be more attractive to
the Soviets: to buy one or two catalytic-cracking or
hydrocracking units from the West and also use the
aforementioned secondary units to convert residuals
to lighter products. At the same time, constructing
domestic catalytic-cracking units and importing cata-
lytic reformers and hydrotreaters from Czechoslova-
kia and East Germany would continue to improve the
technological base for upgrading fuel quality
If the buildup of secondary processing facilities were
inordinately delayed, the Soviets, in the short run,
could opt to export more crude oil and import from
the West the incremental volume of high-quality light
petroleum products that they might require for do-
mestic use. This option, however, is inconsistent with
Moscow's predilection for reducing dependence on the
West, especially in view of the importance of the light
products for use by the military, agriculture, and
commercial transport. Furthermore, such imports
would use hard currency needed for other purposes
and would clog an already congested rail network.
Whatever choice the Soviets make, implementation
will be time consuming and expensive. Some Western
involvement would almost certainly be necessary to
obtain a fuel mix compatible with achieving a rela-
tively rapid shift in energy consumption, replacing oil
with gas and coal in major uses.
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Appendix A
Glossary of Major
Refining Processes
Primary distillation-The first step in refining, which achieves a rough separation
of petroleum constituents in some form of closed apparatus by the application of
heat at atmospheric pressure.
Vacuum distillation-Separation of heavier fractions of crude oil under reduced
pressure; the boiling temperature is thereby reduced sufficiently to prevent
decomposition or cracking of the material being distilled.
Topping plants-Small units where distillation is used to remove light fractions
(gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel) for local use.
Secondary processing-General category for refining of various oil fractions after
primary distillation to provide a higher yield of the lighter products and to upgrade
product quality.
Thermal
Thermal cracking-A refining process that decomposes, rearranges, or combines
hydrocarbon molecules by the application of heat without the aid of catalysts. The
major variables involved are types of feed, time, pressure, and temperature. In
general, heavier fractions are easier to crack than lighter ones; yields of light
products increase with an increase in the time of reaction; pressures are generally
low (from 50 to 350 psi) to retain the heavier molecules in the zone of cracking at
the temperature of decomposition, ranging from 370?C to 590?C.
Visbreaking-A comparatively mild once-through thermal cracking process used
to reduce the viscosity and lower the boiling range of heavy residual stocks. The
process has a low capital cost, but it is the least efficient for reducing fuel oil pro-
duction. The products obtained are of poor quality and must be hydrotreated.
Delayed coking-A semicontinuous severe thermal cracking process for the
conversion of heavy oil fractions into lighter material. Feedstock is preheated to
480?C to 510?C in a pipe still, discharged into large insulated coke drums, and
held there at temperatures around 430?C under low pressures (10 to 70 psi) while
cracking takes place. Gas, gasoline, and gas oil are obtained as overhead products,
and coke is recovered from the drums. This coke can be used as an industrial fuel
or, when purified, can be utilized in the production of electrodes for the aluminum
industry.
Catalytic
Catalytic cracking-Conversion of high-boiling-point hydrocarbons into lower
boiling ones by means of heat and a catalyst that may be used in a fixed bed, mov-
ing bed, or fluid bed. In the process, oil vapors are heated to about 540?C in the
presence of a catalyst at low pressures (10 to 20 psi) in a reactor. The heavier oil
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fractions crack into lighter ones (gasoline and distillate fuels) that are then sent to
a tower for distillation. The used catalyst goes to a regenerator where it is
reactivated for further use by burning off the carbon (coke) deposited on the
catalyst in the cracking process.
Hydrocracking-Conversion of high-boiling hydrocarbons into lower boiling ones
by the use of heat and a catalyst with the addition of hydrogen. It is an efficient,
low-temperature (200?C to 430?C), high-pressure (100 to 2,000 psi), catalytic
process for converting middle-boiling or residual stocks to high-octane gasoline, jet
fuel, or high-grade fuel oil.
Catalytic reforming-Rearranging of hydrocarbons in a gasoline-boiling-range
feedstock using heat (430?C to 540?C) and pressure (50 to 750 psi) in the presence
of a catalyst to increase the octane rating, or to produce aromatic hydrocarbons
benzene, toluene, xylenes-for petrochemical uses.
Hydrogen treating-A process to stabilize petroleum products (ranging from
naphtha to reduced crude oils) and/or remove impurities from products or
feedstocks through a reaction with hydrogen in the presence of a catalyst. When
the process is used specifically for sulfur removal, it is usually called
hydrodesulfurization.
Alkylation-A process of combining light hydrocarbon molecules (ethylene
through pentene with isobutane) in the presence of sulfuric acid or hydrofluoric
acid to form high-octane blending components for the production of motor
gasoline.
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Appendix B
USSR: Catalogue of Major Units
Used in Primary and Secondary
Refining of Oil. b
Unit Designation Feedstock
Capacity
(thousand tons
per year)
Electric desalter 10/1 600
10/6 2,000
Atmospheric-vacuum pipe 12 600
still (AVT)
AVT with crude oil desalter A-12/1 1,000
A-12/2 2,000
A-12/3 3,000
ELOU-AVT-6 6,000
AVT with redistillation A-12/6 3,000
of gasoline
A-12/9 3,000
AVT with desalter and 13/1 6,000
redistillation of gasoline
Vacuum distillation of mazut NA 3,000
Thermal cracking 15/5 450
Delayed coking 21-10/3 600
21-10/9 600
NA 1,500
Diesel fuel hydrotreating L-24/5 900
Fuel hydrotreating Lch-24-2000 2,000
Catalytic reforming L-35/5 300
L-35/6 300
L-35/11/300 300
L-35-11/600 600
L-35-13/300 300
Lch-35-11/600 600
L-35-11/1000 1,000
a Rudin, M. G., Smirnov, G. F., Proyektirovaniye neftepereraboty-
vayushchikh i neftekhimicheskikh zavodov (Planning Oil Refining
and Petrochemical Plants), Khimiya, Leningrad, 1984, pp. 66-67.
b Khimiya i tekhnologiya topliv i masel, No. 10, 1979, p. 10.
Unit
Designation
Feedstock
Capacity
(thousand tons
per year)
Catalytic cracking
43-102 (granular
catalyst)
250
IA/IM (powdered catalyst)
NA
600
G-43-107 (zeolite catalyst)
NA
2,000
Alkylation (sulfuric acid)
25-6
90
Combination unit for
nondeep processing of oil
LK-6u
6,000
Combination unit for
deep processing of oil
GK-3
3,000
Residuum deasphalting
36-1
250
-- -
-- -
Asphalt production
19-1
125
--------- -
NA
750
Coke calcining
NA
140
Phenol treating of
lubricating oils
37
Furfural treating of
lubricating oils
G-37
600
Dewaxing of lubricating oils
39-7
250
Contact treating of
lubricating oils
41-1
330
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Figure 3
Capacity of Soviet Oil Refineries
Mafeikiai
j} Kirishi
Polotsk
'-? ?Lvov
, ?Drogobych 1 & 2 Moscow ? Konstantinovskiy
I Iadvornaya?Mozyr' ?"
RGor'kiy
(Od~ssa ? Kremenchug GoNovo
r'kiy
Kherson
Lisichansk Nizhnekamsk
?
Saratov? ??
?
Tuapse
400 and above
200-400
100-200
? Less than 100
Operational catalytic cracking unit
Refinery under construction
e
?? 1Ufa (Staro Ufa) Siberia
lshimbay
Qr,
yt
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Secret
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