Italy-based engineering company Maire Tecnimont has been awarded two engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts worth US$527m by Lukoil for the oil residue upgrading project at the 17 Mt/year Kstovo refinery, located in the Nizhny Novgorod oblast (central Russia). The modernisation project will enhance the complexity of the refinery and support the production of high value products.
Lukoil plans to increase the refinery efficiency from its current 73.7% to 90% and this programme fits into the framework of the company's broader programme to step up the overall processing capacities and production qualities of its refining assets. Lukoil's Russian refining capacity is spread among four main refineries: Kstovo refinery in the Nizhny Novgorod oblast (17 Mt/year), in Volgograd (14.5 Mt/year), in Perm (13.1 Mt/year), in Ukhta (4.2 Mt/year) and other smaller facilities.