BP plans to convert ageing Turkish refinery into import terminal

BP is planning to close its 100,000 bpd ATAS refinery in on Turkey's southern Mediterranean coast and convert the site into a products import terminal due to the high cost of upgrading the ageing facility to meet European fuel specifications, a top BP refining official said.
BP owns 68 % of the plant, Turkey's only privately-owned refinery, which lies near Mersin on Turkey's southern Mediterranean coast. Shell holds a 27 % stake and local company Marmara Petrol the remaining 5 %.

The 42-year old refinery has few complex processing units and needs significant investment to be able produce even unleaded gasoline, a product compulsory in Europe since 2000.
"We've been trying to sell it but haven't had any interest, the thinking at the monument is to turn it into a terminal," BP's vice president of refining Mike Hoffman said on the sidelines of a London refining conference.

The Turkish parliament is currently discussing new fuel specification laws which would require local refineries to produce European Union quality products by 2007. The regulations would tighten limits on benzene, aromatics, sulphur levels and outlaw lead in gasoline, to bring them in line with Europe's Auto Oil I specs.
"The timing (of the closure) will depend on how soon (state refiner) Tupras switches to cleaner fuels," Hoffman said.

The ATAS refinery would currently need at least $ 30 mm of spending to produce diesel with less than 50 ppm sulphur and lead-free gasoline, according to Turkish refining sources close to the plant.
European rules require all gasoline and diesel contain less than 50 ppm sulphur by 2005, although these products are already widely sold in Europe.