Company: Petrogal Energía
Sector: Refining
Capacity: 220 kbpd
OpEx: More then 40 M€/y
Energy Associated Cost: 60-70% of OpEx
Total Fuel Consuption: 500 kton NGE/y
Fuel Used in Steam Generation: ∼35%
Fuel Used in Heating: ∼65%

Steam flows
24 bar (intermediate pressure-IP): Largely produced in the electricity-generating steam turbines, is routed to the process units for several purposes (stripping, turbines, heat-exchange and steam ejectors). High pressure steam (80 bar) can also be also “letdown” into the 24 bar steam header to maintain at the set point value. Moreover, the IP steam is also produced in the process units.
10.5 bar (medium pressure-MP): Produced in 24 ” 10.5 bar turbines and “letdown” valves, is used in utility stations around de refinery and some specific applications for which low-pressure steam does not have enough temperature. Each Production Process Plant manages its own MP steam.
3.5 bar (low pressure-LP): Produced in steam turbines (electricity-generating and others), “letdown” valves and process units.
Challenges and expected improvements: as part of the C.I.P. Climate Check a systematic screening of energy efficiency improvements has been recently performed and all feasible improvement measures are currently being implemented.
- Nitrogen (7 bar): The nitrogen is supplied by an external company.
- Plant Air (7 bar): Compressed air produced from ambient air by centrifugal compression.
- Instrument Air (7 bar): Plant air which after drying is used for plant pneumatic instruments.
- Cooling Water (15-25ºC): For trim coolers, produced from the cooling water return by evaporation on cooling towers (electric driven fans).
- Raw Water: Used essentially in the utility stations.
- Fuel: FO distribution is also managed by the Utilities Plant.
The final deliverable of the project, besides the performance indicators and modelling, will be a monitoring and control software, which follows all the relevant aspects about the resource flows use, namely:
- On-line operating parameters (electric currents, temperatures, pressures, etc.).
- On-line performance indicators (turbine efficiency, overall electricity generation efficiency, etc.).
- Reconciled electricity, steam and boiler feed water balances (material and energy).
- On-line energy flux diagrams.
- Fuel, Electricity, steam and boiler feed water losses.