San Joaquin Refining Co. last weekend completed a turnaround that hadcurtailed approximately half of the output of its Bakersfield, Calif., naphthenic base oil plant. Officials said the plant has resumed normal operations and that its capacity has been raised by 2,000 barrels per day.
The company had two main objectives for the shutdown, which began July 1. The first was to change out catalyst material in an existing hydrotreater, which processes 4,000 b/d of low-viscosity stocks. Production of those products ceased during the turnaround, which had been scheduled to last 20 days. Output of heavier, solvent-refined base oils continued during the shutdown.
The second task was to install a second hydrotreater that will process 2,000 barrels per day of heavier oils. Officials said the plants capacity has increased by that amount, to 9,500 b/d. They added, though, that the additional barrels are intended for process oil markets.
Posted prices for paraffinic base oils in the United States were unchanged the past week. The price of crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed yesterday at $41.76 per barrel, $1.32 higher than a week ago.
Historic U.S. posted base oil prices and WTI and Brent crude spot prices are available for purchase in Excel format.