The conventionnal oil refinery is a large industrial plant, expensive, including sophisticated process units and covering a large place in an area dedicated to industries activity. It is fully independant and has its own infrastructure inside the fence: roads, underground and aboveground facilities, sewers, rain water and separated oil recovery sewage, oil separator, waste water system, electrical high voltage substation, distribution network, cooling water system, cooling water tower and distribution loop, steam boiler, steam network, water treatment, condensate recovery system, laboratory, automatic analysis procedures, manual analysis and tests, sample collection, chemicals, workshop, repairs facilities, periodic maintenance, tools, spare parts, vehicules, fire station, firewater loop, fire water pumping station, foam system, control room, administration office, accounting, buildings, training center, car parking area, tankfarm with fixed and floating roof tanks, LPG bullets and spheres, blending facilities, additives, piping, piperacks, pipeways ...

This partial list is not even mentionning the process units but gives an idea of the complexity of the infrastructure associated to a "grass-roots refinery".

As first approach, a few figures are more effective:

Investment range : ........................US$ 100 million / 10 000 Bpsd (topping capacity)

Investment + Financing(range) : ....US$ 150 million / 10 000 Bpsd (topping capacity)

Pay-out time usually considered: ...15 years

Operated capacity (average): ........60 %

This gives a range of the heavy weight of the only investment in a refining project:

Crude refined over the 15 years: ...#10000*330*0.6*15 = 30 million Bbl

Investment cost per Barrel: ............# US $ 5 / Bbl

During 15 years

After 15 years :

Processes are not up to date. Products specifications have changed.

Equipment age means frequent repairs and permanent costly maintenance.

Long term local economy growth is usually different from initial forecasts

New important investment to be considered for revamping

Investment cost per Barrel: # US $ 1 / Bbl (minimum)

After 15 years