SONATRACH and the Chinese company SINOPEC Guangzhou Engineering CO., LTD, signed, today, a contract relating to the construction of a hydrotreating and reforming unit (CCR type) to treat heavy naphtha at the Arzew refinery.

The signing ceremony took place at SONATRACH’s headquarters, in the presence of the State Minister, Minister of Hydrocarbons and Mines, Mr. Mohamed ARKAB, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SONATRACH, Mr. Nour Eddine DAOUDI, as well as senior executives from both companies.

Pursuant to the contract signed under an EPCC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning) agreement, this unit will be built by the Chinese company SINOPEC Guangzhou Engineering CO., Ltd. It will extend over an area of 5 hectares at the Arzew refinery. The project is expected to be completed within 30 months.

With a processing capacity of 738,000 tons of heavy naphtha per year, the hydrotreating and Reforming Unit will boost the refinery’s gasoline production capacity from 550,000 tons to 1.2 million tons yearly, thus increasing the national gasoline production capacity.

As a reminder, SINOPEC Guangzhou Engineering CO., Ltd is a subsidiary of the SINOPEC Group. It specializes in the design and construction of processing units in the oil & gas fields and provides engineering, procurement, and construction services.

This contract, which is part of SONATRACH’s development plan to expand the refining sector, will meet the gasoline demand of the western and south-western provinces of the country.

About Sonatrach

SONATRACH is a fully integrated oil and gas company operating across the entire value chain, particularly in exploration, production, pipeline transport, refining and marketing.
As a cornerstone of Algeria’s economy, SONATRACH is the guarantor of national energy security, contributing up to 26% of Algeria’s GDP and 50% of national fiscal revenues.
SONATRACH is also an integrated Group with more than 150 subsidiaries and affiliates, SONATRACH employs, at the group’s level nearly 200,000 people.