Technip defines a significant onshore contract as ranging from €50 to €100 million.

The $5.2-billion project at the Puerto La Cruz Refinery, expected to be operational from 2015, includes the construction of a 50 kbpd Deep Conversion Unit (two trains) which will use HDH Plus, a Venezuelan technology developed by INTEVEP, the technological branch of the state-run oil company; a sequential hydroprocessing unit (three trains); a 130 kbpd Vacuum Unit (three trains); auxiliary units, service units, interconnections and tanks; and the upgrade of atmospheric distillation units 1 and 2, for a total processing capacity of 210,000 barrels per day of crude oil.

This project comes along with the construction of two new refineries that will allow the processing of heavy crude oil from the Orinoco Oil Belt (FPO), in the town of Cabruta and the José Antonio Anzoátegui Complex, with a processing capacity of 200 to 400 thousand barrels per day (kbpd), respectively.

The Deep Conversion Project bring a qualitative change in the Puerto La Cruz refinery as it will process 210,000 bpd of heavy and extra heavy crude oil instead of 180,000 bpd of light and medium oil that is currently processing. The bulk of Venezuela’s oil reserves in the Orinoco Oil Belt is formed by heavy and extra heavy crude oil.

The Technip contract covers the complete engineering, fabrication, modularization, procurement as well as pre-commissioning and start-up assistance. This project will utilize Technip’s high-efficiency top-fired steam reformers, to produce high-purity hydrogen and export steam, and the latest nitrogen oxide reduction technology to ensure minimum emissions.

Technip’s operating center in Claremont, California will execute the contract, which is scheduled for completion in the second semester of 2014.