Explosion shuts FCFC's Mailiao aromatics unit

: Petrochemicals
19/04/08

Taiwan's Formosa Chemical & Fibres (FCFC) shut its No.3 aromatics unit at Mailiao yesterday after a LPG leak resulted in a flash fire.

The explosion occurred at FCFC's No.6 naphtha cracker.

"There were no injuries and the fire was quickly brought under control" said a company official. Operations at the aromatics unit have been suspended to allow for a complete inspection of its pipelines, he added.

It is unclear how long the unit will be shut, as it will require government approval for a restart following safety checks and investigations into the fire.

The No.3 unit can produce up to 870,000 t/yr of paraxylene (PX), 150,000 t/yr of orthoxylene (OX) and 510,000 t/yr of benzene (BZ). It had no scheduled maintenance this year. It is the largest of the three aromatics units that FCFC operates at Mailiao.

Its No.1 unit is scheduled to have turnaround from mid-April for 45 days. It has capacity to produce 270,000t/yr of PX, 135,000 t/yr of OX and 250,000 t/yr of BZ.

The company also plans maintenance for three weeks in August at its No.2 plant, which has the capacity to produce 580,000 t/yr of PX, 190,000 t/yr of OX and 470,000 t/yr of benzene.

There has been no immediate impact on the company's PTA production. The company is running normally its 550,000 t/yr Mailiao No.1 and 700,000 t/yr Loong-der No.3 PTA units.

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Explosion shuts FCFC's Mailiao aromatics unit

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