Trinidad seeks fuel, starts refinery shutdown

Trinidad and Tobago issued a request for proposals from 13 oil traders to purchase 25,000 b/d of refined products as it starts decommissioning its 168,000 b/d refinery.

The phased shutdown of the century-old refinery starts today. Petrotrin will have 20 days of inventory to meet domestic needs when the decommissioning is completed at the end of October, energy minister Franklin Khan said.

"The requests for proposals are currently out, and we do not foresee any disruption in supply," he said. "Fuel is an internationally traded commodity and is well available on the international market."

The plant's shutdown is a consequence of mounting losses and high debts, state-owned refiner Petrotrin said on 28 August. The company had been forced to import increasing volumes of feedstock as domestic crude production has been falling steadily since 2006.

Petrotrin plans to convert the Pointe-a-Pierre refinery into a storage terminal and bunkering facility.

The refinery is designed to produce gasoline, LPG, diesel, aviation fuel and fuel oil.

Local fuel retailers are concerned about the impact of the shutdown on supplies.

"Our concerns include the reliability and consistency of supply," fuel retailer's federation FDA said, claiming it had not been consulted by Petrotrin and was uncertain how it would continue to meet the daily needs of 400,000 clients.

Petrotrin may have to import additional products to meet supply contracts with several neighboring countries, the energy ministry told Argus.

Petrotrin has been supplying diesel, gasoline, aviation fuel and LPG to several countries in the eastern and northeastern Caribbean.

Petrotrin's fuel exports to neighboring countries had a tariff advantage as the countries are members of Caricom, a regional free trade group.

"The options include Petrotrin importing and re-exporting the products, or the countries sourcing the products themselves, with assistance from Petrotrin," an energy ministry official said.

The closure will result in 1,700 layoffs. Petrotrin has rejected a proposal by labor union OWTU to lease the refinery and keep it open.

"The proposal failed to address critical issues regarding financing and profitability and there was insufficient information to give us an understanding of how the plan would work," Petrotrin chairman Wilfred Espinet said.

The refinery will be segregated from Petrotrin and the facility will be treated as a stand-alone asset that will allow the government to consider future indications of interest, including new proposals from OWTU, Trinidad's prime minister Keith Rowley said.