Extensive complex to start up first refining unit in 2014, with second train following in 2018. Bulk of petrochemical units to begin operations in 2016.

Owner: Petrobras

Location: Itaborai, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Products: Ethane (1.3Mta), propane (0.8Mta), benzene (0.6Mta), para-xylene (0.7Mta), butadiene (157,000tpa), styrene (0.5Mta), ethylene glycol (0.6Mta), polyethylene (0.8Mta), polypropylene (0.85Mta), PTA (0.5Mta), PET (0.6Mta), diesel (180,000bpd), kerosene and jet fuel (40,000bpd), base oils and lubricants (9000bpd) and naphtha (50,000bpd)

Post-project capacity: 150,000bpd

Estimated cost: US$8.4 billion

Expected completion date:  2016–2017

Once this major complex is complete, it is expected to save Brazil over US$2 billion a year through reducing the need for petrochemical imports, according to Petrobras estimates. The company broke ground on the project in March 2008 and it will feature a refining and first-generation unit to produce the basic petrochemicals, as well as a set of second-generation (associated petrochemical) units to produce products such as polyethylene.

The complex will have its own utilities plant to provide power, steam and water and will also feature Petrobras’s proprietary petrochemical FCC process, which can produce petrochemical raw materials such as propylene, ethylene and aromatic oils directly from Marlin heavy oil, boosting its flexibility substantially.

In 2010, Petrobras opted to add a 150,000bpd refinery to the project’s scope, with design, detailed engineering and construction to be handled by Skanska AB under a contract worth US$623 million. In April 2010, a consortium formed by Techint Engenharia and Andrade Gutierrez received a US$1.1 billion contract for the construction of a delayed coking unit. Alusa Engenharia is handling the catalytic hydrocracking unit through a US$1.46 billion EPC contract.

As for the petrochemical complex itself, the basic petrochemical unit is being built in partnership with the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) and other parties, at an estimated cost of US$3.5 billion. Shaw Group is supplying its proprietary ethylene technology, together with basic engineering and technical services for the 1Mta ethylene plant and similar services for the petrochemical FCC unit. WorleyParsons has received a ~US$110 million services contract for integration and project management services, FEED for utilities and offsites and other technical services relating to the project.

Axens is providing process technology, in the form of its ParamaX suite for the production of para-xylene and benzene from naphtha feedstock, in collaboration with ExxonMobil Chemical. Uhde, the German contractor, will also be supplying its Morpylane aromatics extraction process as part of the ParamaX suite. Emerson Process Management is contracted to provide process automation technologies.

In March 2010, a US$31 million contractual amendment was signed between Petrobras and Cadae, the state water utility. Under the new terms of the contract, Petrobras will build a duct via which Cadae will supply treated water to the complex. Once complete, the drinking water supply will be made available to the Itabori region.

Luiz Fernando Leite, downstream petrochemical process manager for Comperj, told ICIS news in November 2010 that the project had been delayed to 2016–2017 due to the global economic downturn and lower than expected resin demand. In August 2011, it was announced that Comperj will have two refineries and a natural gas treatment plant to provide feedstock, boosting the expected petrochemical output of the complex to the capacities detailed above. Under the current timetable, the first refinery train is expected to start up by 2014, with a capacity of 165,000bpd, with the second train following in 2018. 2018 will also see the start-up of an FCC unit, while a steam cracker and polypropylene train, plus polyethylene, styrene and other chemical units are expected to begin operations in 2016.