The year 2010 + refinery will be market driven and will have to face with continous features: a morestringent fuel reformulation (sulphur, aromatics, …), severe environmental limitations for operations, and in viewalternative transportation fuel breakthroughs. Crude supply optimisation will be the first but limited way to do it.In 2010 and in the subsequent following years, the refining industry will still be practically the solecontributor to the production of transportation fuels, with more than 95% of the demand still supplied at that timeby the refiner. Meeting the growing demand for such products not only in terms of volume but also in terms ofproducts quality shall have required a very significant evolution of the present refining tool, materialized by anincreased complexity. However it is anticipated that such complexity will not be needed for those refineries whichhave specific niches or preferential locations.The refining industry has at its disposal the necessary technological support to supply the market withhigh quality products; facing the foreseeable development in the medium term of new types of car engines andalternate fuels, this ability to keep providing clean transportation fuels is a “must” for the refiner. Further productsspecifications and emissions directives which are likely to be imposed by the authorities should however reflect aglobal approach of the environmental problems.
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