PETALING JAYA: Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd addressed media reports today which claimed a facility in Port Dickson that carries crude oil from the ships to refineries had broken down.
In an exchange filing, Petron confirmed that its refinery at Port Dickson was unable to receive crude oil for purposes of producing finished products, due to a technical problem with the single buoy mooring (SBM) facility.
“Petron wishes to clarify that its finished products, supplied to the Malaysian market and customers, are made up of imported finished products and that produced by its refinery in Port Dickson.
“In this regard, Petron has taken necessary measures to import more finished products to make up for its marketing needs. The necessary repairs to the SBM is in the meantime is being managed by the operator of the said facility. The operator has informed Petron that the SBM is anticipated to return to normal operations by early November 2019,” it said in its filing.
Petron added that the temporary inability to process crude oil at the refinery would not impact the supply of finished products to the market, and that the interruption would not have any significant financial impact to the company.
Meanwhile, in a separate filing, Hengyuan Refining Company Bhd also confirmed the SBM breakdown saying that it sustained damage to an underwater valve.
“The refinery intake has been reduced by approximately 50% as a result of the above incident. However, the company has put in place mitigating measures to ensure there are no disruptions of production supplies to its customers.”
“The company is currently investigating the causes of the damage as well as assessing the financial impact. There has been no environmental impact and relevant government authorities have been informed,” it said.
Today, a Reuters article citing sources reported two tankers carrying oil were unable to offload their cargoes at Port Dickson, as the SBM was out of service.
The SBM is connected to a refinery operated by Hengyuan Refining Company Bhd, a subsidiary of China’s Shandong Hengyuan Petrochemical Co, and a second plant owned by Petron Corp.
