Kuwait: serious deadly fire in a gas liquefaction plant
A photo provided by the Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC): firefighters putting out a fire at the al-Ahmadi refinery south of Kuwait City this Friday, January 14, 2022. AFP - -
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
In Kuwait, a fire in a gas liquefaction unit on Friday January 14 left ten injured, including seven hospitalized – five in critical condition.
The state-owned company that runs the site – the main refinery in this oil-rich Gulf emirate – also announced the death of two “Asian” workers.
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With our regional correspondent,
Nicolas Keraudren
This is the second fire in the space of a few months at the Mina al-Ahmadi refinery in Kuwait.
Last October, another fire had already caused several injuries in this refinery without any death being reported.
This time, the toll is heavier.
On its Twitter account, the national oil company expressed its "
great emotion
" after the discovery of two lifeless bodies on the site.
At the same time, the company also clarified that “
refining and export operations have not been affected
”.
The affected unit – number 32 – was already out of service due to the ongoing maintenance operation.
The Minister of Petroleum went there.
A team of firefighters was dispatched and the fire was "
completely brought under control
" in the middle of the day, specifies the company.
نائب الرئيس التنفيذي للخدمات المساندة عبدالعزيز الدعيج متحدثا لتلفزيون الكويت بعد السيطرة على حريق وحدة إسالة الغاز بمصفاة ميناء الأحمدي.
1/3
pic.twitter.com/1vKJQRqxcm
— البترول الوطنية |
KNPC (@KNPCofficial) January 14, 2022
With a production of 466,000 barrels of oil per day, Mina al-Ahmadi is currently the largest of the three refineries of the public company.
It began operations in 1949. A fourth refinery with a capacity of 615,000 barrels per day is under construction in Kuwait.
The refinery terminal is also one of the main export points for Kuwaiti oil.
The site is located on the Gulf, facing Iran, about 40 km south of the capital.
The refinery is 10.5 square kilometers.
In this Planet Labs PBC satellite photo, the Mina al-Ahmadi oil refinery, in January 2021. AP - Planet Labs PBC
In Kuwait, 2.4 million barrels are produced per day.
The country is an influential member of OPEC.
The Kuwaiti Haitham al-Ghais has moreover just been appointed secretary general of the cartel of oil-exporting countries.
► Listen again: OPEC facing the energy transition wall
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