AM-01-33 U.S. WEST COAST REFINERS UNLOCK THEIR MARGIN POTENTIAL

Description:

To be competitive, refiners must continuously improve their performance. Equilon is well on track to significantly increase profitability from its US West Coast refineries by implementing ideas that further exploit their hydrocarbon margins. These ideas are based on better utilization of existing assets rather than on capital projects for new or revamped facilities. The opportunities were identified in hydrocarbon management reviews (HMRs) carried out at three of the refineries by Shell Global Solutions during 2000. The HMR process is a tool for developing solutions that improve a business’ bottom line. A powerful feature of the HMR approach is the engagement of the refinery’s people. This ensures their input and, at the same time, builds shared focus and enthusiasm. The engineers, operators and other people in a refinery typically have great ideas based on their long and intimate knowledge of the plant, but organizations find it difficult to harness this potential because of conflicting pressures and demands. In the HMR process, refining experts team-up with the refinery’s own people to combine local knowledge with global expertise in order to develop a practical set of profit-enhancing proposals, and to equip refinery personnel to implement them. First, we will briefly consider why refineries can continue to discover opportunities to improve margins, and then we will discuss the HMR approach to unlocking this potential for improvement. Equilon’s HMR program is an example that illustrates the success of this approach.