SCOTT HAGGETT
CALGARY, Alberta — Reuters Published on Thursday, Jul. 10, 2008 1:01PM EDT Last updated on Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2009 8:16PM EDT
Petro-Canada said Thursday it has shut down its 135,000 barrel per day refinery in Edmonton, Alta., after an unspecified incident forced the company to depressurize some units after steam boilers lost water.
Kelli Stevens, a spokeswoman for the company, said Petro-Canada can't yet say when the facility will return to normal operation.
“We want to bring it back safely and as quickly as possible,” she said.
With the boilers down, the refinery could not produce the steam that is crucial to its operations. Lack of steam also caused smoky flaring at the facility, which was quickly brought under control, Ms. Stevens said.
She said she does not expect supply shortages because of the shutdown
Petro-Canada is close to wrapping up a $2.2-billion project at the Edmonton refinery that will enable it to process the tar-like bitumen produced at its northern Alberta oil sands operations.
The company has scheduled a 60-day maintenance closure at the site beginning in mid-August to tie in the new equipment.
Join the Discussion: