Ecuador declares emergency at fire-hit oil refinery
QUITO : Ecuador today declared an emergency at the country's main oil refinery, where a fuel tank fire halted operations earlier this week, the state oil company Petroecuador said.
Petroecuador said the fire that erupted Monday had caused extensive damage at the massive plant in the northwestern Esmeraldas province, near the border with Colombia.
Two fuel oil tanks and an electrical substation at the plant – which can refine 110,000 barrels per day into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and domestic gas – had been impaired.
'This forced the emergency shutdown of key units and auxiliary steam and power systems,' the plant operator said.
No one was hurt in the blaze, and Petroecuador did not specify the amount of fuel that was in the tank when the fire broke out.
But it cautioned that the fire erupted near two tanks that can store up to 2,544 cubic metres of fuel.
To address the dangerous situation, the company said that the Esmeraldas Refinery had today 'declared an emergency operation to allow for urgent repairs and the restoration of operating conditions as quickly as possible'.
The 60-day operation would facilitate the allocation of funds without bureaucratic procedures, it said.
Ecuador is one of South America's top oil producers and is heavily reliant on its petroleum exports for revenue.
Petroecuador did not specify how long the stocks at its distribution centres would last.
Ecuador has two other refineries, with respective capacity for 45,000 and 20,000 barrels per day.
The government said in a statement Monday that 'the supply of fuel is completely guaranteed throughout the country' despite the fire.
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