A new hydrocracker to be commissioned at Total’s Normandy refinery near Le Havre, France, will use Axens technology.  The 48,000 bpsd unit will convert heavy fractions of petroleum into high quality, very low sulfur middle distillates destined for transportation fuels production for the European markets. The new facilities will contribute to the reduction of refinery’s output of heavy fuel oil and also will produce high-quality bases for lubricants and specialty fluids. Technip will provide detailed engineering and construction of the project. Start-up is scheduled for Q2/Q3 2006.
 
Axens' latest hydrocracking technology has the process flexibility to convert conventional vacuum gas oils (VGO), VGOs from heavy and extra-heavy crudes, and deasphalted oil (DAO) or coker gas oils into high quality middle distillates while affording residue fractions which are suitable as very high VI lube oil base stocks. By selecting the appropriate catalyst, the process can produce the whole range of oil grades, from transformer oil to the bright stock.