SOCAR awards engineering contracts to construct largest Turkey refinery

ISTANBUL -- A consortium comprised of Itochu and foreign firms won an order from the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) to build Turkey's largest oil refinery in the western city of Izmir, the Nikkei reported.

Itochu will procure equipment from Japanese plant manufacturers for the roughly $3.4 billion project, while the Japan Bank for International Cooperation will help SOCAR raise the necessary funds.

Other members of the consortium are Tecnicas Reunidas, Saipem and GS Engineering and Construction. They will sign the design, procurement and construction contract.

Itochu's portion of the project is worth about $34 million. Construction will begin in autumn, and the refinery is slated to begin operating in 2017.

The refinery will be owned and operated by SOCAR. It will have a refining capacity of 214,000 bpd, lifting Turkey's refining capacity by more than 30%.

The addition of the plant to the area will create Turkey's largest chemical complex.