Fire breaks out at Exxon's refinery in Rotterdam, Netherlands
(Reuters) — ExxonMobil Corp said on Monday a fire broke out at its refinery in Rotterdam but that there were no injuries and most of the facility remained operational.
The fire erupted in the powerformer unit of the complex and some flaring occurred to reduce pressure, Exxon said, adding it was cooperating with local emergency personnel.
The complex can process about 190,000 bpd and the rest of the refining units and a connected chemical plant were still online, Exxon said.
"We regret the incident and any inconvenience caused to the community," Exxon spokeswoman Ellen Ehmen said in an emailed statement.
The fire came the same day that a blaze broke out at a Royal Dutch Shell refinery in the Netherlands. That fire was quickly contained.
Exxon last year started a $1 B, 3-yr expansion of the Rotterdam refinery to boost production of lubricants and other chemicals. According to a proposal for the expansion filed with Dutch authorities, hydrocracking capacity at the plant would increase by 40 percent to about 70,000 bpd.
Shares of ExxonMobil were unchanged on the New York Stock Exchange in after-hours trading after closing at $76.38.
Reporting by Libby George in London and Ernest Scheyder in Houston; Editing by Diane Craft and Peter Cooney
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