The Ina-owned Rijeka Refinery will suspend operation starting from 2 November until early next April due to an upgrade, Croatia's national energy company Ina told state news agency Hina on Tuesday.

The upgrade is “currently the largest and most valuable industrial project in Croatia… in which Ina is investing more than 4 billion kuna (€531 million),” the company said. The project involves constructing new plants, the most important being a heavy residue processing unit, and also the upgrade of existing plants.

Asked about whether this would affect market supply, “Ina said that the winter period was chosen because fuel demand was considerably smaller than in summer, which makes supply security less dependent on import,” Hina said, without naming their source at the company.

“Since the suspension was planned in advance, the procurement of fuel from the Mediterranean has been contracted, Ina said, adding that the delivery of petrol, liquefied petroleum gas and aviation fuel has been ensured until the end of April 2023,” Hina said.

As for diesel, Ina has ensured the required amounts for November, December and January and is working on ensuring enough diesel until next April.

“Asked how many more production suspensions were planned until the heavy residue processing unit was completed, Ina said no further suspensions were planned next year… There will be a shorter suspension early in 2024 due to a regular overhaul of the Rijeka Refinery,” Hina reported.

(€1 = 7.53 kuna)