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Conoco shut compressor at Sweeny refinery

Mon Aug 4, 2008 10:01am EDT

NEW YORK, Aug 4 (Reuters) - An aeration compressor was briefly shut on Saturday at the ConocoPhillips 247,000 barrel per day Sweeny oil refinery in Texas, according to a company filing on Monday with state environmental regulators.

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"The aeration compressor was inadvertently shut down as a result of loss of cooling water. In turn, this tripped the vent valve on tank 69 to open to the atmosphere even though the regenerative thermal oxidizer is still in operation," said the filing with Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).

The compressor was returned to service, added the filing.

In a separate filing with TCEQ, Conoco said Unit 3, the gasoline-making fluid catalytic cracker (FCC), experienced excess opacity for one hour on Saturday.

"The root cause is unknown. Plans are to install a wet gas scrubber on this Unit 3 in 2009. A root cause will be investigated," the filing noted.

Company officials could not be reached immediately for comment. (Reporting by Haitham Haddadin; Editing by John Picinich)

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