Explosion hits Romania's Petromidia refinery in the Black Sea

Quantum Commodity Intelligence – There has been an explosion at the Petromidia refinery in the Black Sea, with eight fire trucks in attendance and three reported victims with burns, according to local television reports and videos.

The refinery, which has a capacity of 120,000 bpd, is located near the port of Constanta, has access to the Danube, and is one of the largest oil refineries in Eastern Europe.

"There was a major explosion at Petromidia Navodri. The situation is serious...everyone is focusing on putting out the fire," the country's environment minister, Tanczos Barna, said on Friday, according to local media reports.

The minister said the damage to the environment would be "major".

The refinery, which has three shipping berths for exports of oil products, is shrouded in thick dark smoke, according to photos and video footage published by Digi 24.