Total's Donges refinery in France to remain offline until next year

London (Quantum Commodity Intelligence) - Total's 222,000 b/d Donges refinery in France will remain offline until next year after operator Total decided to bring forward planned maintenance, Argus Media reports.

The plant has been shut since late last year on economic grounds.

Total said the turnaround at Donges is slated to start this November and last until February next year.

This makes a restart unlikely before mid-March 2022.

"The Covid crisis has had a downward impact on the consumption of petroleum products, which has led to a sharp deterioration in refining margins," Total reported to the regional environmental authorities.

In this context, the Donges platform was forced to operate at a loss. Despite a gradual recovery of the markets in Europe, consumption is still much lower than the pre-pandemic period, particularly in the jet market."

The maintenance was originally planned for May-June 2022.