The Yanbu Aramco Sinopec Refining Company Ltd. (Yasref) and MARAFIQ have announced the successful approval of a patent for an innovative procedure invented during Yasref's construction that saved time on the project and over $200 million. The patent for "Hot-Tap Tie-In for Large Diameter Pipe" was granted by the United States and Saudi Arabia Patent Offices as US Patent Number 9,506,594 and KSA Patent Number 114 36 0160 in late 2016. During the construction of the Yasref facility, the pipeline division was required to connect into a new sea water supply and return pipeline with the existing utility provider network owned by MARAFIQ. Seawater is used as a cooling mechanism in the refining process and then the water must be returned back to the sea. Unfortunately, the existing MARAFIQ pipeline could not be easily shut down as it supported other operations in the area and any disruption would have led to a major schedule delay. Yasref, with MARAFIQ, came up with an innovative solution by fabricating a strong T-connection on site, using trained commercial divers inside the pipe to perform cutting, and employing a special butterfly valve to complete the procedure safely and successfully without any disruption to service. Established on Jan. 14, 2012, Yasref is a joint venture between Saudi Aramco, which holds a 62.5% share, and China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), which holds a 37.5% share. Yasref represents both companies› focus on driving downstream growth across the entire hydrocarbon chain. Yasref operates a 400,000 bpd integrated petroleum refinery in Yanbu Industrial City. The refinery processes low cost Arabian Heavy crude oil (or alternative grade crude) and produces high quality ultra low sulfur diesel and gasoline as well as benzene, sulfur and petcoke as by-products for export.
