CPC Delays Start of Crude Processing Unit at Kaohsiung Refinery

CPC Corp., Taiwan's state-owned refiner, has delayed restarting a fire-damaged crude oil distillation unit at its Kaohsiung refinery by two weeks as it waits for government approval.

The unit may start next week after permission is obtained from the Kaohsiung city labor bureau, said a CPC official who declined to be identified because of company rules.

The 100,000 barrels-a-day facility was expected to be restarted in the week of Dec. 17., CPC spokeswoman Jessica Tang said Dec. 13. She couldn't immediately be reached by telephone.

The plant in southern Taiwan has been shut since Oct. 26, when a pump leak caused a fire. Taipei-based CPC has three refineries with a total capacity of 720,000 barrels a day.

The distillation unit is the main part of a refinery that heats crude oil to separate it into different products.