Repsol benefits from Cartagena start-up as capacity doubles
A bold investment in a once barely-economic refinery has given Repsol its ‘refinery of the future’
In a project described as Spain’s largest-ever industrial investment, Repsol has doubled the capacity of its Cartagena refinery and turned the simple-configuration facility into one of the most highly-upgraded in Europe. The €3.3 billion ($4.1bn) three-year project was started-up at the end of 2011 and has led to sharply-increased margins in Repsol’s five-refinery system in Spain, the company said in July. Meeting Spain’s rising demand for diesel was the main driver for the investment, and according to Joaquin Garcia-Estan Salcedo, Repsol’s director of engineering and development, Cartagena now produces “close to 60%” of its output as diesel. Over the first six months of the year the refiner
Also in this section
23 April 2026
The addition of an oil pipeline to the Power of Siberia 2 gas project could ensure deliveries of Russian oil to China, materially shorten logistics lines between West Siberia and final customers, and—amid disruption in the Strait of Hormuz—offer a land-based export route that reduces exposure to maritime chokepoints
23 April 2026
There is a clear push to bolster exports to Asia amid uncertainty around its North American neighbour, but there are limits to the benefits from the energy crisis
23 April 2026
Shell made the play-opening discovery in Namibia’s Orange basin back in 2022, but its next well could decide whether the project can actually be commercialised
22 April 2026
The failure of OMV Petrom’s keenly watched exploration campaign at Bulgaria’s Han Asparuh block highlights the Black Sea’s uneven track record, despite major successes like Neptun Deep and Sakarya
