Margins ‫اﻟﺤﺪود او اﻻﺣﺘﯿﺎطﻲ‬

Refinery margins are a measure of the value contribution of the refinery per unit
of input. Typically this is per barrel of crude oil processed.

Refiners typically measure margins at several levels to measure different

dimensions of performance:

Gross margin - This is the difference between the value of the products made and
the feedstock (crude and other feed) used to make them. This is typically used to
measure the effects of changing market conditions or differences in yield across
different refineries

Variable cash margin - This subtracts all variable costs (costs associated with
running a single unit of feedstock, typically including energy and catalyst and
chemicals costs) from the gross margin.

Cash operating margin - This subtracts all fixed cash costs (labor, maintenance,
and materials) from variable cash margin.

Refining Types and Complexity ‫اﻧﻮاع اﻟﻤﺼﺎﻓﻲ و ﺗﻌﻘﯿﺪاﺗﮭﺎ‬

Oil refineries are industrial facilities that convert crude oil into different
useable products. While the general process of refining is standard, it is
adapted at individual refineries based on the properties of the crude oil
extracted from the earth and on the desired outputs.

Petroleum refining is a very complex system, but it can be generalized

into five main areas.
1. Separation: The first part of the process where the crude oil is
physically separated by fractionation using atmospheric or vacuum
distillation towers. Fractionation takes advantage of the various
boiling point ranges of different groups of hydrocarbon molecules
of the crude oil to separate the products in gas form.

2. Conversion: The second general process which changes the size

and structure of hydrocarbon molecules through a number of
processes. Hydro, thermal, and catalytic cracking, or coking, are
used to divide and decompose these hydrocarbon molecules.
Unification and alteration processes combine and rearrange the
molecule arrangements. These manipulations of the hydrocarbon
molecules create the various grades of crude oil, which must be
treated.
3. Treatment: Involves the removal of non-hydrocarbons, impurities,
and other constituents that affect the performance of the product or
reduce efficiency of the refining process.
4. Blending: The hydrocarbon fractions, additives, and other
components are formulated and blended to produce the finished
products with specific performance qualities
5. Other: Many other operations and facilities exist within the plant
that indirectly affect the refinery process including all water
treatment processes, cooling, hydrogen production, and more.
There are also non-process related facilities including power
generation, product movement, tank storage, flares, alarms and
sensors, control rooms, and many others that make refineries an
efficient and safe environment.