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Atlas Copco Rental contributes to Total refinery’s modernization project

March 25, 2019

Antwerp, Belgium, 30 July, 2016. The Total refinery in Antwerp, Belgium started its OPTARA project in March 2015. The project expands and adapts the refinery’s installation to better respond to the market’s growing demand for ultra-low sulphur oil products. Atlas Copco Rental delivered dry, oil-free compressed air to two different pipeline cleaning and drying applications.

OPTARA is short for “OPTimization Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam”, emphasizing the importance of this modernization project for all three locations. In the new production plan the refinery in Vlissingen, in the Netherlands, will have a hydro cracking installation that produces much of the raw material for the project.

Refinery of the future

OPTARA Total refinery Antwerp
Two different installations will be built and adapted on the refinery’s site in the port area of Antwerp, Belgium. The modules were prefabricated in Tarragona, Spain and shipped as large building bricks to Belgium where they have been reassembled on site. The project is scheduled for completion in 2016, providing a completely new MHC (Mild Hydro Cracking) unit that will convert vacuum residue into high-quality oil components, ready for further processing. As a second installation, an ARDS (Atmospheric Residue Desulphurization) unit is adapted to drastically increase its capacity. OPTARA involves an investment of 1 billion euro, achieving a nomination to the “Foreign Investment Trophy 2014” awarded by Flanders Investment & Trade.

Oil-free air by Atlas Copco Rental

Once a module is built or adapted, several procedures prepare the installation for a safe and efficient start-up. Especially the pipelines require cleaning and drying during pre-commissioning and commissioning. This is where Atlas Copco Rental’s oil-free compressed air comes into the picture. We supplied the new boiler and sour water stripper site with two PTS 1600 mobile oil-free compressors complete with fuel tank and adsorption dryers: a combination that has already proven its efficiency in countless other projects. Currently the PTS 800, the smaller sibling of the P-family, is working hard to blow pipelines clean before they can be connected. In other words: OPTARA relies on our most innovative oil-free compressors to build the refinery of the future.

For further information please contact:

  • Olivia Gambin, Divisional Communication Manager Atlas Copco Specialty Rental Tel.: +32 3 750 82 87 Email:
    • Olivia Gambin, Divisional Communication Manager Atlas Copco Specialty Rental Tel.: +32 3 750 82 87 Email:
      • Olivia Gambin, Divisional Communication Manager Atlas Copco Specialty Rental Tel.: +32 3 750 82 87 Email:

        Atlas Copco is a world-leading provider of sustainable productivity solutions. The Group serves customers with innovative compressors, vacuum solutions and air treatment systems, construction and mining equipment, power tools and assembly systems. Atlas Copco develops products and service focused on productivity, energy efficiency, safety and ergonomics. The company was founded in 1873, is based in Stockholm, Sweden, and has a global reach spanning more than 180 countries. In 2015, Atlas Copco had revenues of BSEK 102 (BEUR 11) and more than 43 000 employees.

        Specialty Rental is a division within Atlas Copco’s Construction Technique business area. It serves customers in the industry segments around the world with temporary air, nitrogen, steam and power rental solutions. The specialty rental services are offered under several brands. The divisional headquarters is located in Houston, USA.