GS Caltex Sees Half of Production Being Exported Abroad

Petrochemical maker wins the $15 billion Export Tower Award

GS Caltex won the $15 billion Export Tower Award from the government as it exported $15.50 billion worth of petrochemical products during the period between July 2007 and June 2008.
GS Caltex, which started off as the nation's first private refinery in May 1967, opened a new chapter in the history of the Korean petroleum industry. The company, armed with globally competitive petroleum and petrochemical production facilities, accounts for one-third of the nation's total petroleum energy supply, serving as an engine behind the development of the national economy for more than 40 years.
The company, capable of refining 770,000 barrels of crude oil per day, is credited with ensuring a stable supply of petroleum products through approximately 3,400 gas stations and 300-odd gas charging stations and by exporting nearly half of its total production.
In particular, GS Caltex was praised for exporting its conventional items to such vast markets as China, Japan, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Russia as well as super low-sulfur diesel, alkylate, lubricants and quality-high petroleum asphalt. The company exported about 15 trillion won worth of petroleum products during the period between the second half of 2007 and the first half of 2008, taking up a 53.4 percent portion of its total production.
The refinery operates a heavy oil upgrade (HOU) facility capable of refining 153,000 barrels of Bunker C-oil into such value-added products as gasoline, kerosene and diesel and a kerosene/diesel desulfurization facility with a capacity of 190,000 barrels per day. It has upgraded its refining facilities to cope with the changing market situation.
In October 2007, GS Caltex put into commercial service the No. 2 heavy oil upgrade unit capable of refining 150,009 barrels of atmospheric residue oil into gasoline, kerosene and diesel as well as high-quality lubricants and exporting them to overseas markets, including Saudi Arabia. It produced and exported high-quality asphalt to China and North Korea. The refinery has expanded value-added petroleum production capacity in order to raise its international competitiveness.
GS Caltex plans to invest a total of 5 trillion won by 2010, including 3 trillion won for an investment into the construction of the No. 3 HOU facility. It is concentrating its energies into stabilizing petroleum prices in Korea through facility expansion. nw

President Lee presents the $15 billion Export Tower Award to GS Caltex Chairman Hur Dong-soo during the Trade Day ceremony.