The digital process control system – Advanced Process Control (APC), implemented by Rompetrol Rafinare in the operation of the Petromidia refinery, has accumulated operational benefits and substantial cost reductions, quantified at over 2.5 million dollars in 2025.
If previously the parameters of the facilities were adjusted manually – temperatures, pressures, flows – currently the operators establish the quality of the products, and the APC software automatically calculates, every minute, the appropriate settings for the optimal operation of the facilities.
Thus, each facility operates on the basis of a digital autopilot, which adjusts the key parameters of the technological units in real time. This approach has led, year after year, to increasing the yields of valuable products and operating the facilities at their maximum capacity, under stable and predictable conditions.
Thanks to the adjustments made through the predictive control system of the processes in the installations and of the operational flows, as well as the work carried out within the technological revisions, according to the established schedules, the refinery achieved new operational records last year.
“The digital component helps us to streamline processes, adapt production recipes and achieve our objectives. Along with the volumes of crude oil received, which reached historical levels, and the alignment with market demand, the system was a central element of last year’s performance. Advanced Process Control is a system that we also use for its predictive side, because it substantially reduces any risk associated with production flows”, said Sorin Graure, General Manager of Rompetrol Rafinare.
The largest refinery in Romania reached maximum production levels for gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel in 2025, maintained technological losses at only 0.78% and recorded a new historical minimum of the Energy Intensity Index (EII) – 92.5 points.
These results also depended to a large extent on the volume of crude oil processed, ensured with the support of KazMunayGas, which also generated the highest yield of white products (gasoline, diesel, LPG, JET, propylene) ever achieved: 87.1% wt.
The refinery’s utilization rate rose to 98.1%, supported by solid operational reliability and favorable market conditions, in the context of an average throughput of over 16,000 tons/day. At the same time, Petromidia reported a record level of fuel gas – 205,000 tons/year, contributing to reducing natural gas consumption and optimizing processing costs.
The Petromidia refinery uses the APC system in all facilities since 2020, with the role of identifying, in real time, the optimal operating points to increase capacities, improve product quality, reduce energy consumption and limit losses.
By optimizing operational processes, the system contributes to reducing fuel consumption and, implicitly, CO₂ emissions, while ensuring much stricter control of the key parameters of the facilities.
Rompetrol Rafinare continues to implement advanced solutions for the digital transformation of the Petromidia Năvodari refinery, in the operational area and in improving the skills of operators, in order to ensure the operation of the refinery at the highest standards of safety, efficiency and technological performance.
Last year, the company also implemented the first stage of a modern training system for Petromidia operators – OTS (Operator Training Simulator), which facilitates the development of their technical skills, contributing to safe operation, minimizing human errors and reducing reaction time in critical situations.
The significant shareholders of Rompetrol Rafinare are KMG International (54.63% – directly and indirectly) and the Romanian State, through the Ministry of Energy (44.7%).
