Belarusian Prime Minister Aleksandr Turchin visited the Naftan oil refinery, got familiar with the enterprise's operations and its development prospects, BelTA has learned.
The flagship and pioneer of Belarus's oil refining industry has been operating successfully for 62 years. The enterprise specializes in fuel-oil-aromatics production. It manufactures petroleum products for various sectors of the national economy and for export.
Naftan has completed the largest investment development program in its history and commission a delayed coking plant. This project has largely become a new and unique experience not only for Naftan but also for Belarus. Its manufactures light petroleum products: hydrocarbon and liquefied gas, gasoline, heavy and light gasoil, and petroleum coke. The delayed coking plant precisely hits Naftan's primary objectives; with its launch, the crude oil refining depth has reached 92%. Through the plant, Naftan has also started producing sulfur (liquid, granulated) and petroleum coke. The application field of petroleum coke depends on its qualitative characteristics: calorific value, sulfur content, volatile matter, ash, and moisture. Petroleum coke is exported.
Furthermore, the investment project “Construction of the Delayed Coking Plant” has created over 400 new jobs at Naftan.
The prime minister toured the AT-8 unit that carries out primary oil refining. Aleksandr Turchin was briefed on its technical condition and capacity, up to 7.2 million tonnes of oil per year. One of the most important tasks of AT-8 is to produce a wide range of quality products to provide raw materials for the entire enterprise.
Aleksandr Turchin also held a working meeting at Naftan. One of the key topics was reviewing the performance of Belarus’ oil refining industry in 2025, along with the forecast for 2026 and the upcoming five-year period.
Naftan’s development prospects were discussed in addition to general industry-wide topics, Naftan’s Director General Oleg Zhebin told journalists following the working meeting. “Naftan concluded 2025 with a net profit, so we hope it will continue to be the flagship of the petrochemical industry in the coming years. We also discussed matters related to modernizing the enterprise, improving oil refining efficiency, intra-industry and inter-industry cooperation, and launching new types of products,” he noted.
Oleg Zhebin emphasized that the first stage of modernization of the fuel facilities has been completed. "This stage is now fully, 100% complete; thanks to the work carried out, we were able to end last year effectively. Our next development target is petrochemicals. We are approaching this matter carefully and sequentially, taking into account financial capabilities, available technologies, and most importantly, the final effect we aim to achieve," Oleg Zhebin concluded.