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CEPSA La Rabida Refinery

Refinery in Spain. Approximate location 37.18408, -6.90394.

RefinerySpainCO₂ estimate (modelled)

CEPSA La Rabida Refinery is a refinery in Spain. Its listed capacity is 190,000 BBL per day. Refineries heat, fractionate and chemically transform crude oil into fuels and petrochemical feedstocks through energy-intensive distillation and cracking — extremely demanding on steam generation and heat recovery. It is operated by Cepsa. By capacity it ranks #4 among 9 oil refineries in Spain. It emits about 2,216,744 t CO₂e a year from Climate TRACE, roughly comparable to the annual emissions of 517k passenger cars. Its CO₂ per unit of capacity is 36% above the national median for this sector.

190,000BBL per day
2,216,744t CO₂e / yr (Climate TRACE)
#4CO₂ rank in Spain
11.67t CO₂ per capacity unit

Facility data: Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0), id ct-3144121.

Data status

Known source data

FacilityCEPSA La Rabida Refinery Climate TRACE
CountrySpain Climate TRACE
Coordinates37.18408, -6.90394 Climate TRACE
Sector / subsectoroil-and-gas-refining Climate TRACE
Reported capacity190,000 BBL per day Climate TRACE
Owner / operatorCepsa Climate TRACE
Modelled CO₂e2,216,744 t/yr Climate TRACE

Calculated from the dataset

Spain rank#4 of 91 · top 4.4% calculated
Global oil-and-gas-refining rank#140 of 630 · top 22.2% calculated
Climate contextderived from coordinates calculated

Not available

Fuel typeNot available not in dataset
Thermal capacity (MW)Not available not in dataset

Source data, measured cross-checks and calculated values are kept separate. No confidence percentage is invented.

Similar facilities by modelled emissions

Same Climate TRACE subsector; closest non-placeholder modelled CO₂e values. Russia and Belarus excluded.

Operating power plants within 50 km

PowerAtlas operating assets, ordered by great-circle distance from published coordinates.

In context: how this facility compares

At 190,000 BBL per day, CEPSA La Rabida Refinery is around the median refinery in Spain (186,000 BBL per day). Subsector: oil-and-gas-refining. As refinery, it requires high process heat (typically 200–600°C) for its core industrial operations — heat that must be supplied by boilers, furnaces or direct combustion, and losses through uninsulated vessels and piping represent wasted fuel. Removable modular insulation can cut those losses by 80–96%, surface-cooling equipment to ≤45°C, with payback often under 2 years. Refineries heat, fractionate and chemically transform crude oil into fuels and petrochemical feedstocks through energy-intensive distillation and cracking — extremely demanding on steam generation and heat recovery.

Capacity & CO₂-intensity comparison computed from Climate TRACE industrial facilities data; sector role based on engineering reference.

What 2,216,744 t CO₂e a year looks like

This facility's estimated annual CO₂e (Climate TRACE, modelled) in everyday equivalents from the US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies calculator:

517kcars driven for a year
289khomes' annual energy use
37 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years

Equivalencies: US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies. Emissions: Climate TRACE.

Carbon cost, Scope 1 & decarbonization potential

At its reported 2.2M t CO₂e/yr (Scope 1), CEPSA La Rabida Refinery carries €176M/yr of carbon at the full EU ETS price (€79/t CO₂). Free allocation phases out to 2034 (Reg. (EU) 2023/956), so today's bill is lower and rising toward this full-price figure. The fastest decarbonization lever is energy efficiency: eliminating heat loss on hot equipment (removable insulation, steam & waste-heat recovery) typically cuts 2–5% of fuel-related CO₂ — here ≈44k t–111k t/yr, worth €3.5M€8.8M, with payback up to 2 years.

2.2M t CO₂e / yrScope 1 emissions
€176M/yrcarbon value · full EU ETS price
44k t–111k t/yr ≈ €3.5M€8.8MDecarbonization potential

Carbon price: EU ETS €79/t · EU ETS €79/t, July 2, 2026, refreshed live via Carbon Hub. CO₂: Climate TRACE. Efficiency range: US DOE / ASTM C680 (method). Indicative carbon value, not the cash bill — free allocation applies; not compliance advice. Estimate the saving for this site →

Capacity vs largest oil refineries in Spain

CEPSA Gibraltar-San Roque Refinery: 240,000 BBL per day240kCEPSA Gibr…Repsol Bilbao Refinery: 220,000 BBL per day220kRepsol Bil…Repsol Cartagena Refinery: 220,000 BBL per day220kRepsol Car…CEPSA La Rabida Refinery: 190,000 BBL per day190kCEPSA La R…Repsol Tarragona Refinery: 186,000 BBL per day186kRepsol Tar…Repsol Puertollano Refinery: 150,000 BBL per day150kRepsol Pue…Repsol A Coruna Refinery: 120,000 BBL per day120kRepsol A C…BP Castellon Refinery: 110,000 BBL per day110kBP Castell…

Listed capacity (BBL per day), Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0).

Operator

Operated by Cepsa. All facilities by this operator →

Local climate

CEPSA La Rabida Refinery sits in a hot-summer Mediterranean climate zone (Köppen Csa), at 37.2°N in the northern hemisphere.

~17°Ctypical annual mean
~27°Ctypical warm-season
Hot-summer mediterranean: four distinct seasons — cold winters and warm summers

Köppen zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).

Site climate & environmental severity

The local climate sets how fast unprotected steel, protective coatings and the insulation on hot process equipment degrade at this site. It sits in a corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with marine corrosion the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
43/100environmental-severity index
14.1°Cseasonal temperature swing
15 kmdistance to coast
HighCUI risk tier

In this site’s local climate, a bare 150 °C surface sheds about 1319 W/m² to ambient — roughly 1.01× the loss at a 20 °C reference; removable insulation recovers about 1253 W/m² of that. Reference-surface calculation at a 150 °C surface from WorldClim climate normals (ASTM C680 / ISO 12241) — an indicative per-climate comparison, not a measurement of this site’s specific equipment. Open method dataset: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20787408 (CC BY 4.0).

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby sites

The #4 largest of 9 oil refineries in Spain by listed capacity (Climate TRACE).

Nearby industrial sites

Location

Coordinates 37.18408, -6.90394. View on OpenStreetMap.

Heat loss & insulation profile

For a refinery, the main modular-insulation targets are crude & vacuum distillation columns, fired heaters, heat exchangers, steam lines, valves & flanges. Typical hot-surface ranges used for screening: 150–550 °C.

Indicative recoverable energy

A first-pass insulation screen suggests about 60,000 MWh/year of recoverable heat-loss reduction and about 12,000 t CO₂e/year of avoided emissions. Screening estimate scaled from installed process-heat projects and surface-temperature reduction data.

See Inzonex Modular Insulation → Run the calculator →

Screening calculation from facility class, capacity and open emissions/energy context. Engineering survey required before procurement.

Safety & the no-regret first step

Start with a thermal survey of valves, flanges, doors and bends. Removable modular insulation keeps maintenance access open while lowering exposed-surface temperature and wasted heat.

EU policy pressure on this sector

Obligation

This facility is inside the EU. For thermal equipment, insulation upgrades can support ETS exposure reduction and energy-efficiency compliance.

Sources: EU ETS, CBAM and national energy-efficiency schemes.

Frequently asked questions

What type of facility is CEPSA La Rabida Refinery?

CEPSA La Rabida Refinery is a refinery in Spain. Refineries heat, fractionate and chemically transform crude oil into fuels and petrochemical feedstocks through energy-intensive distillation and cracking — extremely demanding on steam generation and heat recovery.

What capacity is listed for CEPSA La Rabida Refinery?

The open dataset lists 190,000 BBL per day of capacity for CEPSA La Rabida Refinery.

How much CO₂ does CEPSA La Rabida Refinery emit?

The page uses about 2,216,744 t CO₂e/year from the open dataset It ranks #4 among facilities in Spain by estimated CO₂.

Where is CEPSA La Rabida Refinery located?

CEPSA La Rabida Refinery is in Spain at approximately 37.18408, -6.90394.

Who operates CEPSA La Rabida Refinery?

The operator recorded in the open dataset is Cepsa.

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