Home / Europe / Netherlands / Oil refineries / ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery

ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery

Refinery in Netherlands. Approximate location 51.8762, 4.29.

RefineryNetherlandsCO₂ estimate (modelled)

ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery is a refinery in Netherlands. Its listed capacity is 192,000 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 Exxon Mobil Corp. By capacity it ranks #2 among 4 oil refineries in Netherlands. It emits about 1,859,980 t CO₂e a year from Climate TRACE, roughly comparable to the annual emissions of 434k passenger cars. Its CO₂ per unit of capacity is 13% above the national median for this sector.

192,000BBL per day
1,859,980t CO₂e / yr (Climate TRACE)
#6CO₂ rank in Netherlands
9.69t CO₂ per capacity unit

Facility data: Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0), id ct-3144034.

Data status

Known source data

FacilityExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery Climate TRACE
CountryNetherlands Climate TRACE
Coordinates51.8762, 4.29 Climate TRACE
Sector / subsectoroil-and-gas-refining Climate TRACE
Reported capacity192,000 BBL per day Climate TRACE
Owner / operatorExxon Mobil Corp Climate TRACE
Modelled CO₂e1,859,980 t/yr Climate TRACE

Calculated from the dataset

Netherlands rank#6 of 25 · top 24.0% calculated
Global oil-and-gas-refining rank#182 of 630 · top 28.9% 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 192,000 BBL per day, ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery is around the median refinery in Netherlands (192,000 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 1,859,980 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:

434kcars driven for a year
243khomes' annual energy use
31 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years

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

Carbon cost, Scope 1 & decarbonization potential

At its reported 1.9M t CO₂e/yr (Scope 1), ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery carries €148M/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 ≈37k t–93k t/yr, worth €3.0M€7.4M, with payback up to 2 years.

1.9M t CO₂e / yrScope 1 emissions
€148M/yrcarbon value · full EU ETS price
37k t–93k t/yr ≈ €3.0M€7.4MDecarbonization 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 Netherlands

Shell Pernis Refinery: 447,000 BBL per day447kShell Pern…ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery: 192,000 BBL per day192kExxonMobil…Total Lukoil Zeeland Refinery: 155,000 BBL per day155kTotal Luko…Vitol Processing Rotterdam Refinery: 120,000 BBL per day120kVitol Proc…

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

Operator

Operated by Exxon Mobil Corp. All facilities by this operator →

Local climate

ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery sits in a temperate oceanic climate zone (Köppen Cfb), at 51.9°N in the northern hemisphere.

~11°Ctypical annual mean
~18°Ctypical warm-season
Temperate oceanic: 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 humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
32/100environmental-severity index
14.1°Cseasonal temperature swing
41 kmdistance to coast
HighCUI risk tier

In this site’s local climate, a bare 150 °C surface sheds about 1401 W/m² to ambient — roughly 1.08× the loss at a 20 °C reference; removable insulation recovers about 1331 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 #2 largest of 4 oil refineries in Netherlands by listed capacity (Climate TRACE).

Nearby industrial sites

Location

Coordinates 51.8762, 4.29. View on OpenStreetMap. Location shown at industrial-zone / municipality precision (shared source geocode).

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 55,000 MWh/year of recoverable heat-loss reduction and about 11,000 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.

Netherlands: funding & obligation

Funding. Deduct 40% of qualifying Energy-List investment from taxable profit; 2026 budget EUR 460M; min EUR 2,500/asset. official source · verified 2026

Obligation. Large enterprises (>250 staff or >EUR 50M turnover / >EUR 43M balance) must audit every 4 yrs. (applies as a rule above the stated threshold — we do not hold this site's metered energy use). official source · verified 2026

Programme terms verified 2026-06-18; confirm the current open phase before applying. Eligibility depends on a site's energy use / headcount, which we do not hold — not a per-facility eligibility determination.

Frequently asked questions

What type of facility is ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery?

ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery is a refinery in Netherlands. 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 ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery?

The open dataset lists 192,000 BBL per day of capacity for ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery.

How much CO₂ does ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery emit?

The page uses about 1,859,980 t CO₂e/year from the open dataset It ranks #6 among facilities in Netherlands by estimated CO₂.

Where is ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery located?

ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery is in Netherlands at approximately 51.8762, 4.29.

Who operates ExxonMobil Botlek Rotterdam Refinery?

The operator recorded in the open dataset is Exxon Mobil Corp.

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