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Isla Oil Refinery

Refinery in Curaçao. Approximate location 12.13419, -68.93337.

RefineryCuraçao

Isla Oil Refinery is a refinery in Curaçao. Its listed capacity is 335,000 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 Refineria di Korsou NV.

335,000BBL per day

Facility data: Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0), id ct-1753946.

Data status

Known source data

FacilityIsla Oil Refinery Climate TRACE
CountryCuraçao Climate TRACE
Coordinates12.13419, -68.93337 Climate TRACE
Sector / subsectoroil-and-gas-refining Climate TRACE
Reported capacity335,000 BBL per day Climate TRACE
Owner / operatorRefineria di Korsou NV Climate TRACE

Calculated from the dataset

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.

In context: how this facility compares

At 335,000 BBL per day, Isla Oil Refinery is around the median refinery in Curaçao (335,000 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.

Operator

Operated by Refineria di Korsou NV.

Local climate

Isla Oil Refinery sits in a tropical savanna climate zone (Köppen Aw), at 12.1°N in the northern hemisphere.

~26°Ctypical annual mean
~29°Ctypical warm-season
Tropical savanna: warm all year, with distinct wet and dry seasons

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 an aggressive, high-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C5 — Very high), with marine salt corrosion the leading environmental stress.

C5ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
46/100environmental-severity index
2.7°Cseasonal temperature swing
23 kmdistance to coast
Very highCUI risk tier

In this site’s local climate, a bare 150 °C surface sheds about 1269 W/m² to ambient — roughly 0.98× the loss at a 20 °C reference; removable insulation recovers about 1206 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

Nearby industrial sites

Location

Coordinates 12.13419, -68.93337. 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 54,000 MWh/year of recoverable heat-loss reduction and about 11,000 t CO₂e/year of avoided emissions. Indicative range based on typical exposed hot equipment for this sector.

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.

External climate finance your country can access

For energy-efficiency projects around process heat, likely external funding channels include:

Sources: country climate-finance facilities and public development-bank programmes.

Frequently asked questions

What type of facility is Isla Oil Refinery?

Isla Oil Refinery is a refinery in Curaçao. 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 Isla Oil Refinery?

The open dataset lists 335,000 BBL per day of capacity for Isla Oil Refinery.

Where is Isla Oil Refinery located?

Isla Oil Refinery is in Curaçao at approximately 12.13419, -68.93337.

Who operates Isla Oil Refinery?

The operator recorded in the open dataset is Refineria di Korsou NV.

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