ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the major changes currently occurring in the world refining industry. Though a plethora of heavy fuel-upgrading technologies is available today, five generic processes are particularly important to the modem refining industry: catalytic cracking, distillate hydrocracking, coking, visbreaking, and residuum hydrocracking. In any case, wittingly or unwittingly the growth of the refining industry in the developed nations enhanced its independence from oil-producing governments. The nations of Eastern Europe, somewhat insulated from the shocks to the market by their relationship with the Soviet Union, pushed ahead with expansions in a relatively confident fashion. In the United States, price controls and the entitlement system, featuring its "small refiners' bias" clause, allowed the refining industry to continue expanding in a way that was largely unrelated to world market conditions. Kuwait's refining industry consists of three plants: Shuaiba, Mina Abdulla, and Mina Al-Ahmadi. Shuaiba is a sophisticated plant by anyone's standards.
