(Adds details, background)
HOUSTON, Sept 18 (Reuters) - BP Plc began a planned
overhaul on Wednesday of the small gasoline-producing fluidic
catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) at its 430,000 barrel-per-day
(bpd) Whiting, Indiana, refinery, said sources familiar with
plant operations.
BP is continuing to increase production levels on the large
crude distillation unit (CDU) at the refinery on Wednesday, but
will not run the 240,000 Pipestill 12 CDU at full capacity,
while the 65,000 bpd FCCU 600 is shut for the overhaul, the
sources said.
FCCU 600 is expected to be shut for about a month to
complete the overhaul, according to the sources.
Production was cut on Pipestill 12 on Tuesday because of a
malfunction.
Pipestill 12 is the largest of three CDUs doing the primary
breakdown of crude oil into hydrocarbon feedstocks for all other
production units at the refinery.
(Reporting by Erwin Seba in Houston
Editing by Matthew Lewis)