Schwedt oil refinery | Credit: Intellinews Pro (Mar 2022)
The PCK Schwedt Refinery is a major oil refining complex located in Schwedt/Oder, Brandenburg, Germany about 120 km northeast of Berlin, with a crude oil processing capacity of approximately 220,000-b/d.
Feedstock and Infrastructure
Historically, the refinery received crude oil primarily through the Druzhba pipeline from Russia, in which PCK Raffinerie holds a 45% stake in the German section. The company also owns crude oil tank farm facilities and a pier at the oil port in Rostock, connected to the refinery via pipeline infrastructure.
Germany halted Russian oil imports in February 2022, and the refinery now operates with non-Russian crude. The refinery currently receives crude oil primarily from Kazakhstan via the Druzhba pipeline, which continues to transit through Russia. Germany has secured contracts with Kazakhstan for monthly supplies of 100,000 tonnes until the end of 2025, with additional agreements for up to 50,000 tonnes per month. Between January and September 2025, approximately 1.5 million tonnes of Kazakh oil were delivered to Schwedt. Rosneft Germany reported importing approximately 120,000 tonnes of Kazakh crude monthly through this route.
Beyond Kazakh crude via Druzhba, the refinery can import seaborne crude through the port of Rostock, with current capacity of 5-7 million tonnes per year (equivalent to 48-60% refinery utilization). Germany has invested €400 million to upgrade the pipeline connection from Rostock, which could potentially increase capacity to 9 million tonnes per year. Additional supplies can be sourced through the Polish port of Gdansk, adding 2-3 million tonnes per year.
Technologies and Licensors
The refinery operates as a residue-free facility, converting final crude oil components that cannot be used otherwise into electrical energy through its combined heat and power plant. The major processing units include:
- Atmospheric distillation (CDU): 11.48 Mtpa capacity - Technology by Uhde (now Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions)
- Vacuum distillation (VDU): 6.3 Mtpa capacity - Technology by Uhde (now Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions)
- Catalytic cracking (FCC): 3 Mtpa capacity - Process engineering by UOP, with multiple revamps between 2007-2017 including reactor replacement, regenerator replacement, and main column replacement by EDL/Pörner Group
- Visbreaking: 1.84 Mtpa capacity - Shell Soaker Visbreaking technology jointly licensed by Shell and Lummus Technologies
- Catalytic reformer: 1.53 Mtpa capacity - Licensor not specified in sources
- Isomerization: 575,000 tpa capacity - Technology by Uhde (now Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions)
- Alkylation: 420,000 tpa capacity
- Ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE): 96,000 tpa capacity - Etherification of naphtha with bio-ethanol licensed by Neste Jacobs Oy, completed in 2006 as LSTK project
- MTBE unit: Capacity not specified - Technology by Uhde (now Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions), EPCM project completed 1993-2005
The refinery underwent major modernization between 1992 and 2006 with investments totaling 2.5 billion euros over 20 years, primarily focused on implementing efficient technologies and environmental protection systems.
The integrated power plant generates 334 MW using steam turbines fired with heavy fuel oil, providing both electricity and district heating to the city of Schwedt, with flue gas cleaning systems that eliminate more than 90% of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and dust.
Operational Status
After operating at only 50-60% capacity in 2023 following the cessation of Russian supplies, the refinery recovered to approximately 80% capacity by mid-2024. As of December 2025, discussions between Russia and Kazakhstan regarding the potential sale of Rosneft's stake in the refinery continue, which could facilitate direct Kazakh crude supply arrangements.
References
- PCK Oil Refinery (Jul 15, 2021). NS Energy
- Press Release: Rosneft acquires 37.5% share in German PCK refinery (Nov 17, 2021). Rosneft
- Company. PCK
- Rinke A. Schwedt refinery hits 80% capacity despite ownership doubts (Jul 8, 2024). Reuters
- References: Refining. thyssenkrupp
- Companies: PCK. Chemical Parks in Europe
- Schwedt Refinery power station (page last edited on Dec 10 2025). Global Energy Monitor Wiki
- EDL Company Profile 2015. Pörner
- Technical Information Package for Shell Thermal Conversion Technologies - Proposal No. 3-3676. visbreaking.tripod
- Oil flows to Germany via damaged Druzhba pipeline to normalise, Rosneft Germany says (Sep 4, 2025). Reuters
- Germany to increase Kazakh crude oil imports, won't circumvent Russia sanctions (Sep 16, 2024). Hydrocarbon Processing
- Gupte E. et al. Germany broadens crude import horizons as Russian flows dry up (Sep 21, 2022). S&P Global
- Germany Increases Imports of Kazakh Oil Amid Shift Away from Russian Supplies (Nov 5, 2025). The Times of Central Asia
- Russia, Kazakhstan discuss sale of Rosneft's stake in German refinery, pumping more oil via CPC, transit to third countries (Nov 28, 2024). interfax
