CAPITAL: Brussels
MONETARY UNIT: Franc
REFINING CAPACITY: 714,750 b/cd
OIL PRODUCTION: 0
OIL RESERVES: 0
GAS RESERVES: 0
The International Energy Agency urged Belgium to further open its electricity and gas distribution sectors to competition.
An IEA report praised Belgium for developing its nuclear industry, which filled 55% of electricity demand, and for diversifying its gas supply sources.
It said holding company Tractebel had major interests in electricity generator and distributor Electrabel and gas distributor Distrigas, both of which had effective monopolies in their respective sectors.
It said Electrabel had signed long-term electricity supply deals, known as "mixed intercommunals," with local authorities. Under them, the communities agreed to buy electricity solely from Electrabel for 15 years.
IEA said the long duration of the deals impeded competition by preventing other suppliers from selling gas and electricity to the towns.
It also said a 1989 law giving the country`s three regions-Flanders, Wallonia, and Brussels-a large amount of autonomy had resulted in uncoordinated energy policies.
Processing activity
Antwerp Distribution & Product Operations NV (ADPO) bought Ethyl Corp.`s Ethyl Additives unit, which operated a lubricants manufacturing and blending plant at Ghent.
Ethyl had acquired the Ghent plant as part of Texaco Inc.`s worldwide lubricants additives business in 1996. ADPO planned to continue to provide additives to Ethyl from the Ghent unit.
PetroFina SA and Solvay SA agreed to build two 250,000 metric ton high-density polyethylene plants in Belgium.
The first, to be built, owned, and operated by Solvay, was scheduled to come on line by 2002. The second, to be built and operated by PetroFina, was scheduled to start up by 2005.
Amoco Corp. expanded production at a plant in Geel to produce purified terepthalic acid. PTA output was expanded from 350,000 tons/year to 850,000.
It also boosted polypropylene production from 410,000 tons/year to 490,000 by debottlenecking.
Mobil Corp. cut production at its Ghent lubricants plant to 50,000 tons/year from 127,000 tons. Mobil plants in Gravenchon, France, and Pernis, Netherlands, were to increase output.
British Petroleum Co. plc sold its Belgian retail business to Kuwait Petroleum Corp. The network consisted of 157 service stations.
PetroFina SA and Electrabel agreed to jointly build a combined heat and power generation unit at Fina`s 288,000 Antwerp refinery.
It would have capacity to generate 126 MW of electric power and 165 tons/hr of steam from natural gas. Completion was due in late 1999.
