I heard that oil refineries abroad are very advanced – just a few people work in each refinery. Is that true?

A few people are exaggerating a bit, but the number is indeed low! The key is that the equipment has a high degree of automation.

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This post was last edited by qugd on 2015-9-30 20:07. What categories do foreign countries also fall into? The refineries in North Africa have a large workforce, and the refineries in Venezuela also have many workers. Some refineries that possess advanced refining and management technologies have a small number of employees, but it’s not so few either; that’s nonsense. There is a relatively specific indicator, though not absolute, for assessing the advanced level of control and management in a refinery: it is calculated based on the amount of crude oil processed per person. Generally, a value of over 20,000 tons per person indicates an advanced level of management. When counting the number of employees in a large refinery, it is not sufficient to consider only those who directly control and manage production within the facilities; those who provide necessary support and services must also be taken into account. In China, refineries with a capacity of over 10,000 tons per person are considered advanced.

Reply to 4# qugd: That means a refinery with a capacity of 5 million tons would require 500 employees, while one with a capacity of 10 million tons would need 1,000 employees. In China, this is considered advanced. But now refineries also have to handle chemical processing tasks, so such a small number of employees is indeed insufficient

Reply to 4# qugd: We are still far from these figures, oh:L

We have 2 million tons, with 1,000 employees currently; this works out to 2,000 tons per person. That’s one-fifth of the level considered advanced, so it’s one-fifth as advanced! :)

Reply to 7# Trace elements: It can’t be calculated that way entirely. If it’s at the pilot scale, with 180 tons produced per year, dozens of people would be needed, which means a few barrels of oil per person. Countries have different circumstances; we need stable employment. Foreign capitalists are all selfish, and aren’t Chinese enterprise workers considered to be the owners of those enterprises? The more, the better.

In fact, there are also a very small number of factories in China that have a high level of automation

Foreign refineries should have a high level of technical sophistication

I envy state-owned enterprises like yours; in my factory, all the processing units – which operate on a 4-shift system and include units for delayed coking, vacuum distillation and viscosity reduction, catalytic processes, tank areas, desulfurization, and wastewater treatment – along with the management staff, total fewer than 500 people. There is at most one person for each position; in some cases, there are no people assigned to certain positions at all. As a result, one person has to handle two positions. The work is exhausting, the salary is low, and the benefits are poor. The working conditions aren’t any better than those in state-owned enterprises – it’s heartbreaking!