Thermal Equipment and Heat Recovery for the Oil & Gas Industry

In refineries, petrochemical plants, and oil and gas facilities, thermal optimization directly affects the refining margin, the carbon footprint, and the overall availability of process units. The operation of critical units—such as atmospheric and vacuum distillation, hydrocracking, catalytic reforming, and sulfur units—requires heat exchange systems designed to meet the industry’s most stringent safety and reliability standards.

AITESA designs, manufactures, and integrates high-performance heat transfer solutions for the Oil & Gas industry: heat recovery steam generators (HRSG / WHRB), process furnaces, combustion air preheaters (APH), air-cooled heat exchangers, and air-cooled condensers (API 661), shell-and-tube heat exchangers (Shell & Tube / TEMA) and electric boilers for the electrification and hybridization of refineries.

Our solutions enable the capture of waste heat from process gas streams and combustion flue gases, maximizing enthalpy recovery, reducing fuel consumption in burners, and ensuring seamless integration during scheduled unit shutdowns.

Are you considering a thermal solution for an Oil & Gas facility? Tell us about the equipment involved or the operating conditions.

Challenges Facing Oil & Gas Plants

Thermal engineering applied to the oil and gas industry goes beyond conventional design. Facilities are subject to extremely stringent operational and regulatory requirements:

Strict compliance with API and ASME standards: The thermal and mechanical design must be 100% compliant with international standards such as API 560 (process furnaces), API 661 (air coolers), API 660 / TEMA Class R (shell-and-tube heat exchangers), and ASME Sec. VIII Div. 1 & 2 for pressure vessels.
Hazardous currents, high pressure, and special alloys: Handling of volatile hydrocarbons, H₂S, high-pressure hydrogen, among others. This requires advanced material selection (Cr-Mo alloy steels, austenitic Duplex/Superduplex stainless steels, Inconel, titanium) and exhaustive non-destructive testing (NDT).

Pressure Drop Optimization () and hydraulic integration: Designs for APH systems or recovery batteries that minimize resistance to the flow of gases and process fluids so as not to restrict the capacity of the refinery’s pumps or induced draft fans.

Work at Refinery Shutdowns: Projects for revamping or module replacement projects where installation windows are extremely tight and lifting operations in established plants require rigorous integration engineering planning.

AITESA provides services ranging from conceptual and basic detailed engineering to the supply of modular equipment, revamping or turnkey (EPC) implementation. We analyze the unit’s overall thermal integration to ensure the equipment’s reliability without creating operational bottlenecks.

Why Choose AITESA for Oil & Gas?

With more than 40 years of continuous experience in projects for refineries, petrochemical complexes, and harsh process industries, AITESA offers distinctive technical value:

Comprehensive mastery of refining standards: Proven ability to design and manufacture to demanding corporate specifications

Specialists in Revamping of Furnaces and APHs: Redesign and integration of new heat recovery systems (economizers, combustion air preheaters, tube bundles) into existing furnace or boiler structures.

EPC Capability and Reduction of Interface Risk: By taking on unified management (thermodynamic calculations, mechanical design, in-house manufacturing, mechanical/hydrostatic testing, assembly, and hoisting), we eliminate friction between subcontractors and ensure safe commissioning.

AITESA has participated in projects involving heat recovery, process furnaces, and thermal equipment for refineries, petrochemical plants, and oil and gas facilities in various industrial settings.

Success stories

EPC heat recovery boiler at FCC

The FCC heat recovery project carried out by AITESA consists of a turnkey project (engineering, design, manufacturing, supply and installation) to improve the annual efficiency and availability of the boiler.

EPC furnaces at CDU and VDU

AITESA carried out a project in Peru that consisted of replacing two crude oil furnaces with a new one to increase energy efficiency in the CDU and VDU units.

EPC furnaces with heat recovery

AITESA has played a crucial role in the development of Spain’s first advanced biofuels plant, built by REPSOL in Cartagena.

AITESA was responsible for the design, manufacture, and installation of the process furnaces and heat recovery systems, contributing significantly to the plant’s efficiency and sustainability.

MEG and TEG air coolers for the Midia Gas Development Project in the Black Sea

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In 2019, AITESA actively participated in the development of a natural gas treatment plant located in the Black Sea, within the framework of the Midia Gas Development Project. This strategic…

Do you need to improve thermal efficiency or modernize critical equipment at an oil and gas facility?

Please briefly describe your needs or the equipment involved. Our technical team will review the initial information and guide you toward the most appropriate solution.