To meet project challenges, Fluor increased the size of the Madrid Office from 40 to over 700 professionals, primarily to support this important project.
Supplementing the local hires, a truly international taskforce was assembled with representatives from several Fluor offices. An additional team of 100 engineers supported the project efforts from the Gliwice Office.
Since most of Fluor´s knowledge networks operate in English, and all Client standards and required deliverables were in Spanish, bilingual communications were necessary, and 85 percent of the project taskforce in Madrid was fluent in both languages.
Fluor assisted Repsol in attaining the environmental permit in March 2008 and managed permitting activities for the project, which required a thorough understanding of local codes and regulations. The new refinery borders an environmentally sensitive area and the preservation of indigenous flora and fauna has been a concern. Furthermore, to minimize re-grading the naturally sloping terrain of the Escombreras Valley, the site features several terraces, varying in height from 35.5 meters above sea level for the Hydrocracker Unit to 22.5 meters for the Sulfur Handling area, which created unique challenges in design and construction.