12 workers injured as blast at Tüpraş facility triggers fire

KOCAELİ

Emergency teams on Nov. 5 brought blazes under control at a facility of oil refinery Tüpraş in the northwestern province of Kocaeli after an explosion sparked a fire, with 12 workers slighlty injured.

The incident took place around 1:30 a.m. at Tüpraş’s İzmit facility during a scheduled drill.

“A planned drill was underway at Tüpraş and all local institutions were informed. An incident that arose during the drill has now been brought under control. There is no cause for alarm,” Kocaeli Mayor Tahir Büyükakın stated.

The injured workers were transferred to a nearby hospital, the company said in a statement.

The fire occurred during compressor maintenance work, it added.

Local media reported that residents heard a loud explosion and observed dense clouds rising from the facility. Some reports noted that nearby residents left their homes in a state of alarm.

Upon notification, a significant number of firefighting units were dispatched to the scene, where the fire was quickly brought under control. The exact section of the refinery affected remains unidentified.

In response to the incident, Tüpraş shares traded on Borsa Istanbul were temporarily suspended, pending an official statement from the company.

After the explosion, Tüpraş shares experienced a decline, falling 1.89 percent on the day to trade at 139.90 TL prior to the suspension.

Tüpraş, which operates refineries in Kocaeli, the western province of İzmir, the central city of Kırıkkale and the southeastern province of Batman, with a total annual crude oil processing capacity of 30 million tons, stands as Türkiye’s largest industrial company and pivotal energy sector player.

It ranks as Europe’s seventh-largest refinery and is among the most complex in the Mediterranean region.