Patent ID: 7244350

Claim:
A process to prepare a hydrocarbon product having a desired sulphur content, which the desired sulphur content is a specified value lower than 0.05 wt %, which process comprises the steps of: (a) blending at least two high-sulphur hydrocarbon feedstocks, wherein each of the at least two high-sulphur hydrocarbon feedstocks contains sulphur in an amount above 0.05 wt %, to form a blended feed mixture having a blended feed sulphur content; (b) reducing the blended feed sulphur content of the blended feed mixture by operation and use of a hydrodesulphurisation (HDS) unit to yield an effluent having a hydrotreated sulphur content; (c) mixing the effluent with a low-sulphur hydrocarbon feedstock having a low-sulphur content that is below 0.5 wt % to obtain a hydrocarbon fraction, having a reduced sulphur content, and determining the reduced sulphur content of the hydrocarbon fraction; and (d) comparing the reduced sulphur content as determined in step (c) with the desired sulphur content for the hydrocarbon product to provide a differential value and adjusting the process in response to the differential value in order to provide the hydrocarbon fraction having the reduced sulphur content that is close or equal to the desired sulphur content wherein the process is adjusted by integrated control of the blending in step (a) and of the HDS unit operation in step (b) to thereby provide the hydrocarbon fraction that is suitable as the hydrocarbon product.