(Updates with Shell's Heide, Gothenburg)
LONDON, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Many European oil and chemical firms have been looking to sell domestic refineries since last year as demand for fuels and petrochemical products has fallen more sharply in Europe than elsewhere, hitting profit margins.
At least 10 refineries are looking for buyers, and five of them are based in Britain.
Some Asian oil companies see European refineries as strategic to expand their global business.
But talks have been delayed. None of the refineries that have been offered and that were intended to be sold earlier this year has finalised a deal.
Following are the refineries around Europe that have been sold or are up for sale:
SHELL - GOTHENBURG, HEIDE, HARBURG, STANLOW
* Royal Dutch Shell and Finland's St1 have entered exclusive talks over the sale of the oil major's Gothenburg refinery in Sweden.
* It has a capacity to process about 78,000 bpd, mostly light, sweet North Sea crude. It primarily supplies local markets with such products as NK1, or a special type of diesel that does not freeze in extremely cold Scandinavian weather.
* Late in August, Shell reached an agreement with Klesch & Co, owned by billionaire Gary Klesch, to sell its Heide refinery in Germany.
* Heide can process 4.5 million tonnes a year (93,000 bpd). It is an integrated, petrochemical oriented plant.
* Previously, India's Essar Oil was looking to buy Heide, German refinery Harburg and UK refinery Stanlow, but it lost exclusivity in April.
* Shell said it was still in talks with Essar for other refinery sales.
* Harburg has a capacity to process 5.2 million tonnes of crude oil a year (roughly 110,000 bpd). It is moderately complex and its key units are a catalytic cracker for gasoline making and lubricant systems.
* Stanlow has a capacity to process 267,000 bpd.
PETROPLUS - REICHSTETT
* Swiss-based independent refiner Petroplus on Wednesday said that it was considering all options for Reichstett refinery in France, including a sale or partial shutdown and the final decision would be made by fall.
* The company estimates the value of the refinery at $175 million.
* Reichstett is an inland refinery with a complexity of 5.3, which shows the plant is simple. It has a capacity to process 85,000 barrels of crude oil per day. It started operation in 1963, the company website shows.
* Petroplus bought the plant in 2008.
TOTAL - LINDSEY
* French major Total is looking to sell the 221,000 barrels per day refinery, Britain's third-largest refinery, which began operation in 1968 and employs about 500 people.
* In May, Total said it had received several bids and would hope to reach a deal after the summer.
* Swiss refiner Petroplus said it had proposed buying it. Petroplus said earlier this year, "We are still looking at this opportunity."
* A relatively simple refinery, with an undersized gasoline-making catalytic cracking unit relative to its crude processing capacity. Has high middle distillate yield.
* The plant can process 40 different types of crude oil, while North Sea crude accounts for 85-95 percent of its crude oil slate, according to the corporate website.
* Total invested 200 million pounds ($303.1 million) in the HDS-3, or hydrodesulphurisation unit, to make ultra low sulphur diesel.
* The construction had been planned to complete in spring 2010. But works have been suspended following a fire in late June.
MURPHY - MILFORD HAVEN
* U.S. oil firm Murphy Oil Corp said it would sell its three refineries, including the Milford Haven plant in Britain, to focus on oil and gas exploration and its U.S. retail business.
* Milford Haven started operation in 1973. After debottlenecking works early in 2010, it can process about 130,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
* Its complexity is moderate, with a well balanced yield of light products and middle distillates.
* In 2007, Murphy's UK subsidiary, Murco Petroleum, bought a 70 percent stake from France's Total to become the 100 percent owner. The value of the deal was about $256 million.
CONOCOPHILLIPS - WILHELMSHAVEN
* U.S. oil major ConocoPhillips is considering either selling its Wilhelmshaven refinery or turning it into a terminal. It cancelled a plan to upgrade the refinery.
* Built by Mobil Oil between 1973 and 1976, it is a simple refinery and can process about 260,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
* ConocoPhillips bought the plant from Louis Dreyfus in 2005.
* Shut since October 2009. Caught fire in May, in process of restarting.
CHEVRON - PEMBROKE
* U.S. major Chevron said it would sell the 210,000 bpd plant in Wales.
* The plant came on stream in 1964.
INEOS - GRANGEMOUTH
* Located in Scotland, the plant processes about 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
* Current operator British chemicals maker Ineos bought the plant from BP in 2005.
* Chinese oil firm PetroChina is in talks to invest in the Grangemouth refinery.
* Grangemouth is a moderately complex refinery equipped with both hydrocracking and catalytic cracking systems, giving it flexibility to produce gasoline and middle distillates, such as diesel, according to market demand.
* The plant is connected to the North Sea Forties pipeline, which delivers about 650,000-700,000 bpd of crude oil, roughly half of the UK's daily production.
* Morgan Stanley has a deal with Ineos for product marketing and some crude oil purchase. (Reporting by Ikuko Kurahone)