MOSCOW (MRC) -- The downstream oil and gas industry is under intense pressure to improve efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, comply with strict environmental regulations, and demonstrate that it can be part of a sustainable future. At the same time, plant operators face the ever-present challenge of lowering costs and maintaining profitable operations. To help the industry meet these demands, Siemens Energy and Linde Engineering have entered into a strategic partnership, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.
As part of the collaboration agreement, the two companies will leverage their complementary portfolios and competencies to investigate, develop, and optimize technology and equipment packages to enhance the sustainability and performance of petrochemical facilities (brownfields and greenfields).
The companies will jointly conduct studies that explore how Siemens Energy’s and Linde Engineering’s technologies can be combined to facilitate the decarbonization of petrochemical plants through emissions reductions and increases in energy efficiency - for example, by optimizing the consumption of power and steam.
Particular areas that will be evaluated include, but are not limited to, the use of Siemens Energy’s products, including gas turbines, steam turbines, compressors, and generators with Linde Engineering’s steam cracker technology and related processes for olefin production, purification, and separation. The companies will also explore how renewable technologies and energy storage can be leveraged to support customers’ decarbonization initiatives. Other key performance areas that will be targeted for improvement include plant availability and uptime, maintenance, OPEX and CAPEX, and regulatory compliance.
“The core competencies and technology portfolios of Siemens Energy and Linde Engineering are highly complementary,” said Thorbjoern Fors, executive vice president for Siemens Energy Industrial Applications. “Our experience in designing and building low-emissions energy systems, coupled with Linde Engineering’s expertise in steam cracker technology and other downstream processes, will enable us to unlock tremendous value for petrochemical customers, who are under intense pressure to reduce costs and decarbonize.”
“The partnership builds on the longstanding and trustful business relationship that Siemens and Linde Engineering have maintained for decades,” said John van der Velden, senior vice president Global Sales & Technology at Linde Engineering. “It represents a key step in helping the industry drive toward a more sustainable, profitable future and in offering our customers a more efficient solution for ethylene production.”
As MRC informed earlier, in late October, 2020, Siemens Smart Infrastructure and WUN H2 GmbH signed a contract to build one of the largest hydrogen production plants in Germany. It will be built in Wunsiedel in the north of Bavaria. With a power intake of six megawatts in the initial development phase, the plant will run solely on renewable energy and will be CO2-free. The electrolysis plant from Siemens Energy will have the capacity to produce over 900 tons of hydrogen per year in this first phase. When fully expanded, it will be able to supply up to 2,000 tons. Groundbreaking is scheduled for the end of this year and commissioning at the end of 2021.
We remind that in mid-October, 2020, Linde GmbH and Shell announced an exclusive collaboration agreement on ethane-oxidative dehydrogenation (E-ODH) technology for ethylene production. The catalytic process is an alternative route to ethane steam cracking, offering the potential of economic advantages, acetic acid co-production and significantly lower overall carbon footprint through electrification of power input.
Ethylene is the main feedstock for the production of polyethylene (PE).
According to MRC"s ScanPlast report, Russia"s estimated PE consumption totalled 1,594,510 tonnes in the first nine months of 2020, up by 1% year on year. Only high denstiy polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased.
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