Royal Dutch Shell (Shell) is determined to rejuvenate its gas to liquid (GTL) plant in Bintulu to ensure that the plant continues producing innovative products.
Shell Singapore vice president of Integrated Gas Ventures East, Ate Visser outlined that Shell has approved of a US$15 million (or RM48.36 million) rejuvenation investment for the 20-year old GTL plant in Bintulu, alternatively known as Shell Middle Distillate Synthesis Malaysia Sdn Bhd (Shell MDS).
He further said the rejuvenation of the plant is also “to decrease liability and enable further product development”.
“Most of it (the rejuvenation) will be executed in 2015, during the turnaround. Some of it will have to wait for the turnaround in 2019,” he said during Shell’s first Southeast Asia Innovation Summit here.
Ate, who is also the managing director and chief executive officer of Shell MDS, reiterated that Shell is committed to ensure that its Bintulu GTL plant, the world’s first commercial GTL plant, continues to ‘stay in business’.
He earlier noted that currently, the total capital investments is US$1.3 billion for its GTL plant in Bintulu with US$200 million invested on research facilities.
Approximately 95 per cent of Shell MDS’ products are exported worldwide. To note, Shell MDS plant is the culmination of over 30 years of research and development of the utilisation of alternative raw materials for the production of fuels and specialty chemicals.
According to Shell, the plant’s technology converts natural gas to long chain paraffins which are subsequently either hydrocracked to produce middle distillates or fractionated to produce chemical feedstocks and waxes.
The use of non-associated natural gas as feedstock and the high selectivity of the conversion process ensure a consistency of quality unmatched by equivalent products derived from crude oil.
Shell Singapore vice president of Integrated Gas Ventures East, Ate Visser outlined that Shell has approved of a US$15 million (or RM48.36 million) rejuvenation investment for the 20-year old GTL plant in Bintulu, alternatively known as Shell Middle Distillate Synthesis Malaysia Sdn Bhd (Shell MDS).
He further said the rejuvenation of the plant is also “to decrease liability and enable further product development”.
“Most of it (the rejuvenation) will be executed in 2015, during the turnaround. Some of it will have to wait for the turnaround in 2019,” he said during Shell’s first Southeast Asia Innovation Summit here.
Ate, who is also the managing director and chief executive officer of Shell MDS, reiterated that Shell is committed to ensure that its Bintulu GTL plant, the world’s first commercial GTL plant, continues to ‘stay in business’.
He earlier noted that currently, the total capital investments is US$1.3 billion for its GTL plant in Bintulu with US$200 million invested on research facilities.
Approximately 95 per cent of Shell MDS’ products are exported worldwide. To note, Shell MDS plant is the culmination of over 30 years of research and development of the utilisation of alternative raw materials for the production of fuels and specialty chemicals.
According to Shell, the plant’s technology converts natural gas to long chain paraffins which are subsequently either hydrocracked to produce middle distillates or fractionated to produce chemical feedstocks and waxes.
The use of non-associated natural gas as feedstock and the high selectivity of the conversion process ensure a consistency of quality unmatched by equivalent products derived from crude oil.
Source: Borneo Post
