Essar Selects Technology Partner For UK Industrial Carbon Capture Facility

Essar Oil UK on Friday announced the selection of a second key licensor technology provider, Denmark-based Topsoe, for setting up an industrial carbon capture facility as part of its planned energy transition project at Stanlow, UK.

Topsoe will provide its sustainable flue-gas treatment technology SNOXTM, the company said in a statement.

"This is a pivotal step towards Essar Oil UK's USD 1.2 billion investment in decarbonising the refinery by reducing about 2 million tons of CO2 emissions, making it the world's first low carbon refinery and a producer of low carbon fuels," it said.

Essar had earlier this year created a new entity to drive low carbon projects in the UK and India over the next five years. Essar Energy Transition (EET), the new unit, would invest across its site at Stanlow, between Liverpool and Manchester and in India for developing low carbon energy transition projects.

Deepak Maheshwari, CEO of Essar Oil UK, said, "We are ready to move into the next phase of Essar Oil UK's decarbonisation strategy. With an investment of USD 1.2 billion, Essar Oil UK is positioned to be the world's first low carbon refinery. The industrial carbon capture facility, combined with our upcoming hydrogen fuel switching project, will reduce the refinery's CO2 emissions by 95 per cent".

Topsoe, he said, is a valuable partner in this endeavour. "With Topsoe SNOX technology, we are getting a well proven and highly sustainable flue-gas treatment."

The company said its overall decarbonisation strategy plans to reduce refinery emissions with two projects - industrial carbon capture (ICC) at Stanlow which aims to be operational by 2028, and hydrogen fuel switching from natural gas to hydrogen as fuel source.

The projects will result in annual emissions reduction of about 1 million tons of CO2 each.

"This puts Essar Oil UK at the forefront of the UK's energy transition by producing the UK's first low carbon fuels, securing the refinery's vital ongoing role in UK energy security and resilience," the statement said.

With the selection of Topsoe and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Essar Oil UK has identified most of its technology partners and is ready to progress to the front-end engineering design (FEED) phase of the project. Development of the basic engineering design packages (BEDP) for the licensed technologies is already ongoing.

Elena Scaltritti, CCO at Topsoe, said, "We are thrilled to have been chosen as technology licensor for Essar Oil UK and support them in meeting their decarbonisation targets. The agreement represents a landmark step for Topsoe's development in the United Kingdom, and we look forward to working with Essar on this important project, which is a great example of how the fossil industry can decarbonise itself."