Project ONE : The greenest cracker in Europe
INEOS Olefins &
Polymers Europe has secured EUR 3.5 billion in financing to build the most environmentally sustainable cracker in Europe .
By Joanne McIntyre , Valve World
Project ONE is the largest investment in the European chemical sector for a generation . The new ethylene cracker , to be located in Antwerp , Belgium , will have the lowest carbon footprint of all European crackers , five times better than the worst in Europe and two times better than the best . The plant will have the capability of operating entirely with low-carbon hydrogen , as well as room for a carbon capture facility and future electric furnaces . As soon as enough green hydrogen becomes available , the cracker will have a zero carbon footprint . Jason Meers , CFO INEOS Project ONE stated : “ This is an incredibly important moment for INEOS . Our ethane cracker will set new environmental standards for Europe as well as help revitalise the whole of the European chemical industry .”
Largest investment for a generation
Project ONE is the largest investment in the European chemical sector for a generation . The plant will have the lowest carbon footprint in Europe , three times lower than the average European steam cracker , and less than half that of the 10 % best performers in Europe . “ Project ONE is a game changer for Europe . It will bring new opportunities to the chemical cluster in Antwerp as well as strengthen the resilience of the whole of the European chemical sector ,” explains Mr Meers . Supported by 21 commercial banks , the deal validates the strong commercial rationale of the project and its leading environmental characteristics . The debt will be drawn in stages to support the spend profile of the project through to completion . It comprises EUR1.5 billion of uncovered debt , EUR 1.2 billion of covered facilities from export credit agencies UKEF , Cesce and SACE ; and an EUR 800 million covered tranche of which up to EUR 500 million is guaranteed by Gigarant ( a vehicle of the Flemish Government that provides loan guarantees ).
The INEOS manufacturing site in Antwerp , Belgium .
Meers continued : “ We are thrilled to reach this milestone and secure this funding . Bringing together such a large number of environmentally focused commercial banks alongside four governmental agencies demonstrates the huge importance of the project .” Project ONE is part of a EUR 4 billion investment plan for the Port of Antwerp . The cracker will produce ethylene , a vital raw material for a wide range of products essential to our daily lives . These range from insulation to lightweight vehicles , plastics for medical , healthcare and food hygiene , as well as technology for renewable energy .
What is ethylene ?
Ethylene is a basic building block in the chemical industry and a primary link between chemical companies and petroleum refiners . An ethylene or olefin plant will mostly produce ethylene , but also breaks the feedstock into other usable byproducts , such as propylene , butadiene and gasoline . Crackers separate ethane from natural gas to produce ethylene , the building block of plastics and other industrial products . The plants use extreme heat to “ crack ” the molecular bonds in ethane to produce ethylene . Ethylene is further processed into a resin , which is used to produce plastic products .
About INEOS INEOS is a global chemical company making the raw materials and energy used for everyday life . It comprise 36 businesses with 194 sites in 29 countries throughout the world .
Valves in ethane crackers
A range of valves is required to safely and efficiently operate crackers and to keep them running with a minimum of costly downtime . Examples include
• Control valves handle the dilution steam injected into the furnace tubes to protect the pipes from fouling or forming coke
• As the feedstock may be either a liquid and / or a gas , the supply valve must be able to control this accurately , making it one of the most important control valves in the plant
• Controlling the dilution steam in cracker furnaces is a task for globe valves which are a tried and tested technology for this application
• Rotary valves may be employed to ensure reliability and cost optimisation
• Transfer lines and decoking typically use gate valves which can withstand dirty decoking effluent with coke accumulation , which may otherwise cause a valve to get stuck .
• Valves in the furnace section are critical in maximising ethylene production and throughput . Three critical control valve applications in the furnace area are dilution steam ratio control , feed gas control , and fuel gas control .
12 Valve World April 2023 www . valve-world . net