Royal Dutch Shell PLC subsidiary Shell Nederland Raffinaderij BV has commissioned a new solvent deasphalter (SDA) unit at its 404,000-b/d Pernis refinery and integrated petrochemical production site in Rotterdam, the Netherlands (OGJ Online, Sept. 15, 2016; Dec. 8, 2015).
Designed to further enhance performance and competitiveness of the Pernis refinery, as well as reduce environmental impact of its product portfolio, the new unit enables the manufacturing site to process a larger proportion of its oil intake into cleaner transportation fuels, including marine gas oil that complies with
The new unit enables Pernis to process a larger proportion of its oil intake into cleaner transport fuels, including marine gasoil compliant with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) confirmed reduction in sulfur content for marine bunker fuel to 0.5 wt % from a current 3.5 wt % by Jan. 1, 2020, Shell said on Oct. 8.
The new, modularly constructed 10-storey SDA unit processes heavy fuels to clean middle distillates and provides increased crude flexibility, allowing Pernis to adjust operations to meet market demands and capture higher margins, according to the operator.
While addition of the SDA unit—which was installed during regularly scheduled maintenance downtime to minimized operational disruptions—required some modifications to existing units at the site, the new unit does not alter the refinery’s current crude processing capacity.
As part of the project, Shell converted Pernis’s existing hydroprocessing unit into a hydrocracker to processes deasphalted oil (DAO) from the SDA unit, the company said.
“Shell’s Pernis refinery is now ready to meet the anticipated demand growth for cleaner transport fuels that will help keep Europe’s people and economy moving,” said Robin Mooldijk, Shell’s executive vice-president for manufacturing.
The company did not disclose a specific capacity of the new unit.
