Sibur lets contract for revamp of benzene production complex

JSC Sibur-Neftekhim, a subsidiary of PJSC Sibur Holding, Moscow, has let a contract to Sulzer Chemtech Ltd.’s Sulzer GTC technology to license technology for modernization of a benzene production complex at Sibur Kstovo LLC’s olefins production plant near Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia.

As part of the contract, Sulzer will deliver licensing of its proprietary pyrolysis gasoline (pygas) processing technologies for the proposed revamp, the service provider said.

Specifically, Sulzer GTC will design a GT-BTX extractive distillation unit as well as revamp the existing pygas fractionation, first and second-stage hydrotreating, and the thermal hydrodealkylation unit to process additional feed.

Scope of supply includes the basic engineering package, technical services, proprietary catalyst, solvent, and equipment.

Once completed, the modernized unit will serve as a hub for processing full-range pygas from several Sibur facilities, allow production of high-purity benzene with the lowest cash cost, and recover nonaromatics to be used as cracker feed, Sulzer said.

The service provider disclosed neither a value of the contract nor a timeframe for the project’s completion.

As of yearend 2018, Sibur Kstovo’s Nizhniy Novgorod site had a nameplate benzene production capacity of 96,000 tonnes/year, Sibur said in its 2018 annual report.

Further details regarding the proposed modernization of the benzene production complex have yet to be revealed.

Contact Robert Brelsford at [email protected].