Multitude of investments by petrochemical companies in the Port of Antwerp

21-Jan-15

Port of Antwerp, in 2014, saw several leading energy companies announce record levels of investment. Both ExxonMobil and TOTAL will be making huge strategic investments in Antwerp. US oil giant ExxonMobil announced a US$1 bln investment in its refinery. The company started to build a Delayed Coker Unit in October for converting heavy, high-sulphur oil residues into cleaner oil products and to produce transport fuel such as diesel and fuel oil for the maritime industry. French energy company TOTAL also made the decision to invest 1 bln euro in a modernisation programme for its Antwerp production plant. Antwerp is the company’s largest refining and petrochemical platform in Europe. One of the investment projects, named OPTARA, is a new refining complex intended primarily for converting heavy fuel oil into desulphurised diesel and domestic heating oil with ultra-low sulphur content, in response to the shift in demand towards more environmentally-friendly products. The new plant is due to begin operations in 2016. BASF Antwerp has also started up a new extraction plant for butadiene. The Antwerp plant, which will have an annual production capacity of 155,000 tonnes, is the second BASF butadiene extraction plant in Europe after its headquarters in Ludwigshaven. Evonik Industries chose Antwerp to build the first commercial plant in the world to produce AQUAVI® Met-Met, an innovative feedstuff additive specially developed for aquaculture of shrimps and other crustaceans. In addition, the company is building a 100,000 ton 1-butene production plant and expanding its methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE) production capacity by up to 150,000 tons. American industrial gas company Praxair is building its second air separation plant and extending its pipeline system in the Port of Antwerp. Thanks to this investment, Praxair will be able to increase its supply of oxygen and nitrogen to companies in the port. French industrial gas company Air Liquide is investing some 50 million euro, doubling its carbon monoxide (CO) production capacity in the Port. The CO will be supplied to BASF, which uses the carbon monoxide for its methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) production. MDI is an important precursor for making polyurethane (PU), a plastic that can be supplied in various forms and has many applications, being used in freezers, refrigerators, the car industry and for varnishes, shoes, leisure articles amongst other things.