Tobolsk, 21 February 2013. SIBUR has started the construction of unit for separating methanol from propane fraction at Tobolsk-Neftekhim.
Low methanol content is a requirement of many consumers and the new unit will be the next step in SIBUR’s ongoing achievement to lower the content of methanol in the propane fraction, this time in a range not exceeding 50 parts per million. At the beginning of 2011 Tobolsk-Neftekhim launched a new purification unit lowering methanol content to a level of less than 0.1%. In January 2012 another project was completed, lowering methanol content to a summer percentage of 0.015% and winter percentage of 0.035%.
The new propane gas purification unit will have a projected capacity of up to 2.1 million tonnes per year. The project documentation was developed by SIBUR’s engineering centre NIPIgazpererabotka. The project is based on SIBUR’s highly efficient proprietary simultaneous propane stream separation and dehydration technology and the environmental impact will be minimised through a closed-cycle operation with excess methanol sent to a plant synthesising MTBE fuel additive, while excess water will be recycled.
The project documentation was approved by the Government Expert Review Board (Glavgosexpertiza). The construction site has been prepared and orders for long-lead equipment have been placed. The construction works have entered the preparation stage and are scheduled for completion in 2014.
Notes to editors:
To optimise and expand its export channels, SIBUR is building a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) transshipment terminal in the Ust-Luga port. The commissioning of the complex, scheduled for 2013, is expected to further enhance the position of SIBUR in the European market. The beginning of delivery through the new terminal will offer an avenue to new and profitable markets, primarily Northwestern Europe, for which product quality is of particular importance.