Syngas News

Syngas News

URUGUAY

HIF to license JM methanol technology

Johnson Matthey (JM) has been selected by HIF Global, as the methanol licensor for HIF Global’s Paysandú eFuels project in Uruguay. The facility would be the largest e-methanol plant in South America and will use electrolytically produced green hydrogen and waste CO2 from an ethanol plant to produce e-methanol. JM’s eMERALD™ technology has been proven as a route to decarbonise methanol production and this technology will be deployed at the HIF facility, with expected production capacity of 700,000 t/a of e-methanol. The methanol will be used to support rapidly growing demand from the marine market, as well as as a feedstock to produce e-gasoline (via a methanol to gasoline process) which will facilitate the decarbonisation of over 150,000 vehicles.

This collaboration builds on the successful demonstration of the eMERALD technology in the HIF Haru Oni eFuels facility, where JM licenses its technology and supplies the catalyst. The demonstrator plant has successfully operated for over 12 months, producing methanol that is further processed into gasoline. Additionally, HIF Global has announced other planned eFuels projects to be built in the US, Tasmania, and Chile. JM is already working with HIF Global to support the development of these projects. HIF Global will invest $4 billion in the facility. Construction of the plant is planned for 2025.

Victor Turpaud, CEO HIF Latam, said: “eFuels are a replacement for fossil fuels and are a necessary solution for decarbonising global transport. We have already demonstrated the capability to produce eFuels with green hydrogen and recycled CO2 , using Johnson Matthey’s technology at our Haru Oni eFuels facility in southern Chile. Expanding our collaboration with Johnson Matthey represents the importance of long-term relationships to HIF and to achieve our common goals”.

UNITED STATES

Wind power for renewable hydrogen

Hy2gen, a developer, financier, builder and operator of plants for the production of renewable hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with offshore wind energy developer Ocean Connect Energy Inc. (OCE) for the mutual investigation of the potential to power renewable hydrogen production from offshore wind. The MoU formalises a collaboration between the two companies to identify, evaluate, and develop favourable locations to power Hy2gen’s renewable fuel production from the gigawatt-scale offshore wind energy generation that OCE develops in the USA and worldwide.

The companies have formed a 10-month working group to identify and mature high-capacity offshore wind energy areas where project development may be held back by constrained grid transmission, low electricity demand, or other factors. “Where renewable hydrogen production can be built near the point of interconnect from offshore wind energy generation, we have the potential to create predictable and lasting demand for the energy. This makes the need for new grid transmission less urgent and the need for infrastructure investment less substantial, while accelerating wind energy project execution,” said David White, president of Hy2gen USA Inc. “Renewable hydrogen can change the paradigm of where offshore wind is developed,” added Kevin Banister, chief executive officer of Ocean Connect Energy.

Worley wins contract for GTL project

Worley has secured the front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract for Cerilon’s gas-to-liquids (GTL) project in North Dakota. Cerilon‘s facility will be the first of its kind to use large-scale carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technology. This approach aims to minimise the project’s environmental footprint. The GTL plant will convert natural gas into approximately 24,000 bbl/d of high-quality synthetic products, including advanced lubricants, ultra-low sulphur diesel, and naphtha.

Worley plans to leverage a standardised design approach for this project, enabling efficient replication in the future. Worley has already completed the preliminary engineering phase (pre-FEED) for the GTL project, and this new agreement signifies the official start of the FEED stage. Engineering services will be delivered from Worley’s Calgary office, Canada, with additional support from their global network, including integrated delivery teams.

GERMANY

NextChem completes acquisition of GasConTec

NextChem has finalised the acquisition of 100% of GasConTec GmbH (GCT), an innovative company specialising in technology development and process engineering. GCT has over 80 patents and extensive expertise in the synthesis of low-carbon products such as hydrogen, methanol, olefins, gasoline and integrated methanol-ammonia processes. The company’s portfolio includes autothermal reforming, which can generate low-carbon hydrogen with high carbon capture rates. This achieves high hydrogen yields while reducing external energy needs, ensuring efficiency and cost-effectiveness, especially for large-scale plants. The company also has access to a German-based industrial-scale demonstration plant for high-pressure partial oxidation.

Alessandro Bernini, CEO of NextChem parent Maire Group, commented: “This acquisition marks an important step in NextChem’s path to enhance and expand its unique technology portfolio. GasConTec brings distinctive solutions able to effectively meet our clients’ current and future decarbonisation needs.”

DENMARK

Methanol valves for dual-fuel shipbuilding

Pres-Vac Engineering has announced the successful certification of its innovative high-velocity methanol valves. These valves, essential for the safety and efficiency of methanol tank systems, are now certified under the IMO 1621 standard, among other regulatory benchmarks. The valves enable greater flexibility in ship design, accommodating long vent-pipes up to 128 meters for DN 65 size, with allowances for even longer pipelines. This development offers shipbuilders and owners unique options in creating more efficient and compliant dual-fuel systems. The valves incorporate features such as improved flow control and minimised gas emissions. These mechanical valves operate without electronic controls, adding a layer of safety to their functionality.

Agreement on methanol storage

SRC Group and advisory and project management firm Green Marine have signed a collaborative agreement to develop and deliver SRC’s Methanol Superstorage solution to market. Methanol Superstorage uses the SPS Technology Sandwich Plate system instead of traditional cofferdams that separate tank walls, boosting shipboard tank volumes by 85% and in part compensating for methanol’s significantly lower energy density than conventional heavy fuel oil.

Hannes Lilp, CEO, SRC Group said: “With Green Marine’s extensive experience in methanol projects and overall technical knowledge of the entire process, combined with SRC’s expertise in methanol storage and over 23 years of experience in ship refits and conversions, we are well-placed to onboard Methanol Superstorage for both retrofit and new build vessels, and establish a mature sales framework to enable global adoption.”

Green Marine continues to drive development of the methanol supply chain in the marine market, with recent agreements including preparations for projected supplies of green methanol from Chinese partners. The firm also recently named Singapore-based former Methanol Institute Chief Commercial Officer Chris Chatterton as Managing Director and Partner, with effect from 1st July, 2024.

Methanol Superstorage has already received approval in principle from a leading IACS society, which indicates that no conceptual issues have been identified relating to ship regulatory requirements. “In parallel to class approvals, SRC and Green Marine will also oversee and manage 3rd Party technical development” said Lilp.

Press-Vac’s methanol valves.

PHOTO: PRESS-VAC

ITALY

NextChem and JM to license waste to methanol solutions

NextChem’s MyRechemical subsidiary and Johnson Matthey (JM) have agreed to partner for the commercialisation of the Circular Methanol™ technology package worldwide. Following the joint cooperation agreement of July 2021, aimed at integrating MyRechemical’s waste-tosyngas technology with JM’s syngas-tomethanol technology, the two companies have reached a new agreement to jointly commercialise the integrated technology under MyRechemical’s proprietary Circular Methanol™ trademark.

SWEDEN

Permit for green methanol plant

Liquid Wind has received an environmental permit for its second green hydrogen-based e-methanol plant in Sweden. FlagshipTWO, planned for Sundsvall, is expected to produce 130,000 t/a of e-methanol by combining green hydrogen and captured carbon dioxide (CO2 ) from 2027. Having been granted an environmental permit by the Land and Environmental Court in Östersund, the plant has been slated as a key supplier of lower-carbon fuels to the maritime sector. It will capture biogenic CO2 from Sundsvall Energi’s Korstaverket plant to reduce an estimated 283,000 t/a of CO2 emission – primarily by cutting marine fossil fuel use, saving some 199,000 t/a of CO2 . Around 84,000 t/a CO2 will also be stored in a parallel project run by Sundsvall Energi.

EGYPT

Consortium to develop green methanol plant

AD Ports Group, the operator of industrial cities and free zones in Abu Dhabi, is leading a consortium to develop a green methanol plant in Egypt. The group has signed a preliminary agreement with container shipping line Transmar and Orascom Construction, both based in Egypt, for the development, which will include storage and export centres for the synthetic fuel. AD Ports said the new centre in Egypt will provide bunkering solutions for operators who have ordered green methanol-powered vessels. Several shipping majors, including Maersk and Hapag Lloyd, are integrating green-methanol-fuelled ships into their fleets as part of decarbonisation efforts.

AUSTRALIA

UK-Australian collaboration on green hydrogen

The UK and Australian Governments have awarded a combined £480,000 (A$610,400) to a consortium looking to reduce renewable methanol costs with efficient green hydrogen production. HAMR Energy and Supercritical Solutions’ project plans to demonstrate high efficiency and high-pressure green hydrogen production could reduce renewable methanol costs by up to 20%. In the first stage, the pair will deliver a techno-economic feasibility study looking at the integration of high-pressure hydrogen from UK-based Supercritical’s electrolysers into HAMR’s hybrid methanol plant design. The project has secured £480,000 in funding from the Australia-UK Renewable Hydrogen Innovation Partnership to de-risk the concept for progression to pilot stage, deploying Supercritical’s technology in Australia as part of a renewable methanol facility from 2026. The companies estimate that electrolysis technology could reduce the cost of renewable methanol by up to 20% compared to current technologies.

UZBEKISTAN

Air Products to buy GTL plant

Air Products and Chemicals has announced a $1 billion investment deal with the government of Uzbekistan and Uzbekneftegaz JSC to acquire, own and manage a natural gas-to-syngas processing facility in Qashqadaryo Province. Uzbekneftegaz’s gas-to-liquid (GTL) facility includes a natural gas-to-syngas industrial complex that converts natural gas into synthetic fuels with a high added value for domestic use and possibly export.

Air Products will purchase, own and operate two large-scale air separation units, two large-scale auto-thermal reforming units and a hydrogen production unit within the Uzbekistan GTL complex under the terms of the purchase agreement. Air Products will additionally provide oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen and syngas under a long-term, take-or-pay/ fixed fee contract.