ExxonMobil starts up unit, plans expansion at Beaumont complex

ExxonMobil Corp. has commissioned a unit to increase ultralow-sulfur fuels production at its 366,000-b/d integrated refining complex in Beaumont, Tex.

The selective cat-naphtha hydrofining (SCANfining) unit will increase production of ultralow-sulfur fuels by about 45,000 b/d, ExxonMobil said.

Licensed by ExxonMobil, SCANfining hydroprocessing technology is a catalytic hydrodesulfurization process based on a proprietary catalyst system developed specifically for selective removal of sulfur from fluid catalytic cracking naphtha that limits olefins hydrogenation to preserve octane content, the operator said when announcing the project in 2016 (OGJ Online, July 26, 2016).

The unit comes as part ExxonMobil’s plan to produce gasoline meet the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Tier 3 gasoline sulfur specifications, which took effect Jan. 1, 2017, as well as the operator’s 10-year, $20-billion Growing the Gulf investment initiative (OGJ Online, Feb. 6, 2018).

“Our latest investment in Beaumont will produce cleaner, higher-value products using unique and efficient proprietary catalysts and processes,” said Bryan W. Milton, president of ExxonMobil Fuels & Lubricants Co.

The unit at Beaumont additionally will enhance the company’s competitiveness, Milton added.

Alongside startup of the SCANfining unit, ExxonMobil also said it is continuing with plans at Beaumont to expand its polyethylene manufacturing capacity by 650,000 tonnes/year by 2019 and is proceeding with front-end engineering design and other preparatory work to further increase the refinery’s crude refining capacity.

Construction of the new Beaumont crude unit, which remains subject to a final investment decision, is scheduled to begin in 2019, with startup anticipated by 2022.

ExxonMobil previously completed a 20,000-b/d expansion of crude processing capacity at Beaumont in late 2017 (OGJ Online, July 27, 2016).

Contact Robert Brelsford at [email protected].