Newfoundland operator advances refinery-to-renewables conversion project

Dallas-based private equity firm Cresta Fund Management’s Braya Renewable Fuels has let a contract to ABB Ltd. to provide a suite of automation and digital technologies to support the operator’s ongoing conversion of NARL Refining LP’s former 130,000-b/d refinery at Come-by-Chance, Newf., into a production hub for renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) (OGJ Online, Feb. 14, 2022).

Already under way and scheduled to begin producing 18,000 b/d of renewable diesel in third-quarter 2022, Phase 1 of Braya’s Come-by-Chance conversion project will use a feedstock of used cooking oil, corn oil, and animal fat, according to ABB and the operator.

While a definitive timeframe has yet to be confirmed for a proposed second phase of the project to double production capacity to about 36,000 b/d, Cresta and the government of Newfoundland and Labrador previously said the conversion project also will enable the site’s potential expansion into producing other forms of energy such as green hydrogen.

Cresta said in 2021 the converted refinery will be equipped to allow future modification to expand production as global renewable fuel demand grows.

Alongside upgrading the site’s automation technology by implementing its proprietary ABB Ability System 800xA distributed control system (DCS), ABB will supply its ABB Ability Connected Worker application suite, the service provider said in a release.

ABB also said it will supply its high-fidelity process simulator to enable efficient commissioning and startup of the plant’s new hydroisomerization (HI) and hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) units, as well as a fourth ABB Extended Operator Workplace (EOW) platform to support dedicated operator training.

Project scope includes installation, commissioning, and user training services for all new equipment supplied under the agreement.