Vertex Energy advances Alabama refinery’s renewables project

Houston-based Vertex Energy Inc., a specialty refiner of alternative feedstocks, has secured a long-term supply of hydrogen from Nippon Sanso Holdings Corp. (NSHD) subsidiary Matheson Tri-Gas Inc. for Vertex’s recently acquired Saraland refining and petrochemical complex in Mobile, Ala. (OGJ Online, May 27, 2021).

As part of the July 7 contract, Matheson will build an installation equipped to produce 30 MMcfd of hydrogen from a range of feedstocks, including renewable naphtha and other co-products from Vertex’s renewable diesel production, as well as natural gas, as necessary, Matheson said in a release.

With conceptual design of the proposed hydrogen-carbon monoxide (HyCO) already completed and the engineering and procurement phase for critical equipment now under way, the proprietary Matheson HyCO plant, once operable, will have flexibility required to integrate with Vertex’s operations and supply considerations at the 75,000-b/d Mobile refinery, according to the service provider.

The new HyCO plant comes as part of broader strategies by NSHD-Matheson and Vertex to accelerate their individual corporate commitments to the energy transition and a carbon-neutral society via the Mobile refinery’s renewable diesel initiative, the companies said.

Mobile’s renewable diesel project

In its May 10 announcement of first-quarter 2022 results to investors, Vertex confirmed the Mobile refinery executed a seamless transition of commercial operations from Shell PLC to Vertex on April 1, with the former 90,000-b/d Saraland refinery continuing to operate on-plan at 90% capacity without any disruptions to production or delivery schedules to capitalize on strong conventional refining economics.

With the Mobile refinery scheduled to operate at about 90% of operable capacity through second- quarter 2022 given current market conditions, Vertex said its $90-100 million capital project to modify the refinery's existing hydrocracking unit to produce renewable diesel fuel on a standalone basis remains on pace for completion by yearend 2022.

Initial production of 8,000-10,000 b/d of renewable diesel from the revamped unit is scheduled to begin by first-quarter 2023, the operator said.