Axens and Orbeo complete refinery energy study

Axens and Orbeo have completed a joint study of the SIR Refinery in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to improve its energy efficiency.

The study focused on the identification of greenhouse-gas-emission reduction possibilities.

Some projects have been identified as potentially eligible for the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) under the Kyoto Protocol.

The refinery has a capacity of 3.8 million tons per year and participates in the Solomon Associates survey.

The energy costs of the refinery represent more than 55 per cent of its total operating costs.

The 14-week project was carried out in three phases.

The first phase was dedicated to site data collection and technical interviews with refinery personnel responsible for operation and maintenance.

More than 80 possible energy reduction projects were identified.

During the second phase, the most interesting projects regarding the energy consumption reduction were studied in detail and 36 projects were selected by SIR.

In the third phase, the investment cost and related profitability of the selected projects were determined.

The total potential savings represent a 36 per cent reduction of Energy Intensity Index (EII) points, of which half was related to the improved maintenance of thermal equipment and the adoption of best practices.

The remaining points require investments ranging between EUR1m (GBP905,750) and EUR8m.

Fourteen projects were compliant with CDM criteria.

The Project Idea Notes (PINs) were developed as established by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

The 14 projects identified during the study and proposed to SIR could represent 270,000 tons per year of avoided CO2 emissions.

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