Eni has sold the licence and basic engineering project to the Chinese company Sinopec, for the construction of a refining plant based on the Eni Slurry Technology (EST). The plant will be built at the Sinopec refinery in Maoming, in Guandong province.
Sinopec will be the first international company to make full use of the EST, which Eni developed through its research and industrial developments. EST is able to convert refining residues entirely into high-quality light products, eliminating both liquid and solid refining residues with significant environmental benefits.
Sinopec will build an EST plant with the design capacity of 46,000 barrels per day of heavy refining residue (310 tonnes per hour). The plant will replace the existing pet-coke production line, with significant environmental benefits in compliance with the new IMO (International Maritime Organization) regulations concerning sulphur contained in bunker fuel. As part of the licensing agreement, Eni will provide Sinopec with the basic engineering project (Process Design Package) and other services.
The plant is due to be completed by 2020.
