Air Products' Sarnia, Ontario, Canada Hydrogen Plant Now On-Stream and Supplying Suncor and Shell Refinery Operations
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Company's Second Canadian Hydrogen Plant Commercialized
LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa., Aug. 2 / -- Air Products Canada Ltd., a subsidiary of Air Products (NYSE:APD), announced today that its new hydrogen plant in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada is on-stream and supplying 80 million standard-cubic-feet-per-day (MMSCFD) of hydrogen to two nearby refineries. The facility is the largest plant outsourcing hydrogen in Canada and the second new Air Products facility to supply hydrogen to Canadian refineries and other customers. In June, Air Products announced the commercialization of a large-scale steam methane reformer hydrogen plant in Strathcona County, near Edmonton, Alberta.
The new Sarnia hydrogen production facility, a natural gas-based steam methane reformer, will help refineries operated by Suncor Energy Products, Inc. and Shell Canada Products produce ultra low sulphur diesel and other petroleum products. The Air Products facility is located on a part of the Shell refinery land and supplies hydrogen by pipeline to the nearby Suncor refinery.
"Air Products is pleased to move forward in meeting the hydrogen needs of Suncor and Shell in an area of Canada that is a key refining center," said Stephen Losby, general manager Canada, for Air Products. "We are established on the ground in Canada with two operating plants now serving four refineries and other customers, and we are positioned to participate in the growth associated with processing more oil sands crude." Air Products Canada has also commenced engineering to expand production capacity near Edmonton with construction of another hydrogen plant at the Strathcona location. Announced in January 2006, the 105 MMSCFD facility expansion, to be located adjacent to the initial plant at the customer's refinery, will serve several customers in an area known as the Alberta Industrial Heartland. This plant will be the first Air Products facility to provide the sale of hydrogen for use in the processing of Canadian oil sands into gasoline and diesel fuel. It is expected to be on-stream in April 2008.
The new Sarnia hydrogen production facility is also interconnected with Air Products' existing hydrogen liquefaction facility located nearby. "Gaseous hydrogen from our new production facility significantly enhances feed gas availability to our Sarnia liquefaction plant," said Mike McNallen, vice president, North America merchant gases. Air Products has been safely and reliably liquefying and distributing hydrogen at Sarnia for over 25 years. Liquified hydrogen from the facility is trucked to merchant markets across North America.
The second Canadian hydrogen facility is the 25th to be built under the global alliance between Air Products and Technip. This alliance continues to provide the worldwide refining industry with competitive technology, plus world-class safety with "over the fence" hydrogen supply. Technip provides the design and construction expertise for steam reformers while Air Products provides the gas separation technology. Air Products, through its extensive operating network, and Technip, from its large reference base, also bring effective operational and engineering knowledge to "design-in" high reliability and efficiency. The plants are operated and maintained by Air Products under long-term agreements with customers.
About Air Products
Air Products (NYSE:APD) serves customers in technology, energy, healthcare and industrial markets worldwide with a unique portfolio of products, services and solutions, providing atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, performance materials and chemical intermediates. Founded in 1940, Air Products has built leading positions in key growth markets such as semiconductor materials, refinery hydrogen, home healthcare services, natural gas liquefaction, and advanced coatings and adhesives. The company is recognized for its innovative culture, operational excellence and commitment to safety and the environment and is listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability and FTSE4Good Indices. The company has annual revenues of $8.1 billion, operations in over 30 countries, and over 20,000 employees around the globe. For more information, visit http://www.airproducts.com/.
About Technip
With a workforce of about 20,000 people, Technip ranks among the top five corporations in the field of oil, gas and petrochemical engineering, construction and services. Headquartered in Paris, the Group is listed in New York and Paris. The Group's main operations and engineering centers and business units are located in France, Italy, Germany, the UK, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands, the USA, Brazil, Abu-Dhabi, China, India, Malaysia and Australia. In support of its activities, the Group manufactures flexible pipes and umbilicals, and builds offshore platforms in its manufacturing plants and fabrication yards in France, Brazil, the UK, the USA, Finland and Angola, and has a fleet of specialized vessels for pipeline installation and subsea construction. Technip is the leading supplier of hydrogen production facilities with more than 200 references worldwide. More information can be found at http://technip.com/.
Source: Air Products
CONTACT:
Media Inquiries:
(Air Products) Art George,
+1-610-481-1340,
georgeaf@airproducts.com,
or (Technip) Laurence Bricq,
+33 (0) 1 47 78 26 37,
fax: +33 (0) 1 47 78 24 33,
lbricq@technip.com;
or Investor Inquiries:
(Air Products) Philip Sproger,
+1-610-481-7461,
sprogepc@airproducts.com
Web site: http://www.airproducts.com/
http://technip.com/
