A Low Carbon Perspective with Tim Shire, Energy & CO2 Manager, Essar Oil UK

Ahead of ESF Europe 2023, we caught up with Tim Shire, Energy & CO2 Manager at Essar Oil UK to find out how refineries can stay competitive and relevant in today's changing environment and discover Essar's strategy to become the first low-carbon oil refinery in the UK.

1.Essar Oil UK has the objective of becoming a leading low-carbon refinery by 2030. What are the key pillars for Essar to achieve its decarbonisation targets?

There is no one silver bullet to fully decarbonise our production processes, so we are building on a mixture of energy efficiency, fuel switching to hydrogen and carbon capture to significantly reduce the emissions from our operation.?We are also becoming a hub for biofuels and waste-derived products which, when blended, will help decarbonise our products.

2. How can refineries stay relevant in today’s environment and prolong plant life through blue hydrogen and CCUS??

Low-carbon hydrogen is particularly interesting because, as well as decarbonising our own operations, we can supply it to other industrial users as a valuable low-carbon product for others.?This will help them lower the emissions from their industrial processes. We see a future role for refineries as providers of fuels produced using low-carbon processes, being providers of heat and power to local industrial areas by being facilities that produce and balance hydrogen, power and heat supply for the clusters they serve.

3. Essar Oil UK recently announced its plan to build a ￡360 million new carbon capture plant at its Stanlow Refinery, could you tell us more about this project and how it will place Stanlow at the centre of the UK’s energy transition??

This project decarbonises our catalytic cracker which is one of the largest in Europe.?This will reduce our carbon dioxide emissions by close to 1 million tonnes per annum.??We’re excited to make such a large impact in a single project, and are working hard to unlock the maximum synergy of having hydrogen production and low carbon power generation on a single site.

4. During this turbulent time for the industry, what low-hanging fruits can be taken advantage of to ensure the industry remains competitive??

As ever, energy efficiency saves both money and emissions, and there are always opportunities to improve.?In this time of volatile product prices, agile refineries are able to prosper.?At Essar Oil UK we have managed to eliminate natural gas consumption during normal operation, and take advantage of our flexibility to divert lower cost molecules into fuel.

5. Finally, what do you hope the discussion from a conference like ESF Europe will help the industry to achieve over the next 12 months????

As the industry starts to convert visions into reality, we are starting to address numerous practical issues and find additional opportunities.?As the industry is on this journey together, I’m looking forward to learning more about how others have taken steps forward and what they are doing to make this happen.

?? Would you like to hear more?

Don’t miss the opportunity to meet Tim Shire during ESF Europe, 20-22 February Amsterdam, where he will present a case study on Essar Oil UK's decarbonisation journey.

???Check out the agenda for more highlights:?ESF EUROPE AGENDA