SABIC joins forces with BASF and Linde to build renewables-fueled petrochemical furnace

Saudi Arabia’s SABIC has teamed up with BASF and Linde to develop a petrochemical furnace that relies on renewable energy instead of fossil fuels.
The partners have already jointly worked on concepts to use renewable electricity instead of the fossil fuel gas typically used for the heating in the petrochemical manufacturing process.
“This agreement brings together the deep technical knowledge and implementation focus that can help transition energy-intensive processes within our industry to be low carbon emitting processes,” said SABIC CEO Yousef Al-Benyan
Steam crackers play a central role in the production of basic chemicals and require a significant amount of energy to break down hydrocarbons into olefins and aromatics.
By using electricity from renewable sources, the fundamentally new technology has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by as much as 90 percent.
Typically, the reaction is conducted at temperatures of about 850 degrees Celsius in their furnaces. Today these temperatures are reached by burning fossil fuels. The project aims to reduce the CO2 emissions by powering the process with electricity, SABIC said.
Riyadh-headquartered SABIC is one of the world’s biggest chemical makers, producing 60.8 million metric tons last year. The company has more than 32,000 employees worldwide and operates in around 50 countries.