An aerial view of the Qapco plant at Mesaieed. Qapco won the Emirates Energy Award (EEA) for its accomplishments in energy efficiency, achieved in particular through upgrade of its cracking furnaces.
Qatar Petrochemical Company has achieved significant progress in its environmental performance since 2011 thanks to “strategic investments in highly efficient machinery” and its commitment to “sustainability”, Qapco managing director and CEO Dr Mohamed Youssef al-Mulla has said.
This has resulted in a 57% reduction in flaring, 30% reduction in nitrogen oxide (NOx) intensity, 19% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity and a 34% reduction in energy intensity, he said, in the context of Qapco receiving the Emirates Energy Award (EEA) for energy efficiency in the public sector category.
Qapco was awarded for its accomplishments in energy efficiency, achieved in particular through upgrade of its cracking furnaces.
With the “successful completion” of the furnaces replacement project, Qapco improved its operational efficiency and realised significant energy savings, including reductions in energy consumption along with major decreases in nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions, sulfur oxides emissions (SOx) and general emissions.
Al-Mulla said, “Our teams have been focusing on realising energy efficiency gains, as we believe resource optimisation is essential, now more than ever. We are thrilled to have received this prestigious award, which epitomises our commitment to sustainability”.
On the award, Yousuf Abdulla Rebeeh, Qapco’s chief operations officer, said: “The safe and successful completion of our furnaces replacement project was a significant milestone for our operations. Rigorous management and oversight of our environmental impact is fundamental to our ability to operate responsibly. Our facilities are now more sustainable than ever before and paving the way for a new era of operational excellence.”
“With our furnaces replacement, Qapco reduced its total energy consumption by 2.1mn gigajoules a year (GJ/y), compared to the overall petrochemical complex consumption of 20.8mn gigajoules a year.
“Plus, the lower firing requirements of the new furnaces generate 58mn tonne/year less Co2, and the improved burner design generates about 253t/ year less NOx. I thank all the teams who contributed towards this project and outstanding performance”.
The Emirates Energy Awards is biannually organised under the patronage of Sheikh Mohamed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai.
The award aims to highlight best practices and pioneering work in energy efficiency, alternative energy, sustainability and the protection of the environment. As many as 112 innovative projects from some 12 countries, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Morocco, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, Iran, India, and Germany, were assessed for the 2015 edition of the EEA held under the theme “For a sustainable future”.
During the ceremony held in Dubai, Saeed Mohamed al-Tayer, vice-chairman of Dubai Supreme Council of Energy said, “EEA is considered a global platform for organisations and individuals as it focuses on supporting international efforts aiming to find innovative and sustainable solutions for energy availability and efficiency, environmental pollution, global warming, CO2 emission and lack of natural resources, which are the most important and urgent issues that humanity faces nowadays.”
