BOC OPENS SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE`S BIGGEST HYDROGEN PLANT

Main Menu | News By Date | News By Supplier | News By Category | About Us

BOC OPENS SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE`S BIGGEST HYDROGEN PLANT
26 October 2000 - BOC Gases

BOC has opened the southern hemisphere's largest hydrogen plant at Bulwer Island, Brisbane, Australia, as part of an AUS$170 million (£64 million approx.) investment by the company in high technology plant for producing cleaner fuels.

The hydrogen plant, which forms part of a larger facility providing a range of industrial gases and utilities, was built to serve BP's new hydrocracker, which produces cleaner vehicle fuels by breaking down heavy crude oil and removing sulphur. Officially opening the AUS$500 million (£190 million approx.) Clean Fuels Project at the BP refinery today, Australian Prime Minister John Howard praised both BP and its major partner in the programme, BOC, for their environmental and technological initiatives.

It is the first time that The BOC Group has used partial oxidation technology of the type employed at Bulwer Island. BOC says it is the cleanest hydrogen plant in Australia, while BP claims significantly improved air quality in Brisbane because of lower vehicle emissions.

The new production technology converts low value gases to make the desired products for both BP and BOC. At the same time, BOC's new Bulwer Island facility replaces its older gas production plant at Rocklea in Brisbane's south-west, making the company self-sufficient in Queensland and able to supply other customers in northern New South Wales with hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and argon.

Bulwer Island is the latest and largest element of a major BOC investment programme in Australia over the last five years, involving projects in the steel, oil, petrochemical and minerals processing industries, which represents a total investment of around AUS$400 million (£150 million approx.).

David Hind, BOC Managing Director, Process Gas Solutions, South Pacific, said the company's investment at Bulwer Island, which is BOC's second largest gas production plant investment globally, "sets a new benchmark in business alliances."

http://www.boc.com

About: BOC Gases
Through its PGS line of business, BOC supplies gas and related solutions to the chemicals, petroleum, glass, water services, electronic packaging, fibre optics, hydrogen energy, metals and food industries. BOC helps meet customer needs in a variety of ways, from the supply of a single gas or application through to designing, constructing and operating fully integrated gas and utilities schemes.

The BOC Group, which serves two million customers in more than 50 countries, is one of the largest and most global of the world's leading gases companies. It employs some 44,500 people worldwide and had annual sales of over £4.3 billion in 2003. Further information about The BOC Group may be obtained on the Internet at www.boc.com

The BOC Group has an international portfolio of companies grouped for management control and reporting into three lines of business: Process Gas Solutions, Industrial and Special Products, and BOC Edwards. It also has a specialist logistics business, Gist.

More News:
  • For October 2000
  • From BOC Gases
  • For Gases