São Paulo – The United Arab Emirates will have the first fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit in the Middle East. The unit should start being built in the third quarter of this year and operations should begin in 2015. The FCC process speeds up production of petrol and liquefied gas from heavy oil. The information was disclosed on the Arabian Oil and Gas site, from Dubai.
The plant should be located in Kizad industrial zone, 70 kilometres away from Abu Dhabi, the country capital. The unit should be built by the North American Grace Catalyst Technologies. According to company president Shwan Abrams, the investment for construction of a plant will be US$ 200 million.
“This is the main investment we have made outside North America,” said Abrams, according to Arabian Oil and Gas. The installation should generate some 200 jobs. According to the site, fluid catalytic cracking is gaining space in the Middle East due to heavy oil and to more complex conversion. In Brazil, for example, most of the oil produced is heavy.
Abrams stated that Grace is aware of the needs of more fluid catalytic cracking plants and of more advanced refining technologies in the Middle East and Asia. The executive also stated that the company is expanding its operation in both regions.
*Translated by Mark Ament
