02-05-2012

Air Products supplying additional hydrogen required by Motiva from gulf coast pipeline asset

For the second time in less than a year Air Products, the leading global hydrogen provider, is announcing it will supply additional hydrogen to be used by Motiva’s Convent, Louisiana refinery under a long-term agreement with Motiva Enterprises LLC. The significant amount of additional hydrogen to be supplied will come from Air Products’ industry-leading Gulf Coast hydrogen pipeline supply network serving multiple refinery and petrochemical operations in the region. Similar to the previous August 2011 agreement between the companies, the new contract allows the direction of some of the hydrogen product supplied to Motiva’s Convent Refinery to go to other Motiva refineries along Air Products’ pipeline network in both Texas and Louisiana.

“Our initial hydrogen supply to Motiva’s Convent facility goes back many years and we are pleased to expand this working relationship with this additional agreement. This is the second instance with Motiva in which the flexibility in hydrogen supply options available with our Texas and Louisiana hydrogen pipeline created added value. We believe the connection of our Texas and Louisiana pipelines into one system will be an asset for the refinery and petrochemical industries along our Gulf Coast hydrogen franchise,” said Wilbur Mok, vice president - North America Tonnage Gases at Air Products.

Currently, Air Products operates hydrogen pipelines in both Texas and Louisiana. Work is underway to connect the two hydrogen systems with a new 180 mile span to make it the world’s largest hydrogen plant and pipeline supply network. Once complete, Air Products’ hydrogen pipeline supply network will stretch from the Houston Ship Channel in Texas to New Orleans. This integrated pipeline system will unite over 20 hydrogen plants and over 600 miles of pipelines. It will supply the Louisiana and Texas refinery and petrochemical industries with over 1.2 billion cubic feet of hydrogen per day. The new Gulf Coast hydrogen pipeline network is to be operational in 2012.

Globally, Air Products’ hydrogen pipeline operational expertise is evidenced by the 40 year safe operation of its network of systems. Pipelines offer a safe, robust and reliable supply of hydrogen to the refinery and petrochemical industry around the world. In addition to the Gulf Coast hydrogen pipeline system, Air Products also has hydrogen pipeline networks operating around the world in the U.S. in Southern California; in Canada in Sarnia, Ontario, and Edmonton, Alberta; and in The Netherlands in Rotterdam.

Hydrogen is widely used in petroleum refining processes to remove impurities found in crude oil such as sulfur, olefins and aromatics to meet the product fuels specifications. Removing these components allows gasoline and diesel to burn cleaner and thus makes hydrogen a critical component in the production of cleaner fuels needed by modern, efficient internal combustion engines.