Air Products will increase the supply of hydrogen to Marathon Petroleum Company LP, a subsidiary of Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE: MRO), at Marathon’s Garyville, La. refinery. In all, Air Products will increase the current level of supply by approximately 25 million standard cubic feet (MMscf) (around 60,000 kg) per day.
The increased supply of hydrogen, required to meet production demands at the refinery, will occur in two increments with the first in 2011, and the second in 2012. Air Products will provide the additional hydrogen from its on-site facility and its pipeline network connection. Air Products commercialized its Garyville hydrogen plant in late 2009 and has been supplying hydrogen via pipeline to Marathon’s refinery since 1993.
Air Products is working toward increasing its hydrogen pipeline supply capability in the Gulf Coast. In October 2010, Air Products announced plans to construct a new 180-mile long pipeline. The new pipeline extension, which is in the project execution phase, will connect Air Products’ Texas hydrogen system to the Louisiana hydrogen system. Once complete, Air Products’ hydrogen pipeline supply network will stretch from the Houston Ship Channel in Texas to New Orleans, creating the world’s largest hydrogen plant and pipeline supply network.
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 one billion cubic feet of hydrogen per day. The new Gulf Coast hydrogen pipeline network is expected to be operational in 2012.
Hydrogen is widely used in petroleum refining processes to remove impurities found in crude oil such as sulfur, olefins and aromatics. Removing these components allows gasoline and diesel to burn cleaner and makes hydrogen a critical component in the production of cleaner fuels needed by modern internal combustion engines.