ADNOC Refining to complete first phase of $600 million waste heat recovery project

The project, which began operations in 2018, is part of the company’s efforts to decarbonise operations.

“The Waste Heat Recovery project will revolutionise power and water generation at our plant in Ruwais, and is vital to the ongoing expansion of Ruwais as part of ADNOC’s 2030 smart growth strategy,” ADNOC Refining’s chief executive officer Abdulla Ateya Al Messabi said.

The $600 million (AED2.2 billion) project will recycle waste heat, will produce up to 230 megawatts (MV) of electricity per day and 62,400 cubic metres of distilled water per day for use in the plant, the statement said.

“Overall, the project will increase power production and thermal efficiency at the plant by around 30 percent with no additional carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions.”

Phase one includes the operation of two new boilers and turbines.

This will be completed before the end of the year, while phase two, which includes a further two boilers, is aimed to be completed in the middle of 2023.

The project is designed to capture exhaust heat from the gas-powered turbines at ADNOC Refining’s General Utilities Plant.

Exhaust heat is currently vented into the atmosphere, to produce steam that is subsequently used for power production, WAM said.

Aligning with the UAE Net Zero 2050 strategy, the state-owned oil company is also currently working on reducing its greenhouse gas emissions intensity by 25 percent.

ADNOC also aims to be a global first to decarbonise its electric grid completely at scale.

“In the last 12 months, ADNOC has announced partnerships to decarbonise its operations at scale, with up to 100 percent of the company’s grid power being supplied by clean nuclear and solar energy sources and the first-of-its-kind, sub-sea transmission network in the MENA region, which will which connect ADNOC’s offshore operations to clean onshore power networks,” WAM said.