December 15, 2015 [Oiltanking GmbH] - Oiltanking Ghent NV and INEOS Europe AG are pleased to announce the signing of a long-term agreement for the storage and handling of INEOS’ cracker feedstock, naphtha and gas condensate at the Oiltanking Ghent facility, to supply the INEOS plant in Cologne.
Oiltanking Ghent will dedicate approx. 15 percent of its total existing capacity to this partnership.
As part of the agreement, Oiltanking Ghent will make substantial investments to ensure the highest level of operational excellence, including facilities such as vapor return lines, internal floating roofs and vapor recovery units.
The cracker feedstock will arrive at the Oiltanking Ghent terminal on seagoing vessels for intermediate storage. From there, it will be shipped by barges via the Rhine to the INEOS facility in Cologne according to needs. This storage and handling solution enables INEOS to optimize the related process.
Naphtha and gas condensate are feedstocks used in a petrochemical process in which hydrocarbon fractions are broken down into smaller hydrocarbons in order to produce lighter alkenes (olefins), such as ethylene, propylene and others. In other words, processing naphtha and gas condensate produces the building blocks for plastics (PET, PVC, etc.), rubbers, etc.
INEOS Group AG is one of the world’s leading chemical companies, a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, speciality chemicals and oil products. The group comprises 15 businesses, each with a major chemical company heritage. Its production network spans 65 sites in 16 countries around the world.
Oiltanking Ghent NV, a majority-owned subsidiary of Oiltanking GmbH, is located between the Moervaart and the Rodenhuizedok on the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal and offers diverse facilities for the storage and distribution of chemicals, biofuels and petroleum products.
