Refining Industry “It’s Difficult, but Participating in Carbon Neutral”… Blue hydrogen and carbon capture head to head

Input 2021.03.11 15:22

SK innovation (096770), GS Caltex, S-Oil, and Hyundai Oilbank, and other refining industries are heading for the goal of ‘2050 carbon neutral’.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 11th, the oil refining industry launched the’Carbon Neutral Council’, a public-private communication channel, at the ‘1st Meeting of the Oil Industry Carbon Neutral Council’ held at the El Tower, Seocho-gu, Seoul, Discussed.

As of 2019, the domestic oil refining industry’s carbon emissions amounted to about 32 million tons, accounting for about 6% of the total industrial emissions. It is the fourth multi-emission industry after steel, petrochemical and cement.

Lim Jae-gyu, a senior researcher at the Korea Energy Economics Institute, said, “The domestic oil refining industry is Korea’s 6th largest export industry with the world’s 5th refining capacity, but serious difficulties are expected in the process of promoting carbon neutrality.” In addition to the reduction measures, there is a need to prepare additional alternatives,” he said.

Until now, the industry has been making efforts to reduce GHG emissions through energy saving through heat integration in refineries and industrial complexes, conversion from high-carbon fuel (BC oil) to low-carbon fuel (LNG), and capture of carbon emitted during the manufacturing process.

However, the industry agreed that efforts such as blue hydrogen production, CCU (carbon dioxide capture and utilization) technology development and application, new and renewable energy use, and diversification into eco-friendly businesses are necessary to further reduce carbon and promote carbon neutrality.

Chung Dong-chae, chairman of the Korea Petroleum Association, said, “Last year, as the domestic and foreign oil demand decreased due to Corona 19, the industry recorded an operating loss of about 4.6 trillion won, the largest since the start of the domestic oil refining industry.”

He said, “Carbon neutrality is a difficult goal to achieve right now due to the nature of the fossil fuel-based industry, but the domestic oil refinery industry is also sustainable, and we will do our best to develop various ways to contribute to carbon neutrality,” he said. Requested the government’s active support for this.

Young-joon Joo, head of the Energy Resources Department of the Ministry of Industry, said, “To support the industry-led conversion to carbon neutrality, we will focus on promoting the ‘5 core carbon neutral tasks’ in the industry. “We plan to establish a carbon-neutral innovation strategy.”

The Ministry of Industry will form a separate task force (TF) for the introduction of next-generation biofuels suggested by the industry and the possibility of using eco-friendly raw materials in the refinery process to review technology level, quality, and safety.