CASE STUDY

Refinery Energy Analysis Reveals 95M USD/yr in Savings Opportunities

Solomon’s detailed analysis outlines a path to improve energy performance by a potential 22 EII.

 

CHALLENGE

Soon after starting production, a refinery found itself Q4 in EII with energy expenses much higher than those of other refineries in the region.

SOLUTION

The client requested a detailed energy analysis to determine what was causing the gaps and where to focus improvement efforts.

RESULTS

The analysis revealed actionable recommendations to improve energy performance by a potential 22 EII and a total of 95M USD/yr in total potential improvement opportunities. Total savings included 4M USD/yr GHG reduction opportunity

UNEXPECTED EII VALUES CAUSED CONCERN

A refinery was found to be fourth quartile (Q4) in Energy Intensity Index® (EII™) soon after it started production. The operator contacted Solomon to perform a detailed analysis of energy performance to have a clear understanding of energy usage opportunities and set itself up for sustainable performance. Solomon recommended a Deep Drill-Down Analysis (3D Study), part of a larger Performance Excellence Process™ (PEP™) that has been employed by top companies to uncover opportunities to improve profitability.

A CLOSER LOOK CONFIRMED THE OPPORTUNITY

Solomon found that while energy tends to be one of the largest portions of operating expenses (OpEx) across the world, this client’s energy expenses took up a much higher portion of energy use than the region’s average. The client’s refinery had some logistical constraints that affected EII, so the Custom Peer Group selection took those constraints into account and found a peer group with similar constraints to compare against. A breakdown of energy costs by region showed that while the refinery was Q4, the distribution in its region stretched from Q1 to Q4 worldwide, so there was ample precedent for vastly improved energy costs.

FIRED HEATER EFFICIENCIES LAGGED PEERS

Despite having great overall furnace efficiencies, a deeper dive into the data found three fired process heater units with Q4 stack temperature approaches. The opportunity associated with lowering those stack temperature approaches was calculated to be about 8 million United States dollars per year (M USD/yr).

PROCESS DUTY GAPS TIED TO SPECIFIC UNITS

Process Duty gaps were broken down by unit so the refinery could see which units needed the most focus. Three units were identified with the highest Process Duty opportunity, and Solomon suggested starting points in investigating how to close the Process Duty gaps. The analysis also found other problems, such as a high hydrogen to hydrocarbon ratio in the reformer.

REBOILERS AND PROCESS STEAM GAP OPPORTUNITIES HIGHLIGHTED

Solomon dissected the steam system gap to discover that the main sources of the gap were in the Reboilers and Process Steam. Within the Process Steam gap, the analysis found a 9 EII gap in “Other Process Steam” and a 7 EII gap in high-pressure steam letdown. Recommendations were given as to how the refinery could learn where this process steam was coming from and minimize it. Solomon also noticed high FCC feed nozzle steam and recommended testing the FCC to optimize feed temperature and steam use.

SHAFT ENERGY AND OTHER FINDINGS

The analysis found a significant gap in power generation efficiency to the refinery’s Custom Peer Group and further broke down the power generation efficiency gap and identified two units with Q4 power generation. Solomon gave the client advice on how to reduce power consumption to close the shaft energy gap while considering the inherent EII disadvantages of the refinery’s configuration. The presentation ended with a review of the top areas that needed improvement and recommendations for the path forward to improving energy efficiency.

SIGNIFICANT SAVING OPPORTUNITES IDENTIFIED, INCLUDING GREENHOUSE GAS (GHG) REDUCTION

The 3D Study identified a specific set of actions for the operator to improve energy performance by a potential 22 EII. Between the 61M USD/yr Steam System Optimization opportunity, the 19M USD/yr Process Duty opportunity, the 11M USD/yr Process Constraint Removal opportunity, and the 4M USD/yr in GHG reduction opportunity, the analysis found 95M USD/yr in potential opportunity for this client going forward.

Learn More About our Deep Drill-Down Analysis (3D Study)

SOLUTIONS

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