Honeywell UOP has signed a joint research and development agreement with Qatar Petroleum (QP) to develop ways to cost effectively treat natural gas for the production of LNG
Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will work together to develop more efficient technologies to remove contaminants from natural gas, so that it can be liquefied for transportation by ship and other means.
Honeywell UOP’s separation technology and equipment help remove contaminants such as sulfur, water and CO2 from natural gas in order to meet rigorous product specifications and requirements for downstream transmission and liquefaction equipment. In liquefied form, natural gas can be easily and efficiently transported to markets around the world.
The gas processing and hydrogen business unit offers technology, equipment and materials to treat and process natural gas, as well as to purify the hydrogen used in refineries.
Honeywell UOP’s natural gas treating technologies currently used in QP’s LNG and gas processing facilities. QP’s joint venture companies — Qatargas and RasGas — have a combined LNG production capacity of 218mn cubic metres per annum.
Mohammed bin Saleh Al-Sada, chairman of QP, said, “Qatar is constantly working to facilitate the optimum development of its hydrocarbon resources, and this agreement is another step in that direction.
“Developing more efficient technologies to remove contaminants from natural gas will help boost Qatar’s reputation as a safe, reliable supplier of natural gas as well as high-quality products.”
Rajeev Gautam, CEO of Honeywell UOP, added that the global natural gas demand is growing rapidly and LNG production is critical to meeting the needs of regions not served by pipelines and to enable global trade.
“We look forward to extending our long-standing partnership to develop technology in this important field,” he added.
In 2013, QP and Honeywell UOP had collaborated to establish the first Engineering Design Seminar programme in the Middle East to meet the growing demand for highly-trained engineers who specialise in refinery process units and equipment.
