Interview
with Ted Walko ExxonMobil
Announced in February 2017, ExxonMobil is expanding its Singapore refinery to support the production of the company’s EHC™ Group II base stocks.
Current lubricant specifications require base stocks to be of a higher refinement in order to improve the overall quality of the finished product. This has led to a steady increase in the use of higher performance Group II lubricant base stock and, this is one of the reasons ExxonMobil Basestocks has continued to invest in refinery expansions in Rotterdam, Netherlands; Jurong, Singapore and, Baytown, Texas.
In June 2016, ExxonMobil broke ground on the construction of a new hydrocracker at their refinery in Rotterdam. The unit will upgrade heavier feed stocks into cleaner, higher-quality finished products, including ExxonMobil EHC™ Group II base stocks, and ultra-low sulphur diesel. This February, in a presentation at the 21st ICIS World Base Oils & Lubricants Conference in London, Ted Walko, Global Basestocks and Specialties Marketing Manager announced that ExxonMobil is similarly expanding base stocks operations at its Singapore refinery to support the production of EHC Group II products.
Suzy Jarman, editor of LUBE Magazine, caught up with Ted at the conference to ask him about these and future developments in both ExxonMobil and the base stocks market as a whole, as he saw them...
Suzy Jarman: So, to start us off with the basics; what is EHC? Ted Walko: EHC is the product name given to all of our Group II base stocks.
SJ: Is EHC an acronym for anything? TW: The name is associated with ExxonMobil HydroConversion, the term encompasses the manufacturing processes we use for Group II base stocks production.
SJ: When did ExxonMobil decide/realise that they wanted to build the Rotterdam Refinery Hydrocracker? TW: The project was officially launched on 15 June 2015, but we’ve been working on it for a number of years. We take a long-term approach to investments, and it’s quite common for ExxonMobil to line projects up 10-15 years in advance of their eventual execution.
We have a leading role in the industry; and, as one of the world’s largest suppliers of base stocks, we carefully study market trends. Thanks to ExxonMobil’s global reach and robust network, we can work on projects that can go on for decades. At ExxonMobil, we pride ourselves on reflecting present and future needs. [As my presentation showed] we have charts looking ahead to 2030. We anticipate the market will shift by 2030, and as such, we’re looking at our assets and addressing ways to meet that demand now.
SJ: How many people do you have working on the project in Rotterdam itself? TW: The refinery employs approximately 650 people and supports numerous contractors and service providers. On average, more than 600 additional workers will be on
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LUBE MAGAZINE NO.138 APRIL 2017
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