Operations commence at a major carbon capture plant in S. Arabia

Petro Rabigh, one of the largest integrated refining and petrochemical facilities in Saudi Arabia, and Gulf Cryo, a leading provider of industrial, medical, and specialty gases in the region, announced the inauguration of a new carbon capture and utilisation facility, located in the Kingdom’s Western Region.

Under a long-term strategic partnership spanning over 20 years, which was initially signed in March 2022, Gulf Cryo designed, constructed, and operated an advanced carbon capture plant at Petro Rabigh’s Mono Ethylene Glycol (MEG) plant, which is located at the Red Sea town of Rabigh, north of Jeddah. The project is considered the first carbon capture plant in Saudi Arabia’s western region dedicated to the merchant market and the second in the Kingdom.

The new facility captures 300 metric tonnes of CO2 per day directly from the MEG plant. This will result in the reduction of 100,000 metric tonnes per annum of carbon emissions at the source from the MEG plant, representing an 85% reduction in its total annual CO2 emissions footprint. The captured CO2 is equivalent to the sequestration capacity of approximately 360,000 Mangroves Trees planted annually over their lifetimes.

By preventing the release of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere, the project supports Saudi Arabia’s target of net zero emissions by 2060 under Vision 2030 and aligns with several of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The captured CO2 will be purified to a high-purity food-grade level by Gulf Cryo and transported in liquid form for re-use.

Petro Rabigh will utilise part of the CO2 stream internally. At the same time, Gulf Cryo will supply the remainder to other industries across the Kingdom, including water desalination and mineralisation, food preservation and transport cooling, agriculture, beverage carbonation, and ready-mix concrete.

Othman Al-Ghamdi, President and Chief Executive Officer of Petro Rabigh Co., said, “Taking meaningful action to cut our carbon footprint is a strategic priority for Petro Rabigh. Through this pioneering initiative under our strategic partnership, we are demonstrating an unwavering commitment to significantly reducing emissions over the long term. This directly supports the Kingdom’s ambition to achieve net zero emissions by 2060,” he concluded.

Abdul Salam Al Mazro, Vice Chairman of Gulf Cryo, said, “This landmark project anchors our leading position in CCUS solutions in the region and marks our first carbon capture project in the Kingdom. It underscores the importance of managing the full CO2 value chain; we reduce emissions at source while utilising the recovered CO2 as a vital resource to help decarbonie supply chains of various industries.”

“Working alongside Petro Rabigh is a real pleasure and demonstrates a successful partnership and a joint commitment to environmental stewardship. We look forward to celebrating continuous successes together,” he concluded.

Gulf Cryo is a leading provider of industrial, medical, and specialty gas solutions, operating in 10 countries in the region. With expertise spanning over 70 years, the company manufactures and supplies to various industries and end markets, including healthcare, food & beverage, manufacturing & primary metals, oil & gas, refineries, and many others. Their gas solutions are used in countless applications, from oxygen for hospitals to specialty gases for electronics manufacturing, hydrogen for clean fuels, carbon dioxide for agriculture, and many more.

The privately owned company pioneered CCUS when it acted early on. In 2014, Gulf Cryo built one of the first Carbon Capture plants in the region, with a clear vision of adopting a more sustainable way to source CO2 to lower carbon emissions. Today, the company is considered the largest CCUS solution provider for the merchant market in the region.

In 2022, Gulf Cryo made significant strides in Carbon capture by signing two strategic agreements. The first agreement was with Petro Rabigh, inaugurated now, while the second was with Ma’aden signed at the Saudi Green Initiative Forum during COP27.

Already capturing 100,000 MTPA, meant to double by the end of 2023, Gulf Cryo will reach more than ½ a million MTPA of CO2 by 2030, all in line with the regional and global climate goals.

Stepping up efforts, Gulf Cryo is increasingly investing in decarbonisation solutions, from carbon capture to innovative utilisation applications, creating on its own a circular carbon economy. The company also produces hydrogen and is piloting projects in green mobility.

Gulf Cryo specialises in manufacturing and distributing industrial, medical, and specialty gases. We provide a wide range of solutions that support key industries, including healthcare, food and beverage, energy water and wastewater, industrial manufacturing, petrochemicals.