Air Products, an international supplier of gases and chemicals for industrial use based in Allentown Pa., announced yesterday its largest-ever investment in the United States.
The company won a long-term onsite business model supply agreement for a project with Gulf Coast Ammonia (GCA) in Texas City, Texas. It will build, own and operate a steam methane reformer (SMR) to produce hydrogen, which will be connected to and extend, to approximately 700 miles, its existing pipeline system in the Gulf Coast. Air Products will also build, own and operate an air separation unit (ASU) to supply nitrogen and will own and operate a steam turbine generator to supply power and other utilities to GCA’s new ammonia production plant.
“This is an exciting project that we are very proud to have won,” Seifi Ghasemi, chairman, president and CEO of Air Products, said. “When all facets of this project are combined, it sets a new high for Air Products’ investment — $500 million — for one project in the United States. This project will showcase Air Products’ core strengths and capabilities supplying hydrogen from an SMR and nitrogen from an ASU, and leverages our core industrial gas strengths in many ways.”
The pipeline portion of the project, which will transport hydrogen to Texas City, is targeted to begin operations in the second half of 2021. The remainder of the facilities are expected to begin commercial operations in early 2023.
“In addition to this being our largest-ever U.S. investment, the project also sets other Air Products’ milestones,” Ghasemi said. “It will feature the largest SMR we have ever built and will operate, the largest per-day amount of hydrogen supplied to a single customer under one contract, and it increases the size and supply capacity of Air Products’ extensive hydrogen pipeline system in the Gulf Coast, which is the world’s largest. This is all successfully combined under a long-term contract for a project located in the United States.”