Shale gas threat to gasification
Does the forest industry have any chance of becoming a “green supplier” to the petrochemical industry. What factors will shape competitiveness in the future. These questions have arisen as new reserves and methods for shale-gas exploitation emerge. Nordic Paper Journal spoke to Nippe Hylander, Senior Advisor at consulting firm ÅF, about the situation.
However, this vision may be shattered by pending shale gas exports from the US on LNG vessels (Liquefied Natural Gas). The price of natural gas will be driven down on the global market, and has already fallen 50% in the US over the past five years. Natural gas prices have historically followed oil prices, but are increasingly being decoupled.
“The market has already been affected by this scenario. Shale-gas developments have alarmed the Russians in particular, who have invested huge amounts in pipelines and possess large natural gas reserves which will subsequently lose their value,” says Nippe Hylander.
“Converting shale gas to methanol is simple and inexpensive. This will hamper multiyear plans and projects for black liquor or biomass gasification, such as VärmlandsMetanol. To be profitable, they would rather see higher green-energy subsidies. In other words, shale gas tends to complicate the various gasification alternatives and the gasification concept has been dealt a hard blow.”
“The Stenungsund cluster has modified its tone in relation to using green synthesis gas in the processes, but has not abandoned its vision. Ethylene from green ethanol is one possibility and the green natural gas from reclaimed wood that GoBiGas in Gothenburg feeds into the natural gas network is another – despite the fact that this is currently used for vehicle gas, which is highly subsidized.”
The warning flags have been raised. Is there anything to be gained from taking the long way round ¬– by breaking down and then rebuilding to produce chemicals from biomass?
“Both yes and no. Producing the monomers from wood – semi-finished ethylene, propylene and so forth, which account for the largest volumes in bulk chemicals – is far more complicated. The yield is lower and the process is hardly competitive without powerful incentives. However, ethylene from sugarcane ethanol is within reach.”
“On the other hand, those who produce more complex, green molecules with more advanced functionality, and who utilize the inherent functions of the more or less complete molecules in the wood, from tall oil, extractives and lignins for example, are probably on a more attractive path. Research into hemicellulose extraction has been ongoing for many years but only sulfite liquor has offered a cost-efficient, large-scale process. Using byproducts from agricultural is easier.”
Are the volumes required by petrochemistry another issue?
“In terms of carbon flow rates, the total carbon processed by today’s chemical pulp industry is less than half the amount processed by Swedish oil refineries. Most oil products are used to produce fuel. Around 5% of the carbon is used for petrochemical products. By comparison, chemical waste products from the pulp industry account for only 1.5% of the carbon in the process. That is only about 1/8 of Stenungsund’s ‘carbon blacks.’ Green carbon must be derived from the black liquors or other byproduct streams to make any headway. LignoBoost has finally arrived at a commercial solution, but other research is also ongoing.”