OREANDA-NEWS. On 07 August 2008 was announced, that the manufacturer of nitric fertilizers and chemical products SC Achema presented State Board another methanol production plant, a modern methanol unit M-130, which substituted the uneconomic plant of methanol production operating since 1968.

“The new methanol plant is not only more efficient, but also beneficially economical, which saves energy resources and minimizes effects on the environment”, - stated general director of SC Achema Jonas Sirvydis.  – Methanol production process is totally automated, distributed control system “Foxboro” is installed. For more than 40 years operating the old methanol plant’s productive capacity could reach 74 thousand tones of production per year, yet, the provisions for the capacity of the newly projected plant are doubled – up to 130 thousand tones per year”.

Since the beginning of the start-up operation in the middle of June, SC Achema allotted 53 million Litas for the modernization of methanol production alone, and the total value of the project is 135 million Litas.

“This project is unique considering environment conservation: in the production of methanol the efficiency of utilization equipment of gaseous secondary products is 99,5 per cent because of sending secondary products back to the process, - says J. Sirvydis, - the demand for raw material and energy consumption are being reduced as well.” 

Methanol is broadly used in formaldehyde resins industry, various field and paint production, added into automobile fuel to increase octane value, is also employed in the production of machinery fuel, bio fuel esterification etc, in the perspective of hydrogen source it can be used in hydrogen energetic.

SC Achema is successfully implementing the IInd investment programme to be completed by 2009. The programme is designed for organic products, fertilizer and resins manufacture, energy resource saving and its electrical power production: remodeled ammonia production plant, the new methanol production plant has stated its operation, the projects of urea and nitric acid units are being developed rapidly, and the preparations for the construction of the IInd power plant are made. Having implemented this programme of value of 0,5 milliard litas , 30 per cent of which are allocated to environment pollution reduction technologies, the fertilizer production development will be completed in Achema.