ExxonMobil has awarded a contract to the French engineering firm Technip Energies for the next stage of Front-end Engineering and Design (FEED) of the Baytown Refinery hydrogen facility in Houston. It is expected that a final decision regarding the Baytown Refinery project will be reached by 2024, provided the relevant stakeholders offer support, regulatory permission is obtained, and market conditions are satisfactory. 

It is estimated that the facility would generate 1 billion cubic feet of hydrogen per day and 98% of the carbon dioxide emitted, approximately 7 million metric tons annually, would be captured and stored. If it comes to fruition, Baytown Refinery would be the biggest low-carbon hydrogen initiative in the world upon commencement in 2027-28.

“This project allows us to offer significant volumes of low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia to third party customers in support of their decarbonization efforts,” said Dan Ammann, president of ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions. “In addition, the project is expected to enable up to a 30% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions from our Baytown integrated complex, by switching from natural gas as a fuel source to low-carbon hydrogen.”