| Additional Hydrogen Supply for Ultramar's Wilmington, Calif. Refinery
LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa. (January 16, 2002) — Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) and Ultramar Inc. announced today that the companies have executed a long-term supply agreement under which Air Products will provide additional volumes of hydrogen to Ultramar's Wilmington, Calif. refinery for the production of low sulfur content diesel fuel to meet current and future environmental regulatory requirements.
The hydrogen, provided by the Air Products' Wilmington and Carson, Calif. pipeline system, will be used in a new diesel hydrotreating unit that was placed in service in August, 2001 by Ultramar. This new diesel hydrotreating unit will allow Ultramar to produce diesel to meet current CARB diesel regulations and the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency's Low Sulfur Diesel requirements to be implemented in 2006, as well as similar regulations which are expected to be adopted in California.
"We are delighted to extend our relationship with Ultramar at their Wilmington refinery. We were there from the beginning, supplying Ultramar in 1996 upon the hydrocracker facility's start-up. This additional supply to Ultramar is an excellent example of Air Products growing in California, with such an important segment of the CPI industry-the refining segment," said Scott A. Sherman, Air Products' vice president and general manager, Chemical and Process Industries and Environmental and Energy Systems.
"We have had a very successful relationship with Air Products," said J. William Haywood, Vice President of Ultramar. "The supply of hydrogen by Air Products to our diesel hydrotreating unit will allow Ultramar to produce cleaner burning fuel well in advance of the proposed regulations. We feel it is important to strive to stay ahead of such regulations."
The Air Products Wilmington hydrogen production facility was commissioned in 1996 and produces approximately 83 MMSCFD of hydrogen. The Carson facility was commissioned in 1999 and produces approximately 96 MMSCFD of hydrogen. Both facilities are connected to Air Products' 11-mile pipeline system that supplies hydrogen to most of the major refineries in the Los Angeles area. "In the mid-90s we saw the importance of establishing long-term supply relationships with the West Coast refineries and we developed two world-class facilities to support our supply to the refineries. We are extremely pleased to be continually increasing our supply to this important customer base," Sherman said.
Both the Wilmington and Carson hydrogen plants were provided by Air Products' alliance partner Technip-Coflexip. Air Products operates over 60 hydrogen and carbon monoxide facilities around the world, with global hydrogen and carbon monoxide production capacity of over 1.3 billion SCFD.
Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (www.airproducts.com) is the world's only combined gases and chemicals company. Founded more than 60 years ago, the business has annual revenues of $5.7 billion and operations in 30 countries. Air Products is a market leader in the global electronics and chemical processing industries, and a long-standing innovator in many industrial markets, including coatings, adhesives and polyurethanes. The company distinguishes itself through its 18,000 employees around the world, who build lasting relationships with their customers and communities based on understanding, integrity and passion.
Technip-Coflexip is a world leader in the field of oil and gas engineering, technologies and services. With operation bases in all five continents, Technip-Coflexip is a truly global company with a workforce of 18,000 people worldwide and annual revenues of over four billion U.S. dollars. |
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