Jurong Island is currently home to more than 100 energy, petrochemical and specialty chemicals companies, including ExxonMobil and Shell. The transformation plan focuses on two main areas — increasing output of sustainable products such as bio-based fuels and chemicals and enabling sustainable production to reduce carbon emissions and pollution, according to the Sustainable Jurong Island report, which was released yesterday by Singapore's Economic Development Board (EDB).
The EDB will work with sustainable industrial development government agency JTC and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research to study the potential of a carbon capture and utilisation test bedding facility on the island.
There are companies already exploring carbon capture, utilisation and storage, with ExxonMobil looking to build carbon capture hubs in southeast Asia, including Singapore, and connecting them to storage sites elsewhere in the region.
Other targets set out by the EDB include ensuring that refineries and petrochemical crackers on the island are in the top quartile globally in terms of energy efficiency by 2030, and increasing output of sustainable products by 1½ times from 2019 levels by 2030 and four times that of 2019 levels by 2050.
One of the steps being taken to increase sustainable product output is the construction of a pyrolysis oil upgrader by Shell Singapore. The pyrolysis oil, produced by converting plastic waste, can be utilised in the production of circular chemicals used in the manufacture of everyday goods.
As part of the rebranding of the energy and chemicals park, Shell is also planning a 550,000 t/yr sustainable aviation fuel, hydrotreated vegetable oil and renewable chemicals plant, to pivot away from a crude, fuels-based product slate at its Pulau Bukom manufacturing site.
"These sustainable solutions will also help us achieve our decarbonisation goals for other sectors like aviation. It may not be too long before your flight out of Changi Airport is powered by sustainable biofuels made in Singapore too," said Singapore trade and industry minister Gan Kim Yong.
These initiatives reflect a larger trend of companies in the energy and chemicals sector transiting their product portfolios towards lower carbon fuels, renewables as well as sustainable chemicals, said Gan.
Shell and BP announced last year that they would write down up to $22bn and $17.5bn from their oil and gas portfolios respectively, as part of their target to reduce emissions.
