GS Caltex Fitted With Advanced Heavy Oil Upgrading Capability

Turns to exploration of new growth engine businesses

GSCaltex's management goals have been summed up as a "Bridge to the Future." This reflects well the company's conviction that only management and technological innovations can lead to sustainable growth down the road amid a volatile and uncertain global economy and a faster pace of change. GS Caltex is aiming to become a leading global total energy service provider by not only making continued investments into building new installations and expanding them in the existing businesses but by also exploring new growth engine industries.
GS Caltex's focus on making the company competitive led to the construction of vacuum residue hydrocracker (VRHC) facilities. GS Caltex's preloading and massive investments have enabled the company to secure the nation's top rated heavy oil upgrading capability.
GS Caltex has channeled more than 6 trillion won into expanding heavy oil upgrading facilities since 2006. Staring last December, the company's third VRHC facility, built with an investment of 2.2 trillion won since 2007, went into full-capacity operation. The latest facility has raised GS Caltex's heavy oil upgrading capacity to 215,000 barrels per day with the conversion rate standing at 28.3 percent, equivalent to that of global players.
GS Caltex held a ceremony on May 12 to officially dedicate its third VRHC facility and to launch the construction of its fourth heavy oil upgrading facility with a daily capacity of 53,000 barrels through a combined investment of 1.1 trillion won with completion slated for 2013. If and when the refinery's fourth VRHC facility is put into operation as planned, GS Caltex will see its heavy oil upgrading capability rise to 268,000 barrels per day, raising its conversion rate to 35.3 percent.
The VRHC facility, rated to be the most advanced so far, is the nation's and Asia's first such advanced technology. It transforms extra heavy oils, such as asphalt oil, into value-added products like kerosene and diesel. Many heavy oil upgrading facilities use bunker-C oil as feedstock, but the VRHC facility utilizes extra heavy oil products such as asphalt oil, so it is considered more eco-friendly since it churns out value-added petroleum products after eliminating such harmful substances as sulfur compounds and metals.
NEXT-GENERATION GROWTH ENGINE INDUSTRIES - GS Caltex is aggressively turning to the exploration of new and renewable energy sources as its next-generation growth engine businesses. The company is stepping on the gas to invest in secondary batteries, the production of materials and transforming wastes into energy. GS Caltex is going flat-out to nurture next-generation growth engine businesses in order to help the refinery proactively cope with the rapidly changing business environment.
Korea's second largest refiner is aggressively ramping up investments in the new and renewable energy and new materials sectors in order to conform to the government's low-carbon, green growth paradigm and secure future growth engines.
Specifically, it is accelerating its efforts to nurture fuel cells, thin film batteries, carbon materials and resources exploration as its new growth engines. GS Caltex's representative focus is on the development of soft carbon anode materials, one of the four main ingredients of lithium-ion secondary cells, along with battery separators, cathode materials and electrolytes. Starting in 2005, GS Caltex embarked on the development of anode materials and succeeded in the localization of anode materials last year. The company, which is completing an anode materials production plant in Gumi, Gyeongsangbuk-do, plans to mass produce anode materials next year.
GS Caltex acquired a company specializing in the eco-friendly treatment of waste and energy recovery and the company has changed its name to GS Platech to embark on full-fledged waste-to-energy projects. nw

An aerial view of GS Caltex's Yeosu plant.

Photo on Courtesy of GS Caltex