The oil refinery. Equipment for primary oil refining.

Borealis, a provider of solutions in the fields of polyolefins, base chemicals and fertilisers, has announced a EUR 40 million investment to upgrade its steam cracker in Porvoo, Finland.

The upgrade will enhance the cracker’s energy efficiency, yield higher production capacities for propylene and crude C4, and enable an overall higher production quality of propylene. The investment in the cracker will further enhance its performance by boosting capacity and improving energy efficiency and the project is scheduled for completion in the third quarter of 2017.

As part of the upgrade, the production capacity of propylene and crude C4 will increase by 30 kilotonnes per annum and 10 kilotonnes per annum, respectively. The project will also upgrade the quality of all produced propylene to polymer grade, thereby increasing value as well as productivity in the adjacent polypropylene production plant.

Markku Korvenranta, Borealis Executive Vice President Base Chemicals, said: “Investing in upgrades and capacity expansion at strategic Borealis production locations such as Porvoo enables us to improve the competitiveness of our strong, integrated polyolefins business in Europe. “Through continuous investments, Borealis is securing its position among the most innovative and reliable polyethylene and polypropylene suppliers in Europe.”

Flexible, integrated steam crackers and their associated production units form the backbone of the Borealis olefins and polyolefins portfolio in Europe. Borealis sources basic feedstocks such as naphtha, butane, propane and ethane from the oil and gas industry and converts these into ethylene, propylene and other high value hydrocarbons. It also produces propylene in a propane dehydrogenation plant in Kallo, Belgium.