Imperial, a majority-owned affiliate of ExxonMobil, will move ahead with the construction of a renewable diesel facility at its Strathcona refinery in Canada with an investment of around C$720m ($560m).
Located near Edmonton, the project’s aim will be to produce over one billion litres of renewable diesel per annum or 20,000 barrels per day mainly from locally procured feedstocks.
Imperial claimed that the renewable diesel facility can help bring down greenhouse gas emissions in the Canadian transport industry by nearly three million metric tons per year, as determined in accordance with the country’s Clean Fuel Regulation.
The Canadian energy producer expects to receive regulatory approval for the renewable diesel plant in the near term with a target to begin production in 2025.
Imperial chairman, president, and CEO Brad Corson said: “Imperial supports Canada’s vision for a lower-emission future, and we are making strategic investments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our own operations and to help customers in vital sectors of the economy reduce their emissions.
“The investment at our Strathcona refinery will deliver immediate benefits to the local economy creating jobs and contributing to a lower-emission energy future for our employees, neighbours and communities.”
Announced originally in August 2021, the renewable diesel facility is backed by the British Columbia government. A considerable portion of the produced renewable diesel will be supplied to British Columbia in support of the Canadian province’s plan to reduce carbon emissions.
Imperial also plans to use the produced renewable diesel in operations as part of its emission reduction efforts.
The company said that it has signed an agreement with Air Products for supply of low-carbon hydrogen to the renewable diesel facility. For the supply of biofeedstock, Imperial said that it is working on agreements with other third parties.
The renewable diesel project is anticipated to generate nearly 600 direct construction jobs in addition to hundreds more via investments made by business partners.
ExxonMobil product solutions president Karen McKee said: “The Strathcona project is another example of how we are investing in advantaged facilities and applying our leading technology and decades of experience to develop lower-emission solutions for customers.
“We continue to focus investments on markets like Canada, where well-designed policies support technologies that reduce life-cycle emissions.”
