Canadian petroleum company unveils renewable diesel projects
Tidewater Midstream and Infrastructure Ltd. is among the latest petroleum entrants in the race to initiate renewable diesel projects. The company announced March 11 that, for the past six to 12 months, it has been undertaking initiatives in standalone renewable diesel production and coprocessing, among other endeavors.
According to Tidewater, the company’s largest renewables project to date is a 3,000 barrel per day (46 MMgy), standalone renewable diesel and renewable hydrogen complex on the site of its existing Prince George Refinery in British Columbia. The biorefinery will include a pretreatment unit to provide multifeedstock capability.
Total cost of the project is estimated at between CAD$215 million and CAD$235 million, but Tidewater says it has received commitments from the provincial government in the form of BC Low Carbon Fuel Standard Credits, based on the current market value, for project construction costs. “Project funding is predicated on management’s current estimate of the asset generating over [CAD]$75 million of EBITDA in its first year of operations, which is anticipated as early as 2023, and excludes any incremental EBITDA upside from hydrogen production and the credit value associated with the Canadian Clean Fuel Standard,” Tidewater stated.
The company also highlighted that it is completing a canola coprocessing project for approximately CAD$10 million in capital, which is expected to begin operations by end of this year.
Tidewater also expects to complete a CAD$10 million Fluid Catalytic Cracking coprocessing project at the Prince George Refinery during the next scheduled refinery turnaround in spring 2023.
“Tidewater’s existing assets in BC and Alberta provide the company with a strategic advantage in relation to the increasing federal carbon tax, Canadian Clean Fuel Standards credits, and BC Low Carbon Fuel Standard credits,” the company stated.
The company first incorporated in 2015 and has acquired its assets and grown rapidly, according to its website.