Vertex Energy completes construction of renewable diesel unit at Mobile, Alabama, refinery

Vertex Energy Inc. announced April 4 the successful mechanical completion of its renewable diesel unit at the company’s Mobile, Alabama, refining facility.

As the project team proceeds with commissioning the system and preparing for expected start-up, it will address remaining closeout steps typical of finalization and start-up processes for turnaround projects.

In anticipation of the planned production and forthcoming Phase II, which focuses on increasing renewable diesel production, the company announced that additional hydrogen-production infrastructure and equipment also arrived on-site, in line with the project schedule.

The company anticipates total capital expenditures to be within the range of $110 million to $115 million, which is within the currently established target budget.

Vertex Energy plans to begin production of its initial volumes of renewable diesel fuel in the coming weeks, in line with the previously expected timelines.

Initial volumes are planned to be between 336,000 and 420,000 gallons per day, with production volumes anticipated to subsequently ramp up to approximately 588,000 gallons per day upon installation of additional required infrastructure.

“The unwavering commitment to excellence and expertise of both our project team and contractors has resulted in logging over 400,000 work hours with zero OSHA recordables,” said James Rhame, chief operating officer of the company. “The achievement of this milestone on schedule, within our targeted budget, and with little to no disruption to ongoing daily site operations underscores our dedication to maintaining the highest safety and operating standards at every stage of the project. I am very proud of our employees and contractors, whose collective efforts made the construction phase of this project such a success.”

Benjamin Cowart, CEO of Vertex Energy, added, “Today marks a major milestone in our continued growth strategy. As we embark on the commissioning phase of this project, we are excited to offer fuel options that not only cater to current energy needs, promoting energy security and stability, but also contribute to a greener future by reducing carbon impacts and promoting environmentally sustainable alternatives. I would like to personally thank the hundreds of women and men, our employees, contractors and suppliers, whose collective hard work, cooperation and commitment to safety made this possible.”

Vertex Energy also expressed its gratitude to all contract partners for their contribution to the engineering and construction of the renewable diesel project.