life - GEA Group

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THE Colossi OF st. nazaire
Gea delivers GiGantiC air Coolers and Condensers for Gas-to-liquid plants.
the challenge is as huge as it is innovative: employees of the gea subsidiary batignolles
technologies thermiques (btt) are currently working on a massive project in the harbor
of st. nazaire (France). this entails the pre-assembly of an air-cooled condenser for a
gas-to-liquid plant (in short: gtl). each of the three modules is 75 meters high,
50 meters long and 15 meters wide. adding up to a total weight of 500 tons per module.
Why pre-mount such colossal modules, instead of fitting the
individual components together on site? Indeed, that was
the original plan. But serious problems in respect of logistics,
security and qualified personnel on site soon materialized.
For this reason, Btt suggested shifting the pre-assembly work
to France, leaving only the final assembly to be completed
in Nigeria. The client agreed to this proposal. And so the
Btt specialists began working in September 200 . In the
interim, important elements have been fitted and an initial
function test has been successfully completed. The further
the work progresses, the more impressive the sheer dimensions
of the task appear to be. And the clearer it becomes
that the shipping of the three modules, which is planned for
the spring of 200 , is likely to remain extremely exciting –
despite the fact that the construction has been specially designed
to be shipped.
Gtl technology increasingly attractive
When subjected to high pressure and high temperatures,
natural gas can be used to produce diesel fuel. The resulting
fuels offer greater performance while at the same time emitting
fewer pollutants – in view of the urgent need to protect
the environment as well as rising oil prices, this added effectiveness
has generated tremendous interest. The efficiency
of the process, at any rate, is beyond doubt: the GTL technology
is cost-effective even at an oil price of USD 0.00 per
barrel.
plant productivity has been sharply
increased
The first GTL plants were established in the
nineties. The Oryx GTL plant as well as another
plant which is currently being built has a capacity
of ,000 barrels per day. The Shell
Pearl plant, currently under construction in
Qatar, will even boast a capacity of 1 0,000
barrels per day. In view of the growing demand
for energy, the outlook for GTL technology
is extremely positive.
GEA is superbly well-positioned
Indeed, this also applies to the division
GEA Energy Technology. With
its coolers and condensers, it is represented
in all important GTL plants
around the world. Consequently it is
able to draw upon tremendous experience
and an impressive track record –
an excellent starting position for future
orders.
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