£140m investment to tackle flaring impact

ExxonMobil project expected to create 850 temporary jobs over the next 12 months

ExxonMobil has announced a £140 million investment programme to address the impact of flaring at Mossmorran.

The project is expected to create 850 temporary jobs over the next 12 months.

As the petrochemical giant announced the major upgrade to its operations at Fife Ethylene Plant (FEP), it emerged that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) had in July served an improvement notice on the company over inadequate measures to prevent the risk of explosion from furnaces.

The HSE said ExxonMobil had taken insufficient measures to “reduce the risk to as low as reasonably practicable”.

FEP plant manager Jacob McAlister said ExxonMobil was “committed to the highest operational and regulatory standards” and the investment was being made to secure “long-term reliable operations at the site”.

He said part of the investment would be to upgrade the elevated flare tower to reduce noise and vibration.

In addition, the work will include installing a new ground flare, aimed at reducing impact on local communities.

However, he said the bulk of the project would be improving the plant to prevent flaring.

“We don’t want flaring to ever occur,” said Mr McAlister.

“We want people to understand that we understand – and are addressing the fact – that our reliability has not been what it needs to be and that we are committed to improving.”

Flaring has on occasion been accompanied by thick black smoke.

He added: “You need steam to cleanly burn hydrocarbons. The new flare will require less steam to achieve a clean flare, as well as lowering noise and vibration.”

Last month, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) told ExxonMobil and Shell – which operates Fife Natural Gas Liquids Plant at Mossmorran – to deal with unacceptable impacts of flaring as soon as possible.

Ian Buchanan, chief officer for compliance at Sepa, said: “Sepa has been clear that repeated unplanned flaring by ExxonMobil was both unacceptable and preventable and that in future flaring will be the exception rather than routine.

“Having served a series of notices and operating permit variations to drive investment, including in noisereducing flare tips by 2020, we welcome today’s broad announcement from ExxonMobil.”

News of the investment was met with mixed reaction from local politicians.

Mark Ruskell, Green MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, said: “It is good to see the operator finally take steps to reduce flaring at this plant, and I know the many residents who have had to suffer light, noise and air pollution will be impatient for a better quality of life. However, many of my concerns remain.

“I can see nothing in these plans about investment into carbon capture and storage to ensure the plant meets the 2045 carbon neutral target, a technology seen as the solution by the first minister.”

Fife Conservative councillor Linda Holt, who is a member of Mossmorran Action Group, accused ExxonMobil of “dazzling people with numbers”.

And while welcoming the investment, Darren Watt, conservative councillor for Cowdenbeath, said: “For the last two years, we have been consistently told by the plant operators that it was a relatively modern plant and it is safe, reliable and fit for purpose, yet we’ve seen breakdown after breakdown and had to endure the impacts of flaring.

“They will still have a long way to go in rebuilding relations with affected residents, and questions will still remain about the plant’s overall environmental and social impacts, but for now I will welcome the news and watch with interest over the coming months.”

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We want people to understand that we understand – and are addressing the fact – that our reliability has not been what it needs to be. PLANT MANAGER JACOB MCALISTER

Picture: Steve Brown.