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Shell Catalyst & Technologies plant in Port Allen, Louisiana, 2019

How Shell Catalysts & Technologies is Powering Progress in Port Allen

The Port Allen plant produces catalysts that enable Shell and other refining customers to reduce emissions in the treatment and production of diesel and gasoline fuels.

By Shell Catalysts & Technologies

22 May 2024

Shell Catalysts & Technologies' Port Allen plant, located in Louisiana, plays a crucial role in Shell's mission of supporting our customers during the energy transition. The Port Allen plant is SC&T’s largest catalyst plant and is expected to become one of the world's largest hydrotreating catalyst plants at the completion of Project BlueCAT. The site produces catalysts that enable Shell and other refining customers to reduce emissions in the treatment and production of diesel and gasoline fuels.

One initiative at the Port Allen plant that best highlights the company’s goal of respecting nature and supporting customers is Project BlueCAT. This initiative is aimed at increasing the plant's catalyst manufacturing capacity, allowing Shell Catalysts & Technologies to increase its customer base and to support customer investments in the energy transition. The project will also allow Shell Catalysts & Technologies to diversify the type of catalysts produced at the plant, helping them to meet more refiners' needs and further support their decarbonisation goals.

The emission reduction strategies employed by Project BlueCAT are a testament to Shell's commitment to our Powering Progress strategy. The project uses heat recovery techniques to help minimise the amount of gas needed for heating processes, and the equipment used is built to specifications that often exceed environmental requirements. These strategies allow the Port Allen plant to deliver a higher volume of carbon-reducing products without a significantly larger footprint.

Shell Catalysts & Technologies' commitment to the Respecting Nature pillar of our strategy also plays out in the construction and material selection for the expansion. For example, instead of sending demolished concrete to landfills, it's sent to a recycling plant, processed and used in fresh batches of concrete, helping to offset potential environmental impacts. This practice, along with others implemented under Project BlueCAT, not only benefits Shell's customers by providing them with high-performing catalysts but also contributes towards a more sustainable future.

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