Shell, Wison to Develop Plant in China With New Gasification Tech

A Royal Dutch Shell PLC unit and Shanghai-based Wison Engineering Ltd. will jointly develop a demonstration plant in China using new gasification technology, Shell said on Feb. 15. The plant will use hybrid technology that allows processing a wider range of feedstocks, has a simpler design and costs less than existing gasifier technology, , Shell said in the announcement.

It said the project could expand the market for synthetic gas, the main product of the gasification process, which can be used as feedstock for chemicals, hydrogen and fertilizer. The plant will use aspects of Shell's coal gasification design along with bottom-water quench technology, a system that uses water to cool gas and slag.

Wison Engineering specializes in petrochemical, coal chemical and oil-refining engineering. Shell has been actively selling its coal gasification technology in China, amid support by China's government support for coal gasification as part of a push for cleaner use of its massive coal resources and to cope with a shortage of natural gas.