PTQ Q3 2026 Issue

pt q&a

More answers to these questions can be found at www.digitalrefining.com/qanda

Q What are the most interesting refining technologies to consider beyond 2030? A Abdallah Al Zyoud, Regional Marketing Manager, Refining Catalyst, BASF, Abdallah.al-zyoud@basf.com Looking beyond 2030, the refining technologies that will matter most are those that increase operational flexibility, strengthen the link between refining and petrochemicals, and deliver tangible improvements in environmental per - formance – without compromising reliability or economics. High-severity conversion units, such as fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) and advanced hydroprocessing, will remain central to this evolution. These assets are already being pushed to process a broader range of crudes, residues, and alternative feedstocks, while at the same time being asked to adjust product yields in response to shifting fuels and petrochemical demand. Continued advances in catalyst formulation, metals tolerance, and selectivity control will be essential to supporting this flexibility. Closer integration between refining and petrochemicals is also expected to accelerate. Technologies that enable higher yields of propylene, light olefins, and aromatics, whether through FCC operation, catalyst system design, or down - stream integration, are becoming increasingly relevant as demand growth continues to favour chemicals over transpor - tation fuels. Solutions that allow refiners to move along this spectrum with limited disruption will be especially valuable. Another important area is the co-processing of lower- carbon and circular feedstocks. Incorporating renewable or waste-derived streams into existing refinery units offers a pragmatic route to reducing lifecycle carbon intensity while leveraging installed infrastructure. This, however, places additional demands on catalyst robustness and unit oper - ability – areas where accumulated industrial know-how plays a critical role. Finally, digital tools and advanced analytics are steadily becoming part of mainstream refinery operations. When combined with strong process and catalyst fundamentals, data-driven approaches to optimisation and predictive maintenance can help refiners extract additional value from existing hardware while improving reliability. Overall, the most successful technologies beyond 2030 are likely to be those that deliver incremental but cumu - lative gains across flexibility, efficiency, and sustainability, building on proven refining platforms rather than replacing them outright. A Scott Sayles, Manager, Renewable Fuels and Alternate Feeds, Becht, ssayles@becht.com Emerging technologies will define the future of refining, but four years is too short a timeframe for meaningful trans - formation – most of the changes we might see by then are already in play today. The following expands the timeframe to 2030 and beyond:

The Paris Accord set greenhouse gas (GHG) emission targets with 2030 as the deadline and split the world’s leadership. Some regions (like Europe) reacted quickly, while others (like the US, India, and others) are changing slowly or not at all. These actions generally fall into two approaches for addressing transportation-related GHG emissions: renewables and fossil fuels. Renewable fuel conversion to transportation fuels (such as hydrotreating) was emerging about 10 years ago and is now an accepted practice. Looking beyond 2030, technol - ogy changes may become more dynamic. Refineries might switch from primarily fossil fuel processing to supplying transportation fuel, power, and other fuels. For example, nuclear power could be used for hydrogen production as well as power supply for process units and other customers. The conversion of refineries into electrical power suppli - ers seems like a natural change, with power demands for data exchange and EVs potentially fulfilled by these facili - ties. Operations may further shift toward producing more ecologically acceptable fuels, such as hydrogen via elec - Feedstocks could begin changing from crude oil to seed oils and waste streams, with more recycled streams processed, such as pyrolysis oils from plastics and tyres trolysis. Feedstocks could begin changing from crude oil to seed oils and waste streams, with more recycled streams processed, such as pyrolysis oils from plastics and tyres. These changes would alter the look and feel of the refin - ery. For example, small modular reactor (SMR) units need large areas (around 500 acres or more), and storage for materials like plastic bales could significantly expand the refinery footprint or replace existing tank farms. These shifts would also impact staffing, requiring different engi - neering and operational expertise and potentially changing management structures. During the transition, fossil fuel production by conven - tional refining technology will continue to supply most of the world’s transportation energy. Demand for fossil fuels is likely to remain strong approaching 2030 and beyond, as the alternatives require time to implement. However, the fossil fuels produced will increasingly be blended with renewables to reduce environmental impact. In the short term, shocks to the oil supply system (such as the Iran crisis) could potentially raise fossil fuel prices to levels approaching breakeven with renewable fuels. While the probability appears low, it could represent a tipping point.

PTQ Q3 2026