KBR (Houston; www.kbr.com) announced today the successful startup of the JSC EuroChem Northwest Phosphorit 2,890 metric ton per day (m.t./d) ammonia plant in Kingisepp, Russia. The facility’s 1-million ton/yr ammonia production capacity is the largest in Europe and relies on KBR’s Purifier ammonia technology.
KBR was the technology licensor and provided basic engineering design for the $1-billion project. KBR’s Purifier technology was selected for its low energy usage, flexibility and lower capital costs.
“We are proud to have taken part in this ambitious project,” says John Derbyshire, KBR president, Technology Solutions. “Even at this large scale, the KBR Purifier ammonia process is flexible, reliable, and will provide tremendous cost benefits for many years to come.”
“Today, you have to be a leader — both in terms of technology and product slate— to win in the marketplace,” says Alexander Tugolukov, head of EuroChem’s fertilizer division. “We recognize this, and are continuously striving to achieve new qualitative levels based on the best world-class technologies. For this project, we have applied the best technology by KBR to produce 1 million tons of ammonia per year, with 15% better energy performance, as compared to the existing production facilities.”
KBR also provided various state-of-the art digital solutions suitable for a best-in-class modern world-scale ammonia plant. These include KBR’s remote operations monitoring and expert advisory service Ammonia InSite, a virtual 3D graphics-embedded Operator Training Simulator including e-learning system as well as a Reliability Based Maintenance system.