ENVIA Energy produces first Fischer-Tropsch product at gas-to-liquids plant

UK-based gas-to-liquids firm Velocys and US-based ENVIA Energy have produced their first Fischer-Tropsch product at ENVIA’s Oklahoma City plant.

The plant deploys a number of Velocys' full-scale commercial Fischer-Tropsch (FT) reactors.

These Fischer-Tropsch products are fractionated on site to produce premium wax, diesel and naphtha. The fuels produced at the plant are expected to qualify under the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) and generate tradeable credits in the form of Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs).

The operations team will now focus on ramping up production to full capacity and preparing for the performance test run on the plant.

David Pummell, CEO of Velocys, said: “This is a landmark event for Velocys’ technology and its commercial reference plant. We are delighted that the commissioning team has delivered a safe and successful start-up of the Fischer-Tropsch modules and upstream units at ENVIA during a challenging period of exceptionally cold weather.

“First product represents a major milestone for Velocys, ENVIA and the wider industry, and will be a springboard for the successful implementation of Velocys’ new strategy. The next goal for the ENVIA plant is to ramp up to full capacity, stable operation over the coming months. We look forward to inviting key stakeholders to visit the first commercial smaller scale GTL plant in the world.”