Air Products and Chemicals Signs Contract With Marathon Petroleum To Build Michigan Hydrogen Plant

Air Products and Chemicals Inc. (Air Products and Chemicals) has signed an agreement with Marathon Petroleum Company LLC (Marathon Petroleum), a subsidiary of Marathon Oil Corporation, to construct a hydrogen production facility in Detroit, Michigon. Detroit hydrogen facility will be built through the alliance between Air Products and Chemicals and Technip. Technip provides the design and construction for steam reformers while Air Products and Chemicals provides the gas separation technology.

The steam methane reformer will have a hydrogen production capacity of more than 50 million standard cubic feet per day and is projected to be completed in the second quarter of 2012. The facility will provide hydrogen and steam for Marathon Petroleum’s heavy oil upgrade project.

This alliance continues to provide the worldwide refining industry with competitive technology and world-class safety. Technip provides the design and construction expertise for steam reformers while Air Products and Chemicals provides the gas separation technology. Air Products and Chemicals, through its extensive operating network, and Technip, from its large reference base, also bring effective operational and engineering knowledge to design-in high reliability and efficiency. The plants are operated and maintained by Air Products and Chemicals under long-term agreements with customers.

“Increased and reliable hydrogen supply will be important to Marathon’s heavy oil upgrade project. As more sour crude oil is brought in from sources around the world, the requirements for additional hydrogen to make cleaner burning fuels also grows. Air Products has been working with Marathon to produce cleaner burning fuels for more than a decade and we are pleased to expand our relationship with this new project in Michigan,” said Alex Masetti, vice president - North America Tonnage Gases at Air Products and Chemicals.