ExxonMobil opens 3rd cogeneration power plant in Singapore
(Corrects combined capacity to 440 MW in 2nd paragraph, and numbers for emissions cuts and cars in 5th paragraph)
By Jessica Jaganathan
SINGAPORE, Oct 12 (Reuters) - U.S. oil major ExxonMobil officially opened its third cogeneration power plant in Singapore on Thursday on the site of its Jurong refinery, increasing its total cogeneration capacity in the city-state by nearly a quarter.
The new 84 megawatt cogeneration plant - which produces both electricity and steam - will increase the energy efficiency of the refinery, the company said. Together with its two other plants, the Jurong site has combined power capacity of 440 megawatts.
The start of the facility comes ahead of a proposed carbon tax to be introduced from 2019 on direct emitters which will include the three refineries in Singapore, including ExxonMobil's Jurong site.
Countries around the world have been under increasing pressure to crack down on carbon emissions, with Singapore part of the historic Paris climate accord that went into force late last year.
Steam production from the new Jurong facility will allow the company to shut down two older, less efficient boilers and in turn reduce emissions and reduce 265 kilotonnes per year of carbon dioxide emissions - equivalent to taking more than 90,000 cars off the roads of Singapore, it said. (Reporting by Jessica Jaganathan; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
