NIS has started building an amine unit within the gas refinement production complex in Elemir. The introduction of the technology for natural gas purification to the technological process of the gas refinement unit is to enable the separation of CO2 from natural gas produced by the Company in the territory of Serbia. The operation of the amine unit is to enable the reduction of CO2 quantity in the gas produced by NIS to the amount of 3%, which corresponds to the technical requirements for its usage in the domestic gas distribution network in Serbia. It is in this way that NIS will have an opportunity to increase the quantities of natural gas delivered to the Serbian market and thereby the related profits. In order to purify natural gas from CO2 and other impurities, NIS is going to apply the HiPACT technology (High Pressure Acid Gas Capture Technology), one of the ecologically safest and most efficient ones among the existing technologies (in comparison to the technologies used before, savings in heat and electricity, as well as consumable materials in the application of this technology may reach 25%). The CO2 separated during the technological process will be removed to previously prepared wells owned by the Company, which will prevent it from reaching the atmosphere. The volume of investment in the construction of the amine unit and related infrastructure is RSD 3.3 billion. The company selected as a general contractor in the project on the basis of tender results is Ludan Engineering LTD (Israel). It is planned to finalise the construction of the unit no later than the fourth quarter of 2014. The project of supplementing the production chain for gas refinement is a part of NIS` comprehensive programme to increase the effectiveness of gas resources usage. “The technology to be used for the purpose of CO2 separation from natural gas has never been used in the Balkans before. In this way NIS reaffirms its dedication to the implementation of the latest technologies in all segments of its operations. The possibility of improving the quality of natural gas provides us with the opportunity to increase the effectiveness in the operation of both our production unit and the entire system,” said Predrag Grujić, Director of the LPG Production Unit.
