Assessment of CO2 emission mitigation for a brazilian oil refinery

Currently the oil refining sector is responsible for approximately 5% of the total Brazilian energy related CO2 emissions. Possibilities to reduce CO2 emissions and related costs at the largest Brazilian refinery have been estimated. The abatement costs related to energy saving options are negative, meaning that feasibility exists without specific income due to emission reductions. The assessment shows that short-term mitigation options, i.e., fuel substitution and energy efficiency measures, could reduce CO2 emissions by 6% of the total current refinery emissions. It is further shown that carbon capture and storage offers the greatest potential for more significant emission reductions in the longer term (up to 43%), but costs in the range of 64 to162 US$/t CO2, depending on the CO2 emission source (regenerators of FCC units or hydrogen production units) and the CO2 capture technology considered (oxyfuel combustion or post-combustion). Effects of uncertainties in key parameters on abatement costs are also evaluated via sensitivity analysis33