Gazprom Neft has concluded an agreement with metallurgy companies Severstal and EVRAZ on collaborating in developing hydrogen production, transportation, storage and utilisation technologies, and on reducing CO2 emissions, in Russia and abroad.
The three companies are looking at hydrogen as a promising energy source. Converting some steelmaking infrastructure to hydrogen will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while basic “blue-hydrogen” production technologies involving steam methane reformation (SMR) involve actually recycling carbon dioxide.*
Gazprom Neft has experience in closed-cycle CO2 collection, processing and re-injection — its Serbian subsidiary NIS (a joint venture between Gazprom Neft and the Republic of Serbia) having been involved in a project on collecting and purifying high CO2-content natural gas from various fields since 2015. The CO2 extracted is then injected into developed reservoirs, at a depth of more than 2,500 metres.
This agreement envisages Gazprom Neft sharing experience in CO2 recycling, while the metallurgy companies will assess the potential for transferring their hydrocarbon-fuelled production facilities over to methane—hydrogen blends. The parties will also analyse hydrogen production, transportation and storage technologies.
“We routinely recycle CO2 through reinjection into oil and gas reservoirs as part of our operations. We have accumulated significant experience in these kinds of projects and are ready to share these skills and competencies with our partners, and with the market at large. Expert advice is that CO2 reinjection is one of those tools without which global emissions reductions are just not going to be achieved. We want to share our skills with metallurgy companies to develop production technologies that minimise man-made environmental impacts.”
Vadim Yakovlev Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, Gazprom Neft
“Reducing our carbon footprint and combating climate change will be a significant theme in the coming decades, and is one of the long-term priorities of Severstal’s sustainable development programme. It should be noted that we see not just challenges and risks, but also huge opportunities in this field. Technologies and projects for the capture and disposal of CO2 and the production of hydrogen will continue to grow rapidly in the Russian Federation and globally over the next decade, and this will open up a great opportunity for us to capitalise on, and could even provide additional income for our business. I am confident that together we can make a significant contribution towards achieving our strategic goals of reducing CO2 emissions and, at the same time, realise the potential of hydrogen for its use in the raw materials market of the future.”
Alexander Shevelev CEO, Severstal
“Reducing GHG emissions is one of priorities EVRAZ sets in its environmental strategy. We support the global low-carbon agenda, while looking for new opportunities to modernise our production facilities in a bid to contribute to climate stability and improve the environmental situation in those communities in which we operate. I am positive that CO2 capture, disposal and utilisation technologies, as well as the use of hydrogen as energy source, have huge potential for our coal and steelmaking assets.”
Alexei Ivanov Senior Vice President, Commerce and Business Development, EVRAZ
* “Blue hydrogen” is hydrogen produced by steam methane reformation (SMR) and involving technologies for capturing and storing the CO2 released during this process.
PAO Severstal is a vertically integrated steel and steel-related mining company with its main assets in Russia and a small number of assets abroad. It owns the Cherepovets Steel Mill, the second largest in Russia
EVRAZ is a vertically integrated mining and metallurgy business with assets in the Russian Federation, the USA, Canada, the Czech Republic and Kazakhstan. EVRAZ is among the top steel producers in the world, and has approximately 70,000 employees, worldwide.
Gazprom Neft is a vertically integrated oil company primarily engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, refining, and the production and sale of petroleum products. In terms of production and refining volumes it stands among the top three largest companies in Russia. Gazprom Neft’s corporate structure comprises more than 70 exploration and production, refining and retailing enterprises throughout Russia, the CIS, and the rest of the world. The company operates across 110 countries, worldwide. Gazprom Neft’s filling station network currently totals more than 2,000 outlets throughout Russia, the CIS and Europe. Gazprom Neft is one of the Russian oil industry’s leading companies in terms of efficiency. Company revenues in 2020 were ₽2 trillion, adjusted EBITDA ₽485 billion, and net profit ₽117.7 billion. Gazprom Neft’s largest shareholder is Gazprom PJSC, which holds a 95.68 % interest, with the remaining shares in free circulation.
