AVK Gulf comes to the rescue while upgrading the fire water line butterfly valves in Abu Dhabi Polymer Company’s Petrochemical Complex in their Polyethene Plants 1 & 2
Polyethene production in Ruwais
Abu Dhabi Polymer Company, also known as Borouge, is a joint venture between Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Borealis which produces value-creating polymer solutions for the agriculture, infrastructure, energy, mobility, and healthcare industries.
The company operates one of the world’s largest integrated polyolefin complexes in Al Ruwais Industrial City, which provides differentiated polyolefin solutions that bring value to polymer manufacturers, converters, and end-users internationally.
The Ruwais Plant operates a comprehensive production process, starting with ethane supplied by ADNOC Gas and propylene from ADNOC Refining. Ethane is processed through three main crackers, producing 2.2 million tonnes of polyethylene annually. Some of this polyethylene is further refined to olefins and low-density polyethylene, and part of the low-density polyethylene is then converted into cross-linked polyethylene. Parallelly, propylene from ADNOC Refining is used to produce 2.18 million tonnes of polypropylene each year. In its entirety, these operations support a total manufacturing capacity of 5 million tonnes annually, highlighting the Ruwais Plant's pivotal role in industrial production in the UAE.
AVK valves to the rescue
In 2022, during a periodic visit to the operations and maintenance team of Borouge, our segment manager was informed of a major cause of concern at their site; the existing fire water lines were experiencing significant leakage. These lines run around their plants ‘1’ and ‘2’, carrying vital water to extinguish a fire in case of an incident or emergency. The valves in these fire water lines play a critical role in the plant’s operation, and it was expected that the valves in these exact lines were highly efficient. Upon closer inspection during site visits, it became evident that the loose liner butterfly valves in those lines were not optimally designed for the purpose, causing substantial water loss, wastage and reducing efficiency of the fire water network. Diving deeper into the issue, we discovered that the valves in use were non-UL-FM-approved therefore did not meet the safety standards. Using these unfit valves was causing the issues within the fire waterlines.
Expert total savings and lasting innovations
In our attempt to provide a long-term, cost-efficient solution, we proposed our FM-approved vulcanised bonded butterfly valve solution, specifically designed for seawater service. We emphasised the superiority of our product over the existing loose liner valves, which required regular maintenance and still resulted in leakages after regular upkeep.To demonstrate our strengths, we suggested to educate Borouge about the salient features of our Wouter Witzel butterfly valves, highlighting their suitability for their specific needs. An outline of the significant OPEX cost savings our solution would offer was also presented, which covered i.e. savings on repair, maintenance, downtime, and shutdown costs for the plant. The value proposition of our Wouter Witzel valves’ 10-year warranty was an assurance of our product which would make our valves the last thing to worry about on their comprehensive maintenance to-do-list. A stark contrast to the 12-18-month warranties offered by other manufacturers for seawater service.
As a result of the first delivery, we received additional orders and are in the process of replacing the next set of valves.
Products supplied to the project
- 91 pcs Wouter Witzel butterfly valves, Series 75, fixed liner, DN200-400
