ABB’s Cellier Activity has been awarded the contract to install new lube blending technologies and its unique process control system at PT Shell Indonesia’s Marunda Lube Oil Blending Plant (LOBP) in Jakarta, Indonesia, in an effort to drive efficiency and increase productivity.  

Harnessing its Lubcel™ process control system, ABB will deliver total process control and scheduling software to support the plant’s entire production system, from raw material reception and storage to product dispatch incorporating blending, transfers, filling, and warehouse. 

The supply agreement also includes a new Simultaneous Batch Blender to blend medium and large volumes alongside two new Automatic Batch Blenders to blend small size batches and specialty products. Other technologies such as Drum Decanting Systems, a Viscosity Index Improver dispersing unit, Pigged lines, and Pigged Manifolds will be incorporated. 

“With these process solutions PT Shell Indonesia will be able to optimize all aspects of continuous and batch operations at the existing brownfield site, monitoring and managing everything from raw materials use, product formulation, sub-recipes and recipes, resources, inventory logs, production batches and cleaning sequences,” said Bert Engbers, global account manager for Shell, ABB Energy Industries.

Tailored to meet the needs of the customer, the ABB process solution has been designed to ensure it works with existing lubricant blending tools as well as support the expansion of Shell’s existing site to meet the company’s diverse and growing portfolio of products. 

By fully automating its processes, Shell can drive the efficiency of its operations, improve availability, traceability and safety, as well as ensure it complies with international product quality standards. 

With growing industrialisation and rising consumer spending on automotive products, including lubricants, across Indonesia, this investment is a key step by Shell to meet increasing lubricant market demand for more varied and higher quality products. 

“At every stage of development we have strived to ensure efficiency is at the forefront – from plant design to maintenance – in order to provide capital and operational expenditure benefits. By leveraging ABB’s blending technologies, we can ensure reduced complexities and risks, delivery of high process flexibility and improved plant availability, making the LOBP more productive and more market responsive,” said Jean Vandevelde, ABB area sales manager for Cellier Activity.

The control platform will also plug into the facility’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and include measures to reduce slops and to re-use rinsing products, in a concerted effort to reduce the plant’s environmental impact.

The project builds upon a longstanding relationship between ABB and PT Shell Indonesia dating back to 2014.  

ABB (ABBN: SIX Swiss Ex) is a leading global technology company that energises the transformation of society and industry to achieve a more productive, sustainable future. By connecting software to its electrification, robotics, automation and motion portfolio, ABB pushes the boundaries of technology to drive performance to new levels. ABB’s success is driven by about 110,000 talented employees in more than 100 countries. www.abb.com.