XOM Exxon Mobil Corp

   By Saurabh Chaturvedi 
 

SINGAPORE--Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) is planning a multibillion-dollar project in its Singapore refinery to expand its clean-fuel-products portfolio before the rollout of new global maritime fuel regulations, a senior company executive said.

"We are currently assessing" the investment plan, Matt Bergeron, vice president of the energy conglomerate's Asia-Pacific fuels business, said Wednesday at a conference here. The aim is to install technologies that will convert lower value fuel byproducts into cleaner higher-value products, he said.

The plan comes as the shipping industry prepares for a new cap on sulfur emissions that will come into effect in January 2020. The International Maritime Organization, a global regulator, will cap marine fuel's sulfur content at 0.5% compared with 3.5% now.

As the deadline nears, the industry is concerned about the availability and pricing of the cleaner fuels with lower-sulfur content that comply with the 2020 regulations.

Mr. Bergeron said Wednesday the proposed investment would help produce the fuel that would meet the new standards.

Exxon's Singapore refinery is one of the company's biggest by capacity. It also has a large integrated petrochemical complex in the city-state.

Write to Saurabh Chaturvedi at saurabh.chaturvedi@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 03, 2018 03:58 ET (07:58 GMT)

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