Energy Efficiency and Sourcing Renewable Energy

Energy Consumption

In PJ

As an integrated oil, gas, and chemicals company, the OMV Group operates large facilities and is also a major energy consumer. The amount of energy we use creates a significant impact on the environment. Effective management of energy consumption reduces the environmental cost of our operations, increases financial savings owing to our energy efficiency measures, prevents non-compliance with regulatory requirements on energy use, and reduces GHG emissions.

Energy efficiency measures therefore have a considerable effect on issues relating to energy consumption and are of particular interest to certain stakeholders:

• Government authorities: compliance with the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) regulations relating to the submission of emission allowances within the EU ETS, compliance with the national transposition of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive, which requires greater energy efficiency in all stages of the energy value chain, and performing obligatory energy efficiency audits every four years
• Shareholders and other stakeholders with a direct financial interest in the OMV Group: financial savings resulting from reduced energy consumption, lower production costs, and lower GHG emissions
• NGOs/NPOs: reduced impact of our operations on the environment

Management and Due Diligence Processes

The OMV Group’s Environmental Management Standard requires that all OMV businesses and activities use energy responsibly, conserve primary energy resources, and implement energy management plans in accordance with ISO 50001.

Identification Measures

The potential for reducing energy use is identified in annual campaigns encouraging improved environmental performance, including energy consumption. For example, we have set targets for the refineries to reach certain energy intensity index ratings through annual monitoring campaigns. Based on their energy intensity, we identify and assess areas for improvement in terms of energy efficiency. Subsequently, we decide which measures to implement to reduce energy consumption as part of our environmental governance process.

Borealis is responsible for 24% of the energy consumption of the OMV Group. Furthermore, Borealis sees the energy-efficiency-first principle as a cornerstone in achieving its climate strategy. The defined energy ambition is to implement 10% energy savings of the consumption of 2015 by 2030. As OMV and Borealis operate joint facilities in Schwechat and Burghausen, an initiative to identify and increase joint synergies across both sites was established.

Projects identified in 2022 were evaluated during 2023, with the potential for implementation from 2024 onward. For instance, the Schwechat refinery currently supplies boiler feed water to the Borealis facility. By adapting the supply lines, this boiler feed water can be replaced with cheaper, colder, and fully desalinated water, resulting in energy and CO₂ savings.

Technical Improvements

Energy efficiency measures in OMV operations are closely linked with technical improvements directed at reducing energy use while achieving the same operational output. Process optimization and increasing energy efficiency to reduce costs and CO₂ emissions are also a priority at our refineries. At the Schwechat refinery, measures have included the optimization of the blade rows in one of the steam turbines, which has resulted in an increase in the efficiency of the high-pressure section of the turbine, and a subsequent increase in the electrical output equal to the steam rate. Ultrasonic atomizer nozzles for power plant boilers were also installed to promote the atomization of liquid fuel to improve the quality of combustion. This resulted in a reduction in exhaust gas losses, fuel demand, combustion air demand, and CO₂ emissions.

The implementation of planned energy efficiency measures was interrupted by the unplanned shutdown of the RD4 crude oil distillation plant at the Schwechat refinery in 2022, resulting in severe delays. Some of the measures were implemented in 2023, and those remaining are expected to be finalized in 2024.

Sourcing Renewable Energy for Operations

We are increasingly turning to renewable sources of electricity to power our operations. One way of doing this is by purchasing renewable energy, which subsequently reduces our Scope 2 emissions. For instance, in our refineries in Schwechat and Burghausen, electricity contracts stipulate that 50% of purchased electricity must be from renewable sources. As such, in 2023, 50% of the purchased electricity at the Schwechat refinery and the Adria Wien Pipeline (AWP), 51.8% at the Burghausen refinery, including tank farms and pumping stations, came from renewable sources. 100% of the electricity purchased by OMV’s Austrian filling stations and the head office are obtained from renewable sources. For OMV’s refineries and the AWP, the electricity contracts are generally spot-indexed and contracted on a one- to three-year basis. Commodity pricing risk is managed using financial risk instruments.

To reduce our Scope 2 emissions and to achieve the target Borealis has set of sourcing 100% of the electricity it uses from renewable sources by 2030, the OMV Group continued to establish Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) to source renewable electricity on a longer-term basis, and sourced the electricity and utilities needed for its production processes. Several PPAs with renewable energy providers are already in place. These include:

• PPA between OMV and WEB Windenergie AG. With an output of 5.6 MW and annual electricity production of 13.7 GWh, the anticipated clean wind energy supplied to the OMV Group will be used to generate green hydrogen using an electrolyzer at the Schwechat refinery in 2023.
• Borealis and Finnish energy company Fortum have signed a long-term PPA to source renewable energy from two onshore wind parks. Starting mid-2024, 800 GWh of renewable power will be supplied to the Borealis production operations in Porvoo, Finland, over the course of eight years.
• Borealis and Axpo Nordic, a subsidiary of Switzerland’s largest renewable energy provider, have a PPA for wind energy, which includes the annual supply of more than 130,000 MWh of wind power to the Borealis production location in Stenungsund, Sweden, over the next ten years. The electricity will be generated by a new onshore wind farm (Hultema) located in central Sweden, with delivery expected to start in January 2024.
• In Belgium, Borealis has a PPA with Eneco, a Dutch energy supplier. The energy will be generated by an existing offshore wind park (Mermaid) located in the North Sea.
• Borealis has a co-investment agreement with VERBUND to build a PV plant (4.8 MWp) at its production location in Schwechat, Austria, and a ten-year PPA to obtain renewable hydroelectricity from two existing hydro plants in Austria, which are part of VERBUND’s portfolio.

To help reduce our Scope 1 emissions, the OMV Group also produces renewable energy and uses it to power our operations. Some of these initiatives include:

• In Austria, OMV and VERBUND built a ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) plant at Schönkirchen with a total capacity of 15.32 MWp. The generated electricity is used for ongoing operations in OMV Energy Austria. Since mid-2022, the photovoltaic plant installed during both Phases I and II has been operational simultaneously. In 2023, approx. 13.6 GWh of renewable energy was produced and used for ongoing operations at our Austrian E&P assets within our OMV Energy business segment.
• The commercial operation of OMV’s PV installation in Lobau began in early 2022, where a PV tracker system with an output of 5.6 MWp was installed. In comparison to a fixed installation, the tracker system, which follows the path of the sun, enables an increase in the generation of sustainable electricity of approximately 10%. Production efficiency was increased by another 5% by installing solar panels with bifacial (double-sided) modules. In 2023, the PV plant at the Lobau tank farm produced around 7.0 GWh of renewable energy covering approximately 45% of the annual electricity demand of the tank farm and resulting in savings of around 2,100 t CO₂ per year.
• In Norway, our joint venture partner Equinor reached full output of renewable power produced from the largest floating offshore wind farm called Hywind Tampen. The Hywind Tampen wind farm consists of eleven floating wind turbines with a total capacity of 88 MW, offsetting 200,000 t of CO₂ emissions and 1,000 t of NO_x emissions per year. The capacity covers the annual power demand of five platforms at the Snorre and Gullfaks oil and gas fields in the North Sea. In 2023, 48.3 MW of renewable energy was delivered to the Snorre and Gullfaks fields and 50,000 t CO₂ emissions were saved.
• The Cosmești solar park comprises 6,500 photovoltaic panels installed over an area of approximately 30,000 m². The green energy produced (approximately 2,500 MWh/year) will be used to supply electricity for ongoing operations in the E&P segment. This will result in a reduction of about 550 t CO₂.
• The Brădești solar park comprises 3,350 photovoltaic panels installed over an area of approximately 18,500 m². The green energy produced (approximately 1,200 MWh/year) will be used to supply electricity for ongoing operations in the E&P segment. This will result in a reduction of about 250 t CO₂.
• In Tunisia, utility air compressors with photovoltaic panels were installed at the Waha wells, while the Nawara well sites and pipeline valve stations were also equipped with PV panels for autonomous electricity generation. 
• By the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, PV panels were installed at approximately 1,700 OMV and OMV Petrom filling stations The electricity produced from these installations annually is estimated at 8,900 MWh and presents savings of approximately 2,400 t CO₂e.
• The installation of solar panels on the roof of the warehouse in Māui, New Zealand, was completed in 2023. 196 panels were installed with approximately 78 kW capacity; of that, approximately 20 kW is used for internal purposes and the excess is exported.

Borealis is working to reduce its energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions and increased the share of renewable energy consumed from 28% in 2022 to approximately 38% in 2023, as well as signing PPAs to lock in renewable energy supply for years to come.

2023 Actions

Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency measures implemented at our three refineries in 2023 have made it possible to achieve an annual reduction of more than 27.5 kt CO₂e and energy savings of 654 TJ. These include:

• The HDS2 project was implemented at the Burghausen refinery in June 2023. It has an annual savings potential of about 37 TJ and CO₂ savings potential of about 2.1 kt. Thanks to the two new and improved reactor effluent heat exchangers, the fired heat in the HDS2 furnace can be reduced.
• Due to commissioning and the refinery shutdown, the District Heating Hub at the Schwechat refinery was not in full operation in 2023. When it was operational, around 100 TJ and 6 kt of CO₂ was saved.
• At OMV Petrom, an upgrade of the aromatic complex was initiated at the Petrobrazi refinery, and once finalized in 2025, it will achieve an annual saving of approximately 49 TJ and a CO₂ savings potential of about 3.2 kt. These savings will be achieved thanks to the extractive distillation technology, which reduces the amount of steam consumed.

In C&M, examples of energy efficiency measures taken include the following:

• Borealis successfully completed a major upgrade to its steam cracker operations in Stenungsund, Sweden. The overhaul is expected to realize yearly CO₂ emissions reductions of up to 24,000 t.
• A new regenerative thermal oxidizer was successfully installed at Porvoo and is expected to significantly lower the site’s CO₂ emissions, reduce flaring, and save around 60 gigawatt hours (GWh) of energy annually.

In OMV’s Energy segment, the key energy efficiency projects included the following:

• In Norway, OMV and Wintershall signed a five-year rig contract for the use of the Transocean Norge platform. OMV will drill a minimum of seven wells with this rig, including four exploration wells and one development well. Energy efficiency is part of a contract incentive to reduce fuel consumption and further reduce CO₂ and NO_x emissions. The rig was used in a drilling campaign in August and September 2023 that resulted in an emissions reduction of 27% and 76% reduction of NO_x. In the Velocette drilling campaign, energy optimization software and a closed bus system for dynamic positioning were employed to reduce fuel consumption by approximately 27%.
• In the Māui field in New Zealand, the Māui A gas turbine generators were optimized by shifting the load between two units, thus allowing them to operate more efficiently. At the Māui Production Station, the surge controllers on the refrigerator compressors were also optimized, reducing the gas recycle as a result. Between the two projects, a saving of approximately 4,250 t CO₂e will be achieved annually.
• A legally required energy audit was conducted for Waha CPF, Nawara CPF, and GTP to assess the energy performance of the plants and implement appropriate improvement actions.

Outlook

We will continue to identify measures to improve energy efficiency and operational renewable energy initiatives. Examples of actions to be taken in the coming years are as follows:

• At the Schwechat refinery, a new preheating system will be installed for steam boiler 5, which is expected to result in an estimated saving of 2,000 t CO₂e.
• In Burghausen, the waste steam condensate stream from the Metathesis plant will be used to heat the cooler steam condensate from the crack-gas compressor increasing the energy efficiency of the process and resulting in an annual reduction of approximately 2,300 t CO₂e. By 2025, OMV Petrom aims to install PVs at half of its network of OMV Petrom filling stations. PV panels at additional OMV filling stations in Austria, Hungary, and Slovakia are also scheduled to be installed in 2024.
• In Austria, additional PV plants will become operational, including in Arbesthal and Würmlach, which will have a power output of approximately 1.1 MWp and 3 MWp respectively.

We will continue to increase our sourcing of renewable energy to power our operations. For the OMV Group, will aim to source an additional 580–780 GWh per annum of renewable electricity through additional PPAs and solar power investments. In C&M, the segment purchasing the greatest amount of energy, our aim is to ensure that all energy purchased is renewable by 2030. In the future, where local regulations permit, we also plan to produce renewable energy and feed it into the electricity grid for use by third parties. The potential for doing this in the countries where we have business operations is currently being evaluated.