Smaller-scale and modular technologies drive GTL industry forward

Lee Nichols, Editor/Associate Publisher, Hydrocarbon Processing Between 2013 and 2015, numerous GTL facility projects were announced, primarily in the US. GTL technology was made attractive to investors by the onset of cheap natural gas prices (spurred by US shale gas exploration) vs. a spike in crude oil prices. At the time, only a few commercial-scale facilities were operational around the world, and the possibility of producing greater volumes of ultra-clean transportation fuels from cheap, environmentally friendly feedstock created this surge in new GTL project announcements. However, as crude oil prices have fallen dramatically over the past 2 yr, many GTL projects have lost their pri