Petrochemical facilities are an integral part of the  global, competitive and dynamic oil and gas supply chains.  The petrochemical industry is diverse and complex, and navigating the complexities of this environment requires a deep industry understanding.  Plants need to be operated at low unit cost.  Capital needs to be deployed to the most productive uses.  Integrated and responsive supply chains, superior logistics, marketing and sales are crucial factors for success.  Local circumstances play a big role in optimal decision-making. 

The petrochemicals industry is dynamic and must continuously adapt to changes in market needs, environmental requirements, technology improvements and a range of other factors.  Some trends are predictable, such as the ongoing shift from coal and oil feedstocks to natural gas feed, the persistent need for lowering of energy requirements and the ever-increasing need for relevant product quality, but other changes are unexpected and requires flexibility and fleet footedness from industry participants. 

How we help Petrochemicals clients

We work with established owners, project developers, development agencies and financiers to identify  and develop opportunities in the petrochemical industry,  and convert these opportunities into projects that deliver the necessary return on capital investment.  Furthermore we assist owners in audits of existing facilities for valuation purposes or performance optimisation.  All of this is done in a manner that ensures efficient, competitive, sustainable and environmentally responsible businesses.

Our depth of experience and expertise in the petrochemical value chain is unique. OTC consultants each have over 30 to 40 years’ experience typically in owner/operator roles in project and business development and operations.  A substantial portion of this experience is in the petrochemical industry for most of the OTC consultants.  This experience is both in the production of the petrochemical building blocks (ethylene, propylene, aromatics, methanol and ammonia) and in the derivatisation of these building blocks into products such as polymers, fertilisers, solvents, surfactants, intermediates, mining products, etc.  We have limited experience in the second and third stages of derivatisation into specialty chemicals and performance chemicals.

How we work

Our approach has evolved over many years being hands-on involved in strategy, business development, operations, profitability improvements, environmental sustainability, safety enhancement as well as community relations.  Our methodology is adaptable to meet our clients’ unique requirements.  

The petrochemical industry is extremely diverse and complex.  In spite of the extensive experience within OTC and our expanded network, there are still some processes, products and applications that would be outside our knowledge and experience, and we undertake to inform a potential client if we are not equipped to serve a client on such a request.  On the other hand, we do have some expertise and experience in inorganic chemicals (non-petrochemical) and we might be able to assist in those areas.

Apart from the core consultants listed on this site, we have access to a much wider group of petrochemical experts.  Especially in the complex petrochemical industry, this enables us to serve a much wider variety of needs than would have the case otherwise.  We have successfully worked with individuals from this wider network on previous assignments and found that we could mobilise them fast and fairly seamlessly, even on the first assignment that they participate in. 

Our aim is to optimise businesses through detailed analyses of business and operations performance and identification of improvement opportunities. Opportunities are translated into either interventions (organisational, procedural) or capital projects.

We will always ensure that business objectives are translated into project objectives.  We take on the role of owner representative and/or as members of a project team together with developers, financiers, EPC contractors and operators to optimise and deliver on shared business objectives.    We also have an extensive network of strategic partners and alliances which can be quickly drawn on to ensure the best possible outcomes.

We have developed a comprehensive knowledge base of proven best practices which we use in assignments.

OTC’s multidisciplinary team of seasoned consultants are highly experienced in petrochemicals and the complexities of the integrated oil value chain.  Our team is very familiar with conceptual studies, capital projects, engineering design, operational/business excellence, auditing and validation.