BP partners Cetdem to increase awareness of climate change

KUALA LUMPUR July 19 - BP Malaysia has established a partnership with the Centre for Environment, Technology and Development Malaysia (Cetdem) to address the issue of climate change, and to increase the awareness among the Malaysian public of the matter, its associate president Datuk Peter M. Wentworth said.
He said together with Cetdem, the company would be organising more programmes to raise awareness of the matter with government agencies, corporate sector, media and non government organisations (NGOs) as well as provide a platform for these various stakeholders to discuss initiatives towards reducing the impact of climate change in Malaysia.
Wentworth said this at a press briefing held in conjunction with a workshop on "Enviromental Challenges of Climate Change", here Monday.
Monday's workshop, organised jointly by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and BP Asia Pacific (Malaysia) in collaboration with Cetdem, was part of the partnership's undertaking to address the climate change issue.
Other initiatives to be undertaken by the partnership this year include a seminar for the Petronas Intergrated Petrochemical Complex in August, briefings at universities in September and an exhibition at the national Science Centre in November.
Wentworth said that BP had committed resources in terms of staff and funds towards the programme, which has been named "Mobilising Malaysians on Climate Change".
The project would also involve actual reductions of Green House Gas (GHG) emissions in BP's acetic acid and purified teraphthalic acid (PTA) plants.
"BP Petronas Acetyls (BPPA) plant, our acetic acid joint venture in Kertih had achieved nine percent total reduction in CO2 emmission per tonne of acetic acid produced by October 2003. It was four percent higher than our target set at the end of 2002," he said.
The reduced requirement for steam and boiler feedwater resulted in BPPA saving US$680,771last year, he said.
"Futhermore, our BP Chemicals' PTA plant in Gebeng, Pahang has developed plans for the reduction of GHG in 2004 which would include the installation of two turboespander off-gas preheaters which is expected to reduce CHG emissions by 9,000 tonnes per year and an off-gas energy recovery plan in 2005 which will reduce GHG emissions by 170,000 tonnes per year," he added.