experience

VFuels' expertise lies in the modularization of process equipment. Our team has a track record of years of experience in developing, designing, engineering, fabricating, and delivering modular refinery, gas projects, early production facilities (EPFs) and metering skids globally.

Plan & Goals

The goal of modularization in the oil and gas market is to reduce capital costs, accelerate delivery schedules, and to efficiently minimize field construction, thereby ensuring every project is on schedule, budget, and scope.

Design & Development

VFuels designs, engineers, and fabricates all of its process modules in-house, with an experienced design, engineering, and construction team. VFuels can deliver modular process equipment in as little as ten months from the execution of a project.

VFuels has a 120,000 square foot modular fabriaction facility in Northwest Houston, Texas, USA. The facility is an ASME Code U & R Stamp facility (with 100 Ton Crane Capacity) and also specializes in the Design and Fabrication of High/Low Pressure Vessels. VFuels’ strategic location in Houston is within a short distance of experienced labor and the entire supply chain of equipment suppliers and vendors for its process equipment needs. All fabricated units ship from the facility by truck and are transported internationally via the Port of Houston.

In 2021, VFuels opened VEnergy Park, its new modular construction headquarters in Brookshire. With the opening of this new facility, we have added significant fabrication capacity, additional office space for engineers & designers, and the ability to deliver much larger and complex modules. The fabrication facility occupies just over 100 acres and allows enough lay-down / test-fit area for several projects simultaneously.

A modular refinery is a simplified refinery requiring significantly less capital investment than traditional full-scale refinery facilities. The initial process, or Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) allows for simple distillation of crude oil into low octane naphtha, diesel, kerosene and residual fuel oil.

Gasoline, Aviation Fuel, and Low or Ultra-low Sulfur Diesel require secondary processing such as hydrotreating and reforming that reduce sulfur content and provide high-octane gasoline. VFuels partners with industry leaders such as Axens, UOP/Honeywell, Haldor Topsoe, and others to produce these licensed processes in a modular package.

Modular Refineries have two main components, the inside battery limits (ISBL - process equipment) and the outside battery limits (OSBL). The ISBL includes the CDU and other process equipment designed and fabricated by VFuels in Houston, Texas.

OSBL features include site work, roads, fencing, foundations, buildings, storage tanks, truck loading, piping, electrical, fire protection, compressed air, nitrogen, wastewater treatment and oily water treatment. Construction timelines for a modular refinery can range from 15 to 18 months from the start of a project to the first barrel of oil processed. VFuels can deliver a turnkey modular refinery or gas processing project with its Joint Venture partners or the EPC firm of a client's choice.

VFuels can assist with the development, design, engineering, and fabrication of any modular gas project. Projects involving stranded gas, associated gas, flare gas, and pipeline gas can be modularized and delivered by VFuels. VFuels can assist with Modular Skid Packaging, Pressure vessels and Gas turbine Exhaust Systems. VFuels has considerable experience in packaging Amine Plants, Dehydration Plants, Refrigeration Plants, Stabilizer Units, Cryogenic Skid, Pump Skids, Chemical Injection Skids, and Fuel Gas Conditioning Skids.

VFuels’ Houston and Africa business development teams are uniquely positioned to serve their respective markets. VFuels can get involved in the early stages of a refinery or gas project to assist each client with its own unique requirements. VFuels can provide Pre-FEED engineering, Business Plans, Front End Engineering & Design (FEED) of both ISBL and OSBL refinery sections, Detailed Design & Engineering (DD&E), as well as licensing support, regulatory & legal review support, environmental support, and fundraising support.

VFuels’ engineering team has decades of experience in the implementation of successful modular refinery projects. This experience, coupled with its relationships with international, local, and indigenous EPC contractors, fuel marketers, and governmental entities enable VFuels to deliver specific and highly beneficial definition and bankable feasibility studies for each client. These comprehensive studies help enable clients to obtain financing from local banks, private equity funds, or large export / import banks such as US EX/IM Bank.

Our procurement division builds on VFuels’ track record of successfully executing projects in Africa and the Middle East. VFuels is able to support a wide range of oil & gas clients with the sourcing and delivery of chemicals, spare parts and specialized equipment. 

VFuels’ ability to navigate complex operating environments and deliver projects on time and on budget makes it an ideal partner to meet the procurement needs of a wide range of energy companies and contractors.

VFuels is a US company and is therefore eligible to assist its clients in obtaining financing and bank guarantees from the US Export-Import Bank (EX/IM). Qualified buyers can be financed for up to seven years on 85% of the US content of their projects and 30% of the local content at very attractive rates.

Equity of 30% is required for EX/IM support, after which 100% of the project is guaranteed through EX/IM.

100% licensing track record with regulatory bodies (Nigeria’s NUPRC, Liberia’s DCI, SONANGOL/SONAREF, Texas Department of Environmental Quality etc)

United States Trade and Development Association (USTDA) Project for DD&E for Nigerian Eko Petrochem Modular Refinery

10,000 bpd Pecos County Modular Refinery Project

Turnkey 5,000 bpd Nigeria Modular Refinery Project and Turnkey 5,000 bpd Expansion

Turnkey 10,000 bpd Liberia Modular Refinery Project

5,000 bpd US Renewable Diesel Project with Axens Technology

30 FEED and DD&E packages designed and delivered since 2013

30,000 bpd Angola Modular Refinery Project with Axens Technology (Largest Modular CDU built in the world)

25,000 bpd Nigeria Hydro skimming Modular Refinery Project with Axens Technology