President & CEO, Honeywell UOP, Honeywell UOP LLC
Honeywell UOP helping drive the energy transition through innovation
In an exclusive studio interview from ADIPEC 2023, Julian Walker sat down with Bryan Glover, Chief Growth Officer at Honeywell ...
About Bryan Glover
In interviews from 2021 and 2022, Bryan Glover stated that hydrocarbons will remain a significant part of the global energy mix for some time and emphasized the importance of using them as efficiently as possible during the transition to a lower-carbon future. He said the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is well-positioned for lower-carbon solutions due to its combination of upstream production and downstream refining, which he said creates opportunities for carbon capture and storage and for tailoring products to lower carbon intensity. Glover described the repurposing of existing refinery assets into biorefineries as a "very strong growing thread" in the industry. Glover discussed challenges for developing a hydrogen economy, stating that green hydrogen will take longer to develop because it requires significant growth in renewable primary energy sources to ensure a net reduction in greenhouse gas intensity. He also noted that the COVID-19 pandemic may have accelerated the peak in fuels consumption by up to five years due to changes in working habits and energy use. Glover advocated for collaboration across the value chain, saying that conferences and conversations help stakeholders understand each other's challenges and opportunities to accelerate progress on decarbonization.
Transcript (17 segments)
I
Interviewer0:09
Hello and welcome to our Energy Kick Studio AD 2023. I'm delighted to be sitting with me in the studio Bryan Glover, Chief Growth Officer, Honeywell PMT. Bryan, thanks for joining me.
B
Bryan Glover0:21
I'm really happy to be here and good to have you back in the studio as well.
I
Interviewer0:24
Let's start by looking at Honeywell's UOP business. What is UOP bringing to the table to help the global energy set meet its goals?
B
Bryan Glover0:34
Well, UOP has been focusing on a broad range of solutions for energy transition and emissions management. This includes carbon capture technologies for pre- or post-combustion, both cryogenic and liquid solvent. We combine that with our hydrogen purification business—over 1,100 units sold—to offer advanced CO2 capture for hydrogen production, working with industrial partners to bring that to market. On energy storage, we're developing flow battery systems for long-duration storage, leveraging our membrane technology. In plastics recycling, our UpCycle process converts mixed waste plastics into feedstock for steam crackers or FCC units. For renewable fuels, our Ecofining process has been licensed 40 times for renewable diesel and increasingly sustainable aviation fuel, processing a wide range of feedstocks. We also have a methanol-to-jet process for e-fuels, and we're launching a process to convert woody biomass into feedstock for Ecofining to produce SAF, renewable diesel, or marine fuel.
I
Interviewer4:26
That's really interesting. It sounds like a lot of momentum at Honeywell globally to drive the transition.
B
Bryan Glover4:33
Yeah, there's been a lot of momentum. We see it here at ADIPEC. The focus and resolve of companies is there. As we introduce new technologies, we're seeing very quick adoption. For example, we were selected for a large blue hydrogen project with ExxonMobil in Baytown, Texas, that will capture up to 7 million tons per year of CO2. That shows the rapid advance of technology from offering to commercial application. The Ecofining process continues to evolve, and people are stepping in to use these technologies quickly. The industry is sincere about achieving its goals and moving forward aggressively on new projects.
I
Interviewer6:25
And how important is that, to get from the pilot stage or to get commercialization of technologies to make energy transition a reality? We can't just stand around.
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Bryan Glover6:33
It's incredibly important to move from development or pilot to running because that provides the first proof point. People can see it, touch it, understand at full scale the cost and performance. Then it's on a journey of continuous improvement. That's the history of the industry—nothing stands still. These first units are just the start of a long evolution to bring costs down and make the path to a sustainable future easier.
I
Interviewer7:39
Yes, and how does your new role fit in? As Chief Growth Officer, you took over a couple of months ago. I'd like to hear about that.
B
Bryan Glover7:47
This has been a very exciting transition for me, from leadership of UOP to Chief Growth Officer of PMT within Honeywell. It's focused on innovation—Honeywell grows through innovation. In PMT, innovation is focused on sustainability, with solutions like advanced materials, low-GWP refrigerants, and the UOP portfolio. My role is about taking next generation opportunities and technologies, driving them from basic research to commercialization. We set up this function to accelerate that. So going forward, we'll extend our sustainability solutions across traditional and new industries where we have key capabilities.
I
Interviewer9:36
I was, Bryan, before we go, a theme: decarbonization. On that, our climate targets—1.5 degree increase above pre-industrial levels—are they achievable? And how do we get there? Collaboration is key, isn't it?
B
Bryan Glover9:55
I think in terms of targets, we all want to get there, net 1.5 or less. ADIPEC has been a great example of the drive to get that done. The level of focus and insightfulness I've seen here and traveling around the Middle East has been impressive. There's a realization that this is where much of the world's energy comes from, and they are leaning into technologies, doing a lot of investment. From our perspective as a technology company, it's satisfying having talks about deployment and partnerships. There's so much interest and effort going into this that we're going to see a lot of real innovation and activity around decarbonization in the Middle East, with thought leadership coming from this region.
I
Interviewer11:28
Absolutely, I agree with that. And obviously we've got COP28 around the corner, so we'll see where that conversation goes. I think it'll be a good extension of what we've seen here.
B
Bryan Glover11:37
I think the opening ceremony this morning and the initial discussion were very inspiring. There's so much focus and intent. We all look forward to great ADIPEC and a lot of momentum coming out of COP28, continuing to drive on and working together to get the job done.
I
Interviewer11:59
Absolutely well, thank you so much for giving me your time today, coming down to the Energy Connect Studio.
B
Bryan Glover12:07
Thank you. I'm delighted to be here and really enjoyed our time. Thank you.
I
Interviewer12:14
Thanks everyone for watching. I look forward to bringing more studio interviews from the show floor in the coming days.