INFORMATION 12
PUBLIC INFORMATION
The Electrolysis process and the real July 2018
costs of production
As explained in our information sheet on its thermodynamics (Information Sheet 11), production
of chlorine, caustic soda (KOH or NaOH) and hydrogen by the European chlor-alkali industry re-
quires salt, water and a large amount of energy under the form of electricity and steam. There are
real costs associated with this electricity which in turn influence the cost of the end chemicals.
A schematic overview of the membrane production Based on the amounts of chlor-alkali produced and
process (one of the main technologies to produce the current prices for electricity, steam and the
chlor-alkali), including the main material streams, required raw materials, it is possible to calculate
is presented below. The membrane process is of the production costs of chlorine, caustic and hydro-
particular interest because, by 2018, around 85% of gen.
chlorine produced in Europe will come from this
technology.
An overview of the chlor-alkali production
process and the main material flows.
Brine is a highly concentrated solution of salt in
water.
Cost range %
Component Use per ton neCl2 Unit cost
per tonne Cl2 of total costs
Electricity
- electrolysis unit 2.10 - 3.00 MWh € 34 - 86 € 71.4 - 258 50.6 - 51.1
- rest of plant 0.02 - 0.38 MWh € 34 - 86 € 0.70 - 32.7 0.5 - 6.5
Salt 1.65 - 1.75 ton € 15 - 50 € 24.8 - 87.5 17.6 - 17.3
Water 1.63 - 1.70 m³ € 1-2 € 1.60 - 3.40 1.1 - 0.7
Treatment chemicals € 12.0 - 4.0 8.5 - 0.8
Steam 0.06 - 1.65 ton € 10 – 30 € 0.60 - 49.5 0.4 - 9.8
Manufacturing costs € 30.0 - 70.0 21.3 - 13.9
Total € 141 - 505
Overview of the costs in the membrane process.
Unit cost is the cost of each MWh/tonne or m3 of
each key component
The table clearly shows the large variations in local Finally, there are additional manufacturing costs to
costs. be taken into account. These cover maintenance,
operation, personnel, machinery updates, etc. The
For example, European electricity prices can range previously mentioned studies estimate these manu-
from € 34 all the way up to € 86 per MWh for extra- facturing costs at being between € 30 and € 70 per
large electricity consumers. This can be shown in ton Cl2.
2016 information from the International Energy
Agency. Overall, the cost range, per tonne Cl2, varies be-
tween € 141 and € 505 with the associated electric-
The cost of salt depends on its type (quality) and
source (brine/evaporated salt, rock salt/sea salt) ity costs ranging between € 72 and € 291.
and the distance it has to be transported. The puri-
ty of the salt, typically varying between 95% and
99.9%, also influences the amount of other treat- Conclusion:
ment chemicals that are needed to achieve the
required brine quality level. Whilst lower purity The cost of electricity accounts for
salt may be cheaper, it will require more treat- 51-58 % of the total chlor-alkali production cost.
ment chemicals.
This is why, in the table above, lower salt prices
are linked to higher treatment chemical costs and
vice-versa. The relative costs of salt, water, treat-
ment chemicals and steam prices per unit are tak-
en from benchmark studies by Townsend.
Much more about chlorine at www.eurochlor.org
Chlorine chemistry applications: www.chlorinethings.eu
Euro Chlor Communications
AV. Van Nieuwenhuyse 4, box 2
B—1160 Brussels
Tel. +32 2 676 73 51
www.eurochlor.org
