Introduction to FFS International
Fuel Firing Systems CC was established in South Africa in February 1974 by Tony Hurter. At this time, it was believed that the world was running out of oil. So Tony decided to move on from his position of Sales Manager of International Combustion Africa Limited/Combustion Engineering, selling large steam boilers. His mission was to produce alternative furnace fuels and the necessary innovative combustion equipment to fire these fuels.
The new company morphed into FFS Refiners (Pty) Ltd., based in Durban, with six plants around the country. The production of alternative fuels were from diverse sources, such as industrial and refinery waste oily emulsions, marine Marpol waste oils, refinery heavy residues. A large source was waxy oils, coal tars and coal tar pitch from the Sasol oil from coal plants.
The growth of FFS Refiners was phenomenal. At one period, FFS Refiners were supplying more than 50% of the black furnace fuels in South Africa. The company developed its own technologies for processing the diverse feedstocks, and built its own plants.
In 2013, Tony sold the family’s controlling shareholding in FFS Refiners to a Black Empowerment group led by Investec Bank. As part of the deal, Tony launched FFS Refiners Limited, a Jersey based company, administered from Monaco. In terms of the sale, FFS International retained the rights to use the FFS Refiners Intellectual Property world wide, except Africa. FFS International purchased FFS Refiners 50% shareholding of Transpacific Refiners in NSW, a company producing recycle base lubricating oil (has since been sold). FFS International also purchased the 40% shareholding of Re: Group Limited, a waste hydrocarbon recycler in Kingston Upon Hull.
FFS International pioneered the development of Supercritical Purification of Used Lube Oil. The pilot plant for this was tested in Re: Group, and a prototype reactor was designed and built in 2015. Extensive development, including design of bespoke high pressure valves, has been made since then. We have called this plant the Plugflow Reactor.