Petrochemicals NEWS

South Korea's crude imports and middle distillate exports will likely extend their upward momentum into June as refiners continue to maximize operating rates to fully capture lucrative product cracks.

A refining golden age, tightening global gas markets and improving telecom subscriber quality point to a USD 20 billion-plus EBITDA run rate for Reliance Industries Ltd by end-2022, Morgan Stanley

The move by Asia's biggest oil refiner to hit the brakes on a potentially half--billion-dollar investment in a gas chemical plant and a venture to market Russian gas in China highlights the risks of unexpectedly heavy Western-led sanctions.

Haldia's Rs 37.50 crore offer for Coastal is just Rs 1 crore above liquidation value which once again raised questions over confidentiality of valuatiion reports as first pointed out in Videocon's resolution case.

Mistry will lead the business and operations of nine refineries and petrochemical plants of Indian Oil, which has 80.55 million tonnes per annum of refining capacity. She is the first woman to ever lead a refinery unit in Indian Oil.

The Dung Quat oil refinery has increased its production to 103 percent of normal capacity to make up for the production cut by Nghi Son, the country’s largest refinery. Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Jsc, the operator of Dung Quat in the central province of Quang Ngai,

Asia's petrochemical makers are shifting, or considering to use propane as alternate steam cracker feedstock amid the deepening discount of propane to naphtha, as LPG is pressured by ample supply and a lull in Chinese and Indian demand, traders said Jan. 21. South Korean crackers have started seeking propane, traders said, even when the discount of February FEI propane swap to the Mean of Platts Japan naphtha was around $26.25-$26.50/mt over Jan. 17-18, before widening to $36/mt Jan. 20. This is the deepest discount since June 8, 2021, at $41.50/mt, Platts data showed. In contrast, the difference between FEI propane and MOPJ naphtha was at a premium of $185/mt on Oct. 4 last year.

The solar power sector in Gujarat is facing serious challenges with an investment of Rs 1,500 crore hanging in balance in rooftop projects, according to estimates by a clutch of solar power developers. They made a representation to the state’s energy and petrochemicals department recently. They have claimed that more than 200 projects with installed capacity ranging from 10KWh to 1MW are on hold.

Siemens Energy and Linde Engineering have joined hands to enhance the sustainability and performance of petrochemical facilities. Siemens' low-emissions energy systems along with Linde Engineering’s expertise in steam cracker technology and other downstream processes will open up enormous benefits for petrochemical customers. The partners also plan to explore how renewable technologies and energy storage can be used to support customers’ decarbonization initiatives.

Sources have revealed that Rosneft-owned Nayara Energy is planning on investing $19 billion in at Vadinar near Jamnagar. Staying in line with its expansion plans, the energy firm plans on setting up a 10.75 MMTPA capacity petrochemical complex and expand the refinery from 20MMTPA to 46MMTPA. The expansion will also be a debut venture into petrochemical business for the firm.

State-run Qatar Petroleum has inked an agreement with Chevron Phillips Chemical to construct a new petrochemicals complex. The new petrochemical plant, which is expected to come online by 2025, will be developed in Ras Laffan Industrial City. While Chevron Phillips Chemical Co (a JV between Chevron Corp and Phillips 66) will possess a 30% interest in the complex, Qatar Petroleum will own the rest.

State-owned Qatar Petroleum yesterday informed about inking a 10-year sales agreement with Thailand’s SCG Chemicals. The long-term supply agreement will require QP to deliver 3 million metric tons of Light Naphtha to SCG, beginning April 2019. The agreement marks the first Qatar Petroleum for the Sale of Petroleum Products Company (QPSPP) naphtha feedstock sale to an end-user like SCG in Thailand.

Leading technology provider, HoneywellUOP has announced the award of work for propylene production in Vietnam. Phu My Plastics Production JSC will deploy Honeywell’s C3 Oleflex™ technology for manufacturing polymer-grade propylene at its facility in the country. The proprietary C3 Oleflex technology converts propane to propylene through catalytic dehydrogenation. This award is first in line for Honeywell’s propane dehydrogenation technology in Vietnam.

Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd’s ₹28,700 crore-investment proposal received clearance from the Odisha government yesterday. The Indian downstream player proposed to establish an integrated refinery and petrochemicals facility in Balasore. A state government official revealed that the government will allocate land and consider fiscal concessions for the project. HPL’s proposed unit is estimated to produce 1.6 mtpa of paraxylene and 2.5 mtpa of PTA, and light naphtha and petrol.

In an inauguration ceremony yesterday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled BPCL’s integrated refinery expansion complex in Kochi. The integrated refinery comes with world class standards and would establish Kochi Refinery as the largest PSU refinery in India. The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for a new petrochemical complex at the Kochi refinery, apart from inaugurating a mounded storage vessel at the LPG bottling plant of the IOCL refinery.

Concluding the startup procedure that begun in December at its Geismar facility, Shell Chemical LP started production of the fourth alpha olefins (AO) unit. Total AO production at Geismar has increased to more than 1.3 million tpa, post the 425,000-tpa capacity expansion. The addition of new AO unit at Geismar has demonstrated the tactical value of its integrated downstream division.

Supermajor, BP and Azerbaijani state-owned SOCAR’s subsidiary in Turkey yesterday entered into a Heads of Agreement (HoA). Under the agreement, the two oil firms agreed to assess the formation of a joint venture for building and operating a world-scale petrochemicals complex in Turkey. The complex is expected to manufacture 1.25 million tpa of purified terephthalic acid (PTA), 840,000 tpa paraxylene (PX) and 340,000 tpa benzene.

French supermajor Total’s JV with Amsterdam-based Corbion, Total Corbion PLA informed about starting-up the new bioplastics plant in Rayong, Thailand. The 75,000 tpa-capacity plant will produce poly lactic acid (PLA), which is in high demand. The firms are looking to meet rising demand in markets such as consumer goods, packaging, 3D printing and the automotive industries.