Mitsubishi, Celanese to expand polyacetal complex in South Korea

(hydrocarbonprocessing) -- Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co. says it is expanding polyacetal (POM) production at its joint-venture facility in South Korea, increasing its production by 35,000 tpy. The construction of the new facility will start in the first quarter of 2012 and will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2013.

Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co. (MGC) says it is expanding polyacetal (POM) production at its joint-venture facility in South Korea, increasing its production by 35,000 tpy.

The plant is a joint venture with US-based specialty chemicals producer Celanese, who owns the other 50%. In 1988, Mitsubishi began production of POM at its plant in Ulsan, and annual production has now reached over 100,000 tons.

The additional 35,000 tpy of capacity made possible with MGC technology will be combined with the current capacity to bring total POM production capacity to 140,000 tpy, the company said.

The construction of the new facility will start in the first quarter of 2012 and will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2013. Commercial operation is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2014.

MRC

(downstreamtoday) -- BASF India Limited will invest EUR150 million to set up a new chemical production site at the Dahej Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR), located on the west coast of India in Gujarat.

The new site will be an integrated hub for polyurethane manufacturing and will also house production facilities for care chemicals and polymer dispersions for coatings and paper. With this new production site, BASF aims to ensure local supply for growing markets and industries such as appliances, footwear, automotive, construction, adhesives, architectural coatings, paper and personal care. The start of production is planned for 2014.

"With its robust local industries, India is set to become a pillar of growth in Asia Pacific. The country's changing demographic profile and the resulting need for improved quality of life are driving increasing market demand. With the new manufacturing facility, we will be able to serve our customers better by developing solutions that meet their individual needs as well as strengthen their competitive advantage," said Dr. Martin Brudermueller, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of BASF SE, responsible for Asia Pacific.

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(downstreamtoday) -- Natural gas pipeline construction companies are organizing themselves to tackle smaller midstream projects rather than long transmission pipelines, according to the president and CEO of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America.

Don Santa shared what he has heard from pipeline industry contacts at a Washington, D.C., energy policy conference on tight oil hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies on April 3.

Asked if oil pipeline construction was cutting into gas pipeline construction, Santa said this did not seem to be the case. "Anecdotally - we haven't taken a look at this analytically - we have not seen that in any way," he said. "There was a tremendous level of pipeline construction activity that occurred between two and four years ago where, because of the amount of activity going on at the same time, it had an impact on the prices of a lot of the inputs, ranging from steel to construction companies, pretty much across the board. I have not seen any evidence that that is affecting natural gas pipeline construction prices."
MRC

(hydrocarbonprocessing) -- Bayer MaterialScience has agreed to acquire the polycarbonate sheet business of Arkema, which includes the company's Tuffak line of products used in such markets as aerospace, transportation and heavy equipment. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Bayer MaterialScience on Thursday said it plans to acquire the North American polycarbonate sheet business of Arkema, which includes the company's Tuffak line of products used in such markets as aerospace, transportation and heavy equipment. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

In addition to the Tuffak line of sheet products, the acquisition includes production equipment that will be transferred to Bayer MaterialScience's sheet business in the NAFTA region, the company said.

In an effort to provide customers with a smooth transition, Arkema will continue to produce the products for several months through a tolling agreement with Bayer MaterialScience, officials said.
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(hydrocarbonprocessing) -- BP's planned biofuels refinery in Hull will be commissioned later this year, executive director Byron Grote said. When operational, the plant will have capacity to produce 420 million liters of ethanol and 500,000 tons of high protein animal feed from 1 million tons of locally grown wheat.

BP's planned biofuels refinery in Hull will be commissioned later this year, said executive director Byron Grote.

BP is developing a bio-refinery in the north eastern English city to produce ethanol through its Vivergo Fuels venture with DuPont and British Sugar. "The Hull ethanol facility will be commissioned later this year," said Grote, who was addressing a shareholder question at BP's annual general meeting.

When operational, the plant will have capacity to produce 420 million liters of ethanol and 500,000 tons of high protein animal feed from 1 million tons of locally grown wheat.

BP has said Vivergo could supply over 30% of UK ethanol requirements under its Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation.
MRC