Oxea mulls downstream plant expansions in Texas

(hydrocarbonprocessing) -- Oxea is in the final stages of completing a feasibility study on additional downstream plant expansion projects at its site in Bay City, Texas, the Germany-based oxo-chemicals producer said on Monday.

The announcement follows a recent project in which Bay City syngas production was successfully raised by 10%, the company said.

The study is examining various scenarios to boost the plant’s capacities, as well as the further optimization of Oxea’s product portfolio, according to company officials. It is scheduled to be completed during the fourth quarter 2012.

Oxea’s Bay City plant is a large world-scale facility for oxo chemicals such as oxo-alcohols, carboxylic acids and acetate esters, the company says.

Oxea (Oberhausen, Germany),is a global manufacturer of oxo-intermediates and oxo-derivatives, such as alcohols, polyols, carboxylic acids, specialty esters, and amines, phthalate-free plasticizers.

MRC

(apic-online) -- Located at Map Ta Phut in Thailand, the cracker has ethylene production capacity of 461,000 mt/year and propylene production capacity of 127,000 mt/year.

According to a source in Thailand, the cracker will be taken off-stream in mid-November 2012, owing to technical problems and will remain shut for around 24 days.

PTT Public Company Limited, PTT PCL, or simply PTT is a Thai state-owned oil and gas company. Formerly known as the Petroleum AuThority of Thailand, it owns extensive submarine gas pipelines in the Gulf of Thailand, a network of LPG terminals throughout the Kingdom, and is involved in electricity generation, petrochemical products, oil and gas exploration and production, and gasoline retailing businesses.
MRC

(zawya) -- Qatar Petrochemical Company's (QAPCO) preparations are almost complete for what promises to be a memorable inauguration on the 20th of November 2012 at Mesaieed Industrial City for its new state-of-the-art petrochemical facility, the 2.3 billion Qatari riyal LDPE 3.

The new facility will produce prime high pressure grade LDPE than existing QAPCO facilities, thus positioning the company as a global leader in LDPE production.

Currently, QAPCO's manufacturing facilities consist of an 800 KTPA (kilo-ton per annum) ethylene plant, a 70 KTPA sulfur processing facility, and two pre-existing LDPE plants, with a capacity of 400,000 MTPA. While the LDPE 3 facility came fully online, it is designed to take advantage of the company's excess ethylene feedstock, it will be producing 300,000 metric tons of LDPE per annum; thus increasing QAPCO's annual production of LDPE to 700,000 metric tons per annum.

Testing and commissioning has already been completed, and with operating parameter normalized, the facility has been producing commercial prime grade LDPE since the mid-August, 2012.

LPDE 3's products will be sold through QAPCO's global marketing network, which stands at around 30-self operated offices, in addition to the logistic facilities.

Qatar Petrochemical Company (QAPCO) is a Qatar-based company established in 1974 and is a joint venture between Industries Qatar (80%) and Total Petrochemicals (20%). The company is currently one of the largest producers of low density polyethylene (LDPE) in the region. In addition to LDPE, QAPCO also produces linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), ethylene, and sulfur, which it sells to over 4500 industry customers in 145 countries through its extensive global marketing network.
MRC

(plastemart) -- PTT Global Chemical (PTTGC) is likely to make a final decision by year end whether it will join Indonesia's Pertamina in investing in a petrochemical business complex, as per The Nation.

PTTGC is in talks about a possible joint venture with Indonesia’s state oil-and-gas giant. The petrochemicals market in Indonesia is of significant size with an increasing number of oil and gas companies expected to make a foray after the inception of the Asean Economic Community in 2015.

As MRC wrote earlier, PTT Global Chemical Public Company Limited is one of the leading petroleum refiners and suppliers of refined petroleum products in Thailand. The Polymer product business produce a wide range of plastic products for use in various industries. Among the main products are HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, PS.

MRC

(plastemart) -- The state of West Bengal has shelved its commitment to building a petrochemical zone at Haldia, the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals has found a new project partner in Kerala.

A PCPIR is being proposed in the Southern Indian state of Kerala, with Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd as the anchor tenant or the main refiner. The Kerala government has submitted a formal proposal to the Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers to set up a petrochemical zone or a Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) in Kochi. The PCPIR will be in close proximity to BPCL’s refinery at Kochi, which is expanding its refining capacity from 9.5 mln tpa to 15.5 mtpa.

According to official sources, project will cost about Rs 9,000 crore, which includes cost of land, internal and external infrastructure, road and rail linkages, and setting up water supply systems. With the increased crude capacity of 15.5 mtpa, the refinery will produce 5,00,000 tons of propylene a year, in addition to various fuels, such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), high speed diesel (HSD), kerosene, aviation turbine fuel (ATF), petroleum coke, bitumen, etc. Sources said that by utilising the propylene, BPCL plans to establish joint venture companies for production of various base materials. As MRC reported earlier, in late September Bharat Petroleum has signed a MoU for its expansion project and the setting up of a petrochemical joint venture to be implemented in three years time at Kochi. The company will invest Rs.14,225 crore in its Integrated Refinery Expansion Project (IREP) at the Kochi Refinery and Rs.5000 cr for setting up a petrochemical joint venture.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) is an Indian state-controlled oil and gas company headquartered in Mumbai, India. Bharat Petroleum owns refineries at Mumbai, Maharashtra and Kochi, Kerala (Kochi Refineries) with a capacity of 12 and 9.5 million metric tonnes per year.
MRC