Zhejiang Rongsheng buys first Oman oil ahead of refinery start-up

MOSCOW (MRC) - Rongsheng International Trading Co, the trading arm of Chinese conglomerate Zhejiang Rongsheng Holding Group, has purchased at least two 500,000-barrel cargoes of Oman crude oil to prepare for the start-up of the group’s new refinery, several trade sources said, as per Reuters.

Unipec sold the first cargo for August delivery, and Oman Trading International sold another cargo that will arrive in October, the sources said.

Rongsheng International may have bought a third cargo from the Dubai Mercantile Exchange also for October delivery, one of the sources said. The oil is being held in bonded storage in Zhoushan that Rongsheng has leased from Sinopec and Sinochem, the sources said.

Rongsheng executives declined to comment.

Zhejiang Petrochemical, 51 percent owned by textile giant Rongsheng Holding Group, was in August awarded a quota to import 5 million tonnes of crude oil this year and the company plans to start up its 400,000-barrels-per-day refinery-petrochemical project in eastern China in late 2018.
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MOSCOW (MRC) – Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, announced the successful start-up of its MegaMax 800 methanol synthesis catalyst at China National Offshore Oil Corporation’s (CNOOC) China BlueChemical methanol plant in Hainan province, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

CNOOC is China’s largest offshore oil and gas producer, and its China BlueChemical subsidiary is a large-scale operation unit specialized in methanol-based chemical products and mineral fertilizers such as urea, phosphates, and compound fertilizers. The Hainan site’s “Phase 2” methanol production plant as CNOOC Kingboard Chemical Ltd, which has been operating since 2010, has an annual capacity of 800 kilotons and runs on DAVY™ methanol process technology. Clariant’s MegaMax 800 was recently installed at the “Phase 2” facility and commissioned on June 28, 2018.

With this catalyst, all key performance indicators were significantly improved compared to the facility’s previous catalyst start-up. Within the first 24 hours, the plant produced around 25 tons (1%) more methanol at 2% less make-up gas feed than in earlier performance runs. The increase in yield is largely due to the catalyst’s improved temperature distribution within the catalyst beds, as demonstrated by lower inlet and hotspot temperatures. Moreover, the steam drum can now be operated at significantly lower pressure while providing higher conversion per catalyst volume. Other improvements include lower operating loop pressure and slightly higher steam production.

Stefan Heuser, Senior Vice President & General Manager Business Unit Catalysts at Clariant, commented, "We are very pleased with the results of MegaMax 800 at CNOOC’s China BlueChemical methanol facility. Building on more than 45 years of experience in methanol synthesis, our catalyst provides excellent activity and selectivity for optimal methanol production in large or small production plants using various process technologies. It is the ideal solution for customers seeking higher profitability, flexibility, and security."

MegaMax 800 is designed to offer up to 40 percent higher productivity than previous catalyst generations and can maintain its performance benefit even at low-temperature conditions. This results in greater carbon efficiency and methanol yield while reducing synthesis gas consumption

Depending on facility design and processes, methanol plant capacity can be increased by up to 10 percent with MegaMax 800.

Another advantage of the new catalyst is its enhanced selectivity. Typically, by-product formation increases with time-on-stream, as the reaction temperature is raised to compensate for activity decay. With MegaMax 800, high selectivity is maintained over the catalyst’s entire lifetime, thereby considerably reducing the specific by-product formation. The catalyst is also exceptionally robust and highly resistant to poisoning, thus it provides the endurance required for demanding daily operation, and protects against process upsets.

In addition to MegaMax 800, Clariant’s ReforMax® 210 LDP and ReforMax 330 LDP catalysts are also used in the “Phase 2” plant, as well as in the “Phase” 1 methanol facility. With high operation loads, the operating life could recently be extended by an additional year and maintains high production rates and low-pressure drop.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Nudura Corp., a Barrie, Ont.-based maker of construction wall systems that use expanded polystyrene (EPS) and concrete, has been bought by Medina, Ohio-based industrial product supplier RPM International Inc., as per Canplastics.

The terms of the deal have not been disclosed. In a statement, RPM noted that Nudura has annual net sales in excess of USD40 million and that Nudura’s wall systems – known as insulating concrete forms (ICFs) – are a growth area in the construction materials market.

Pictured is one of Nudura’s insulated concrete forms (ICF) being installed. Nudura provides four series of ICF wall systems, consisting of foam boards made from expanded polystyrene and integral hinged plastic webs that hold both sides of the boards together. Concrete is then poured into the form to make an insulated concrete wall system. Photo Credit: Business Wire.

Nudura will operate within the RPM Specialty Products Group as a stand-alone operating unit of RPM’s Dryvit business, RPM also said.

Nudura provides four series of ICF wall systems, consisting of foam boards made from EPS and integral hinged plastic webs that hold both sides of the boards together. Concrete is then poured into the form to make an insulated concrete wall system. Nudura also offers a range of complementary building envelope products.

Nudura has three manufacturing plants and an extensive network of 260 locally based professional distributors in key North American markets. Its patented products are sold to design professionals, architects and contractors for residential and commercial applications. They are used to construct homes, schools, medical and commercial facilities, and other buildings that can benefit from the insulative and structural properties of ICF construction.

“Nudura is an excellent strategic fit that offers several key competitive advantages for Dryvit. Its product line will complement and expand Dryvit’s existing product offering, allowing for enhanced cross-selling opportunities,” RPM chairman and CEO Frank Sullivan said in the statement.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- The American Chemistry Council (ACC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced a new Alliance designed to foster safer and more healthful American workplaces operating with diisocyanate chemicals along the polyurethane value chain on 14 September 2018, according to GV.

Three groups from ACC will lead the work with OSHA: the Center for the Polyurethanes Industry (CPI) and the Diisocyanates (DII) and Aliphatic Diisocyanates (ADI) panels.

The Alliance has three primary goals: raising awareness of OSHA’s rulemaking and enforcement initiatives, conducting training to educate employers, workers and OSHA officials on safety issues, and developing effective outreach and communication efforts to increase the visibility of the partnership and its goals.

"We’re thrilled to be working with OSHA on making American workplaces even safer, which has always been a top priority for CPI and ACC as a whole," said Lee Salamone, senior director of CPI. "Our partnership with OSHA will build on our strong foundation of product stewardship and outreach and will help us identify additional areas of emphasis so we can better target our activities."

According to the agreement, the Alliance partnership aims to provide members, occupational physicians, stakeholders and others in the polyurethanes value chain with information, guidance and access to training resources that will help them further protect the health and safety of workers.

"The chemical industry is committed to safety and this partnership supports our continuing efforts to enhance worker protection,Э said Sahar Osman-Sypher, director of DII and ADI. ЭThe partnership will work toward further educating workers and employers on how to use diisocyanates safely in their everyday working environment."

The agreement provides the framework for the two organizations to work together toward the previously mentioned common goals. The agreement also stipulates a timeframe of two years - through September 2019 - for the Alliance.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil has announced it will open a new hub terminal for vessel and truck loading in Valencia, Spain in the first quarter of 2019, supporting the expansion of its global base stocks supply network, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The expansion is part of ExxonMobil’s continued investment in its supply logistics readiness to support a robust Group I and II offer from its European refineries.

"The addition of the Valencia hub terminal represents our ongoing commitment to growing our Group I and II supply reliability," said Julia Ruessmann, basestocks & specialties sales manager, EAME. "This major step in the Rotterdam expansion journey will provide our valued customers with an efficient supply offer, as well as the highest standards in customer service and product integrity."

ExxonMobil’s complete supply offer will be available from various hub terminals by vessel, truck or rail. Group II products will be available from Valencia in the first quarter of 2019, as well as from the Rotterdam, Vado and Liverpool supply hubs and distributors in Dubai and Durban.

Leveraging the regional presence and expertise of ExxonMobil Marine chartering, ExxonMobil will have the capacity to optimize shipments and deliveries between products and locations, providing the highest quality of service and an enhanced customer experience.

ExxonMobil will begin EHCTM production at its Rotterdam refinery following the completion of its hydrocracker expansion project at the end of 2018, with full commercialization of EHC50 and EHC120 targeted for the first quarter of 2019. In advance of startup, ExxonMobil continues to increase storage capacity and supply reliability and to collaborate with additive companies to provide maximum product coverage.

Once the Rotterdam project is complete, ExxonMobil will become the largest global Group I and Group II producer and the only supplier with significant base stock manufacturing assets across three continents.

As MRC wrote before, in October 2017, ExxonMobil Chemical Company commenced production on the first of two new 650,000 tons-per-year high-performance polyethylene (PE) lines at its plastics plant in Mont Belvieu, Texas.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world's oil and about 2% of the world's energy.
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