Exxon's Baton Rouge refinery CDU work to take 5 weeks

MOSCOW (MRC) - A planned overhaul of the second-largest crude distillation unit (CDU) at Exxon Mobil Corp’s 502,500-barrel-per-day (bpd) Baton Rouge, Louisiana, refinery is expected to continue for at least five weeks, said sources familiar with plant operations, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The 110,000-bpd PSLA 9 CDU was shut on Feb. 11 for the overhaul, the sources said. "The average time a unit may be down can range from several weeks to several months," said Exxon spokeswoman Megan Manchester. "We continue to meet contractual commitments."

In addition to PSLA 9, the refinery’s 22,500-bpd coker was shut for the work.

The Baton Rouge refinery’s three CDUs do the primary refining of crude oil into feedstocks for all other production units, as well as producing unfinished motor fuels.

Cokers refine residual crude oil received from distillation units into motor fuel feedstocks.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Zagros Petrochemicals has undertaken an emergency shutdown at its No.1 methanol plant at Assaluyeh, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Iran informed that the company has taken its plant off-line last weekend owing to a technical glitch. The plant is likely to remain shut for around one week.

Located in Assaluyeh, Iran, the No. 1 plant has a production capacity of 1.65 million mt/year.

We remind that, as MRC informed before, in late January, 2019, Japanese refiners loaded Iranian oil onto a tanker, resuming imports after halting purchases because of sanctions by the United States.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- In Asia, China has 33 planned and announced propylene plants, with a total capacity of about 11.0mtpa by 2026, said Hydrocarbons-technology.

Capital expenditure (capex) for these plants is USD7.33bn. Major capacity additions will be from Oriental Energy Co Ltd. In the Middle East, Iran has 14 planned and announced propylene plants, expected to start operations with total capacity of about 2.8mtpa by 2026. Capex for these plants totals USD2.71bn over the next nine years. Major capacity additions will be from The National Petrochemical Co.

The US has three planned and announced propylene plants, with a capacity of about 1.2mtpa over the next nine years, and plans to spend $0.90bn. Major capacity additions will be from Formosa Plastics Group.

In the Former Soviet Union (FSU), most propylene capacity additions are in Russia, with capacity of about 1.6mtpa by 2026. Capex for these plants totals USD1.66bn by 2026. Sibur Holding is the top company accounting for the major capacity additions in Russia.

In South America, Brazil and Bolivia together plan to spend USD1.10bn and add capacity of 1.2mtpa, expected to come onstream by 2026. In Africa, Nigeria plans to spend USD1.64bn and add capacity of about 1.7mtpa, expected to come onstream by 2026.

In Europe, the major propylene capacity additions are from Belgium, with planned and announced capacity additions of about 0.7mtpa by 2026. Capex for these plants totals USD0.71bn.

Dangote Group, Oriental Energy Co Ltd, and Formosa Plastics Group are the top three companies by planned capacity additions globally over the next nine years.

Lyondell Basell Industries NV, Exxon Mobil Corp, and Formosa Plastics Group are the top global producers of propylene, with capacities of 3.9mtpa, 3.4mtpa, and 2.9mtpa, respectively, in 2017.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Asia, the Middle East, and North America are the top regions contributing to capacity additions in the next nine years, said Hydrocarbons-technology.

Asia has 594 planned and announced plants, of which China has 257 with a total capacity of 118.1mtpa by 2026. Capital expenditure (capex) for these plants in China is estimated to total $89.5bn by 2026. China Petrochemical Corp, Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Co, and Zhejiang Rongsheng Holding Group Co are the top three companies accounting for the major capacity additions in China.

In the Middle East, the majority of capacity additions are in Iran, with planned and announced capacity additions of about 59.7mtpa by 2026. Capex for these plants totals USD49.8bn by 2026. National Petrochemical Co, Sepehr Makran Iran, and Sepehr Energy Corp are the top companies accounting for the major capacity additions in Iran.

The US has 109 planned and announced petrochemical plants, adding capacity of about 63.1mtpa by 2026. The capex for these plants is $64.8bn by 2026. Major capacity additions will be from IGP Methanol LLC and NW Innovation Works.

In the Former Soviet Union (FSU), the majority of capacity additions are in Russia, with planned and announced capacity additions of about 25.9mtpa by 2026. Capex for these plants totals USD33.8bn by 2026. Sibur Holding and Rosneft Oil Co are the top companies accounting for the major capacity additions in Russia.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- BP and Lotte have agreed on a major expansion of production capacity at their joint venture Lotte BP Chemical Company Limited facility in Ulsan, South Korea, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The expansion is expected to add 100,000 tonnes a year (tpa) of acetic acid capacity by May 2019 through debottlenecking, and to double the current 200,000 tpa vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) capacity with the addition of a second VAM plant by the end of 2020. The new expansion will bring total production capacity of the site to over 1 million tpa.

Nigel Dunn, BP petrochemicals vice president for acetyls, said: "This project demonstrates our ability to execute low capital cost debottlenecks to meet customer needs. Building on the long-standing success of our partnership with Lotte, this expansion will allow us to continue to meet Korea’s growing demand for these key petrochemicals."

Soo-Young Huh, vice chairman of Lotte, said: "We are pleased with the successful launch of this project, based on the track record of manufacturing excellence of Lotte BP and expect it to strengthen the partnership between BP and Lotte."

The expected investment of USD175 million will be funded by the joint venture.
MRC