Larsen & Toubro wins USD1.6-billion steam cracker, FCC packages for petchems complex in Rajasthan, India

MOSCOW (MRC) -- L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering (LTHE), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Larsen and Toubro, announced that it has bagged an over to ?7,000 crore project to set up dual feed cracker unit in Rajasthan., said Chemweek.

In its regularity filing it did not provide the exact value of the contract, but specified that it secured the mega project from HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Ltd (HRRL).

"L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering Limited (LTHE), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Larsen and Toubro, has won an order from HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Limited (HRRL), a joint venture between Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) and Government of Rajasthan," L&T said in a regulatory filing.

L&T said the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning contract is for setting up a dual feed cracker unit (DFCU) for Rajasthan Refinery Project at Barmer, Rajasthan. "The DFCU is the biggest EPCC contract awarded in the country to date in the refinery and petrochemical sector," the company added.

The DFCU is used to convert Refinery Naphtha and Offgases to produce polymer grade Ethylene and Propylene by the process of thermal cracking. Shares of L&T were trading 1.24 per cent higher at ?1,161.95 apiece on BSE.

The recovery in the L&T stock has gathered further steam after the company informed the exchanges that it has won multiple orders for its construction and mining business.

So far in the December quarter, shares of the company have rallied nearly 31%. The stock of the engineering and capital goods major is now only around 7% away from its pre-covid highs.

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia decreased in January-November 2020 by 17% year on year and reached 569,900 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the greatest reduction in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia increased by 21% year on year to about 202,000 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2020. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.

HRRL is a joint venture between Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) and Government of Rajasthan.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Shandong Shangneng Group (Shangneng) has chosen Shell Catalysts & Technologies (SC&T) to provide them with their April 2021 hydrocracking catalyst refill for their two-stage DAO hydrocracker located in Dongying, Shandong province, China, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Shangneng will be the first refinery to use a new heavy feed hydrocracking catalyst system (MACH) from SC&T when it starts up in April 2021.

The Shangneng refinery has a crude capacity of 3.5 MTPA, including a two-stage DAO hydrocracking unit for maximum diesel production at >98% conversion.

Based on successful work with several DAO hydrocrackers as well as similar two-stage hydrocracker configurations, SC&T was able to provide Shangneng with a plan to deliver an improved operating strategy and catalyst system. This includes a more robust pretreat catalyst system to accommodate the added DAO component and a new customized cracking catalyst system to deliver superior distillate yields at high conversion while minimizing PCA (poly-cyclic aromatics) accumulation in the recycle loop.

When the project is completed, the Shangneng hydrocracker is expected to have improved performance to support the capacity expansion of the hydrocracker at 98% conversion, generating an estimated margin improvement of USD15 million per year.

As MRC wrote before, Royal Dutch Shell has reported an outage at its olefins plant in Deer Park, Texas, on 5 January, 2021. The plant flared for 16 hours last Tuesday following unspecified process upset. Maximum steam cracker operating rate in Texas falls to 89%.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing PE and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia decreased in January-November 2020 by 17% year on year and reached 569,900 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the greatest reduction in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia increased by 21% year on year to about 202,000 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2020. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.

Royal Dutch Shell plc is an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the biggest company in the world in terms of revenue and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors". Shell is vertically integrated and is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The project will convert an existing hydrocracker for the production of low-carbon renewable diesel from soybean oil, resulting in a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions compared to hydrocarbon diesel, said Hydrocabonprocessing.

The renewable diesel is expected to meet the ASTM D975 diesel specification and qualify for programs such as the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard.

"By leveraging assets already in place, particularly the existing hydrocracker unit and underutilized hydrogen plant at our Wynnewood refinery, we believe we can deliver one of the lowest-cost renewable diesel projects in the industry,” says Dave Lamp, CEO & President of CVR Energy, Inc.

“We are very proud that CVR Energy, Inc. has chosen HydroFlex™ for this significant revamp project. This proven technology is the preferred choice for refiners leading the industry adaptation of renewable fuels, and it is a privilege to add yet another US project to our portfolio in line with Topsoe’s vision to be recognized as the world leader in carbon emission reduction technologies by 2024,” says Henrik Rasmussen, Managing Director of Haldor Topsoe, The Americas.

Topsoe’s HydroFlex™ is the industry-leading technology for production of renewable jet and diesel. This commercially proven technology provides refiners with lower CAPEX, lower OPEX, and better carbon intensity (CI) score. HydroFlex™ can be deployed in both grassroots units and revamps for co-processing or stand-alone applications.

As MRC reported earlier, Braskem, the largest petrochemical company in the Americas and a world leader in the production of biopolymers, and Denmark-based Haldor Topsoe, a global leader in supply of catalysts, technology, and services for the chemical and refining industries, announced in November 2020 that they had achieved their first-ever demo-scale production of bio-based monoethylene glycol (MEG).

MEG is used to produce polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is used in the manufacturing of plastic bottles, films, packaging containers, in the textile and food industries.

As per MRC's ScanPlast, Russia's estimated PET consumption reached 61,110 tonnes in November 2020, up by 1% year on year. Overall PET consumption in Russia reached 648,110 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2020, down by 18% year of year.

Haldor Topsoe is a global leader in supply of catalysts, technology, and services to the chemical and refining industries. Topsoe aims to be the global leader within carbon emission reduction technologies by 2024. By perfecting chemistry for a better world, we enable our customers to succeed in the transition towards renewable energy. Topsoe is headquartered in Denmark and serves customers around the globe.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Berry Global Group, Evansville, Indiana, has announced that Madrid-based Repsol, its longtime supplier, will supply it with circular resins, according to Recycling Today.

The Spanish multienergy global company will supply Berry with International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) Plus-certified circular polyolefins from its Repsol Reciclex range. According to a news release from Berry Global, these polyolefins are obtained by advanced recycling, enabled by the adoption of new chemical recycling technologies, of postconsumer plastic scrap not suitable for traditional recycling.

As a result of the agreement, Berry says it will procure food-grade polypropylene (PP) for food and health care packaging. The packaging company will initially use the materials in manufacturing at its European packaging facilities.

Berry reports that Repsol has certified all its petrochemical complexes to produce circular polyolefins under the ISCC Plus certification, which guarantees the traceability of the plastic scrap used at the source. At the same time, Repsol applies the latest technology to ensure the circular polyolefins have the same quality as virgin polyolefins. Additionally, Berry and Repsol deem advanced recycling “as complementary to traditional mechanical recycling and as a critical component of their respective circular economy strategies.”

“We continue to utilize new and innovative methods to create more environmentally sustainable packaging and are proud to partner with like-minded suppliers in these efforts,” says Jean-Marc Galvez, president of Berry’s Consumer Packaging International division. “By recovering and diverting plastic that would have otherwise been sent to landfill or incineration, we are working towards our common goal of promoting a circular economy.”

“At Repsol, we are continuously working on different alternatives to offer our clients materials with recycled content that meet the different demands for their specific markets, especially those for high added value applications. With this recent alliance with Berry, we also reinforce our ambition to recycle the equivalent of 20 percent of our polyolefins production,” says Rafael Jimenez, Polyolefins Business Unit director at Repsol.

Berry reports that it is ahead of schedule for its Impact 2025 sustainability strategy. The company has set a goal of incorporating 10 percent recycled content across its fast-moving consumer goods packaging. Repsol has also set a target to become a net zero company by 2050 and has had a circular economy strategy since 2016 that has been applied throughout its entire value chain.

As MRC reported earlier, Repsol shut down its cracker in Tarragona (Spain) for maintenance in the fourth quarter of 2019. The turnaround at this steam cracker, which produces 702,000 mt/year of ethylene and 372,000 mt/year of propylene, was pushed back from Q3 2019. The exact dates of maintenance works were not disclosed.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and PP.

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia decreased in January-November 2020 by 17% year on year and reached 569,900 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the greatest reduction in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia increased by 21% year on year to about 202,000 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2020. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.

Repsol S.A is an integrated Spanish oil and gas company with operations in 28 countries. The bulk of its assets are located in Spain.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Yansab plans February turnarounds for EG, olefins plants in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, said Chemweek.

700,000-metric tons/year EG plant to shut down 1 February for 21 days; olefins plant to shut on 5 February for 10 days. The firm, which is majority-owned by SABIC, intends to bring its ethylene glycol and olefis production plant down for 21 and 10 days on the 1 February and 5 February, respectively, the company said in a filing on Saudi exchange Tadawul.

The company has production capacity of 1.38m tonnes/year of ethylene and 400,000 tonnes/year of propylene at the site and 770,000 tonnes/year of ethylene glycols.

As MRC reported earlier, Yansab shut its high density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) units for maintenance in early February, 2018. The planned outage was to remain in force for around 6-7 weeks. Located in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia the HDPE and LLDPE units have a production capacity of 400,000 mt/year each.

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia decreased in January-November 2020 by 17% year on year and reached 569,900 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the greatest reduction in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia increased by 21% year on year to about 202,000 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2020. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.

Yansab is the most recent SABIC, (Saudi Basic Industries Corp), affiliate in Saudi Arabia, and will be the largest Sabic petrochemical complex. It will have an annual capacity exceeding 4 million metric tons (MT) of petrochemical products including: 1.3 million MT (metric-tons) of ethylene; 400,000 MT of propylene; 900,000 MT of polyethylene; 400,000 MT of polypropylene; 700,000 MT of ethylene glycol; 250,000 MT of benzene, xylene and toluene, and 100,000 MT of butene-1 and butene-2.
MRC