Hydrogen fluoride leak at Marathon's Galveston Bay refinery came from piping

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Marathon Petroleum Corp is investigating what caused a toxic chemical release that injured two workers on Tuesday at a Texas City oil refinery, reported Reuters with reference to a spokesman's statement, as the US industrial safety watchdog also began looking into the incident.

A release of hydrofluoric acid at the 585,000-bpd refinery on Texas' Gulf Coast prompted workers and nearby residents to take shelter indoors with doors and windows closed and air conditioning turned off before the leak was contained.

The US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) on Wednesday described the release as an undetermined amount of hydrogen fluoride, a toxic chemical that turns into a ground-hugging vapor cloud at room temperatures and can lead to severe health problems, even death. It was released from piping near an alkylation unit, said Hillary Cohen, a CSB spokeswoman.

As MRC informed earlier, Marathon on Wednesday confirmed the release of hydrogen fluoride (HF) and said it had been contained and diluted by 1.1 million gallons of water.

"The automated response system worked as intended, deploying water cannons that prevented the estimated 90 lbs (40kg) of HF from moving beyond the unit," said Kheiry. Federal and state regulators have been notified, he said.

The leak from the 31,500 barrel-per-day (bpd) alkylation unit 3 began at about 3:30 p.m. local time (2030 GMT) on Tuesday, people familiar with plant operations told Reuters, adding that the refinery was later operating normally.

The company has said its air monitoring did not detect any impact of the release outside its facility.

We remind that most units were shut on Sunday night and Monday morning (15-16 February) at Marathon Petroleum Corp's 585,000 barrel-per-day Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas City, Texas, as temperatures plunged due to a Arctic cold front reaching the Gulf Coast. They resumed operations in the first half of March.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A renewable diesel unit at CVR Energy’s Wynnewood, Oklahoma, refinery will not be in service until the end of the third quarter due to severe weather in February and delays in equipment deliveries, the company said, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The unit was expected to start processing renewable diesel this July. The U.S. refiner said it recently signed agreements for feedstock supply and terminalling and is in negotiations on product marketing for the project. It expects the project to cost between USD135 million and USD140 million, up from earlier estimates of USD110 million.

The company is selecting the technology to add pretreatment capabilities at Wynnewood to process lower carbon-intensity feedstocks like inedible corn oil, animal fats and used cooking oil, Chief Executive David Lamp said Tuesday on the company’s first-quarter earnings call.

“That will give us the flexibility to run just about anything, including corn oil, tallow, unused cooking oil, although there may not be much availability of that,” Lamp said. He said CVR will largely be using soybean oil, which has increased 30% in price since early April, due to its widespread availability over other feedstocks like used cooking oil.

A number of other refiners have plans to start or expand renewable diesel production in the next several years, but feedstock supply constraints remain an industry-wide issue. CVR is also exploring renewable diesel production at its 132,000 barrel-per-day Coffeyville, Oklahoma, refinery and the possibility of using biomass as a feedstock for its renewable projects.

Lamp said he sees a geographic advantage for the refiner to use biomass, which includes wood chips, grass cuttings and corn stalks but added that “nobody really knows how to use it yet."

As MRC informed earlier, COVID-19 outbreak has led to an unprecedented decline in demand affecting all sections of the Russian economy, which has impacted the demand for petrochemicals in the short-term. However, the pandemic triggered an increase in the demand for polymers in food packaging, and cleaning and hygiene products, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. With Russian petrochemical companies having the advantage of access to low-cost feedstock, and proximity to demand-rich Asian (primarily China) and European markets for the supply of petrochemical products, these companies appear to be well-positioned to derive full benefits from an improving market environment and global economy post-COVID-19, says GlobalData.

We remind that in December 2020, Sibur, Gazprom Neft, and Uzbekneftegaz agreed to cooperate on potential investments in Uzbekistan including a major expansion of Uzbekneftegaz’s existing Shurtan Gas Chemical Complex (SGCC) and the proposed construction of a new gas chemicals facility. The signed cooperation agreement for the projects includes “the creation of a gas chemical complex using methanol-to-olefins (MTO) technology, and the expansion of the production capacity of the Shurtan Gas Chemical Complex”.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- French energy group Total said it had agreed with the Papua New Guinea government to proceed with a LNG project in the country, which had been delayed due to the pandemic, with a final investment decision due in 2023, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Total added in a statement on Wednesday that it would re-mobilise teams involved in the project. "I am honoured to welcome the Deputy Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea in our head-offices in Paris to review the Papua LNG implementation plan. This is indeed a very strong signal of the dedication of the PNG government to the success of this key project," said Total Chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanne.

Total and its partners ExxonMobil Corp and Oil Search Ltd had initially planned to develop Papua LNG in tandem with an expansion of Exxon's PNG LNG in a USD13 billion project adding three new production units at the PNG LNG plant, to help save billions of dollars.

However, Exxon has not agreed to terms sought by the Papua New Guinea government for the P'nyang gas development that was going to help feed the expansion, as Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape pushed for bigger benefits for the country from the deal.

Instead, Total's Papua LNG project will go ahead with two new production units to be built at the PNG LNG site, fed by the Elk Antelope gas fields, said Marape in February.

As per MRC, Total Petrochemicals and Refining USA raised polystyrene (PS) prices by 15 cents per pound (USD331 per tonne), the company said in a letter to customers.

According to the ICIS-MRC Price Report, the Nizhnekamskneftekhim plant will leave the selling prices of high-impact polystyrene (HPS / M) and general-purpose polystyrene (PSS / M) in May at the level of April, according to reports from several major market players. Thus, the price quotation of the Nizhnekamsk PSS / M will remain at the level of Rb192,000-203,000/tonne, and HIPS will be offered, as in the current month, at Rb196,000-207,000/tonne, CPT Moscow, VAT included. The Penoplex plant will reduce the cost of the May volumes of GPSSby Rb15,000/tonne.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Deepak Nitrite Ltd., a chemical manufacturer in India, has approved the re-appointment of Shri Maulik D. Mehta as the company's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for a further period of five years with effect from 9th May, 2021, according to Kemicalinfo.

Maulik has around 13 years of experience in the areas of Business Development and has been responsible for the day-to-day business of all the verticals of the Company along with Group Strategy.

As MRC reported before, Deepak Nitrite’s fully-owned subsidiary Deepak Phenolics started up its new phenol/acetone plant, located at Dahej in the state of Gujarat, on 16 August 2018. The plant, which is operated under Deepak Nitrite’s wholly-owned subsidiary Deepak Phenolics Limited, is able to produce 200,000 tonnes/year of phenol and 120,000 tonnes/year of acetone. There is also the potential for a capacity expansion in the future. Deepak Phenolics’ plant is the largest phenol/acetone plant in India.

Deepak Phenolics shut its phenol/acetone plant in Dahej on 25 March, 2020, because of the nationwide lockdown because of the spread of coronavirus. It resumed operations in late April, 2020.

Phenol is one of the main feedstocks for the production of bisphenol A (BPA), which, in its turn, is used for the production of polycarbonate (PC).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, overall estimated consumption of PC granules in the Russian market totalled 25,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2021 (excluding imports and exports to/from Belarus), compared to 22,700 tonnes a year earlier. Demand increased by 10%.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Maire Tecnimont Group, through its subsidiary Tecnimont, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with AVEVA to create new digital predictive and prescriptive maintenance services that drive enhanced business outcomes, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

This partnership will extend usage of AVEVA’s Asset Performance Management (APM) solutions across the Maire Tecnimont Group, globally, enhancing plant operability and lowering maintenance costs. This will in turn deliver increased information availability empowering better, more informed decision-making, and ultimately improving overall business performance.

As part of the agreement, the two companies will work together over a twelve-month period on a defined number of customer projects to promote the application of predictive maintenance technology for critical plant assets.

As an EPC contractor and global leader in the transformation of natural resources, Maire Tecnimont will leverage its unique process, automation, and maintenance competencies to supply plant owners with perfectly customized digital products and solutions that are tailor-made for their maintenance needs.

The combination of Maire Tecnimont’s proven market experience and AVEVA’s leadership as an industrial technology provider will deliver improved analytics which in turn will help to reduce inefficiencies, optimize operations, and improve our customer’s profitability.

With this MoU, Maire Tecnimont Group has reached a new milestone in its digital transformation journey, with the activation of a new technology-enabled value stream which is a crucial part of its roadmap. To achieve its drive to become the ‘contractor of the future’, Maire Tecnimont is enhancing overall value for plant owners through a suite of advanced digital products and services geared towards EPC customers.

As MRC wrote previously, Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. has just announced that its subsidiaries Tecnimont S.p.A. and Mumbai-based Tecnimont Private Limited were awarded an EPCC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning) Lump Sum contract by Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), for the implementation of a new paraxylene (PX) plant and the relevant offsites facilities. The plant will be located in Paradip, in the State of Odisha, in Eastern India. The overall value of the contract is about USD450 million.

PX is a feedstock for the production of purified terephthalic acid (PTA). PTA is used to produce polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which, in its turn, is used in the manufacturing of plastic bottles, films, packaging containers, in the textile and food industries.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PET consumption reached 64,750 tonnes in March 2021, which corresponds to the last year's figure (64,520 tonnes). Overall estimated PET consumption in Russia decreased by 5% year on year to 182,300 tonnes in January-March, 2021.
MRC