Polystyvert to develop full-scale polystyrene recycling plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Montreal-based specialty recycling company Polystyvert has closed a round of funding to facilitate the development of a full-scale polystyrene (PS) recycling plant, said Canplastics.

The round includes new investor BEWI Group, a European provider of packaging, components, and insulation solutions, and said to be one of the largest integrated expandable PS (EPS) producers in Europe with an annual EPS production capacity of 200,000 tons, as well as new private investors.

Existing investors Anges Quebec, Anges Quebec Capital, Cycle Capital, and Quadriam also participated in the round. Proceeds will be used to facilitate the development of a full-scale plant – a strategic milestone for the company to demonstrate the high level of resin purity reached with Polystyvert’s innovative proprietary process, as well as its excellent environmental footprint.

“BEWI sees great potential in Polystyvert’s technology because it has the ability to treat highly contaminated streams while remaining very energy efficient,” BEWI chief operating officer Jonas Siljeskar said. “We believe this technology could be a game-changer for using recycled material in food packaging."

As per MRC, The Dutch company BEWI Synbra completed scheduled repairs at its expanded polystyrene (EPS) production facility in Porvoo (Porvoo, Finland). BEWI Synbra closed the plant consisting of two lines with a total capacity of 110,000 tonnes of EPS per year for scheduled repairs in early March. The scheduled works were completed on 18 March.

As per MRC's ScanPlast, Russia's estimated consumption of polystyrene (PS) and styrene plastics totalled 187,320 tonnes in the first four months of 2021, up by 20% year on year. April estimated consumption of PS and styrene plastics was 49,370 tonnes, up by 35% year on year (36,620 tonnes a year earlier). PS production rose in January-April 2021 by 6% year on year. Russian producers manufactured 179,840 tonnes of material over the stated period.
Founded in 2011, Polystyvert has developed a low-carbon-footprint process to recycle polystyrene based on a dissolution technology. Once dissolved, the process can mechanically and chemically separate contaminants and additives – including a wide range of hard-to-remove contaminants such as pigments and brominated flame-retardants – before finally separating the original polymer from the solvent. The end-product is then a cleaned polymer that can be used as new raw material resin again, to manufacture various categories of PS products, including food-grade applications.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Australia’s parliament has approved plans to pay Viva Energy Ltd and Ampol Ltd up to AD2.3 billion (USD1.8 billion) to keep their struggling oil refineries open to protect the country’s fuel security, reported Reuters with reference to Energy Minister Angus Taylor's statement.

Under the plan announced in May the government agreed to top up earnings at Australia’s two remaining refineries when refining margins are weak through 2027, with an option to extend to 2030.

It also agreed to provide up to AD125 million each to Ampol and Viva to upgrade their refineries to produce ultra-low sulphur petrol by end-2024. Payments to the refineries will begin from July 1, the government said.

The fuel industry will also be required to hold minimum stocks of 24 days of petrol and jet demand and 20 days of diesel demand from July 2022, with a 40% increase in diesel holdings required from July 2024.

Australia’s ageing refineries have found it difficult to compete with much bigger, new refineries across Asia. The country’s two other refiners - BP and Exxon Mobil Corp - are shutting their plants this year.

As MRC informed before, in Februar, 2021, ExxonMobil Corp said it will close its 72-year-old Altona refinery in Australia, the country’s smallest, and convert it to a fuel import terminal as refiners struggle with low demand.

And in March, 2021, BP plc stopped importing oil for its refinery in Western Australia, the country’s largest, and had decommissioned the plant by the end 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 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- South Korea’s SK Global Chemical (SKGC) plans to take a 10% stake, for about Canadian dollar (CD) 56m (USD45m), in Canada’s Loop Industries, and the companies plan to form a joint venture, Loop said.

South Korea’s SK Global Chemical is buying a 10-per-cent stake in Quebec-based Loop Industries Inc. for USD56.5-million, and the two plan to form a joint venture to deploy Loop’s proprietary plastic recycling technology in Asia.

Under the deal, SKGC will buy 4.7 million Loop shares for USD12 each. SKGC is also being granted options to boost its stake over the next three years, contingent on the progress of construction of a first Asian manufacturing plant.

The two are announcing the deal eight months after Loop’s shares tumbled following a negative report by prominent U.S. short-seller Hindenburg Research. Hindenburg said in mid-October it had interviewed former employees, competitors, corporate partners and chemists, and concluded that “Loop is smoke and mirrors with no viable technology."

Loop responded by saying the report was “either unfounded, incorrect or based on the first iteration” of its technology, which is a chemical process, rather than a mechanical one, for recycling plastic into what the company says is high-quality usable material.

Loop’s shares on the Nasdaq lost half their value in the 17 days after the release of Hindenburg’s report, falling as low as USD5.85. They have since recovered, closing on Tuesday at USD13.12.

The deal with SKGC, part of one of South Korea’s largest conglomerates, shows the promise of the technology, said Loop founder and chief executive officer Daniel Solomita.

Under a memorandum of understanding, the companies intend to form a joint venture to build sustainable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyester fibre manufacturing facilities throughout Asia. SKGC would own 51 per cent of the venture and Loop the remainder. Loop would also receive an annual royalty based on a percentage of revenue.

PET, used in things such as drink bottles, is a major source of pollution, and Loop says its process recycles it into virgin-quality plastic. “Our technology is really at the forefront of what the circular economy is,” Mr. Solomita said. “You take a finished product and break it down into what it used to be, and build it back up again into a finished product or something of a higher quality."

As per MRC, Clariant, a specialty chemicals major, is selling its pigments business to a consortium consisting of pigment maker Heubach Group (Langelsheim, Germany) and private investment firm SK Capital (South Korea). The combined business will operate under the Heubach name and create a leading global pigments business with annual sales of more than EUR 900 million (USD1.09 billion).

According to MRC's ScanPlast, the total estimated PET consumption in Russia increased in January-April 2021 by 13% compared to the same period a year earlier and amounted to 263,660 tonnes. 78.3% of the increase in consumption falls on the share of bottled PET granulate due to the virtual absence of exports and an increase in the volume of imports. In April, the total estimated consumption amounted to 80,150 tonnes, which is 34% more than in the same month last year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Taiwan's state-owned refiner CPC Corp has started cleaning up an offshore oil spill caused by a pipeline that cracked during the discharging of oil from a vessel at its Talin refinery, reported Reuters with reference to the company's spokesman.

The oil leak occurred on Tuesday at 2:18 a.m. (1818 GMT) and was likely caused by bad weather, the company said in a statement. CPC immediately halted oil discharge following the incident, it added.

The incident will not affect the refinery's operations and fuel supply as inventories were high while domestic consumption fell 20% to 30% over the recent months from usual levels, CPC spokesman Chang Ray-chung told Reuters by phone.

"Due to the coronavirus, people stay indoors," Chang said, adding that sales at CPC's fuel stations are lower compared with the same period last year.

"We will stick to our existing production plans and there will be no issue with the supply," he said.

The Talin refinery can process 400,000 barrels per day of crude oil.

While waiting for weather to improve before carrying out repairs at the crude pipeline, CPC will rely on other discharge points for crude which are still functioning, Chang said.

The oil spill clean-up is expected to finish by Wednesday night, he said.

As MRC wrote before, in January, 2021, CPC Corp bought a piece of land in Kaohsiung on which it plans to build a new naphtha cracker to replace its No. 4 cracker at a cost of NTD82.3 billion (USD2.94 billion). CPC's No. 4 cracker in Kaohsiung's Linyuan District has been in operation for 37 years and has an annual ethylene production capacity of 380,000 metric tons, which cannot meet the demand of its customers, CPC spokesman Chang Ray-chung said.

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 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.

CPC Corporation, Taiwan, is engaged in the exploration, production, refining, procurement, transportation, storage, and marketing of oil and gas. The company provides fuel oil, including automotive unleaded gasoline and diesel fuel, low-sulfur fuel oil, marine distillate fuels, marine residual fuels, and aviation fuel; petrochemicals, such as ethylene, propylene, butadiene, benzene, para-xylene, and ortho-xylene; liquefied petroleum gas products comprising liquefied petroleum gas, propane, butane, and a propane/butane mixture; lubricants, motor oil, industrial oil, grease, and marilube oil; SNC products, including petroleum ether, naphtha, toluene, xylene, crude octene, methyl alcohol, normal paraffin, viscosity-graded asphalt cement, and sulfur; and natural gas.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Finnish company UPM-Kymmene selected Siemens Energy to supply electrification, automation, and digitalization (EAD) packages for a next-generation biorefinery currently under construction in Leuna, Germany, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The biorefinery will be the first industrial-scale facility of its type ever built. It will apply novel process innovations to sustainably convert 100% wood into bio-based mono-ethylene glycol (MEG), mono-propylene glycol (MPG) as well as renewable functional fillers (RFF). Both MEG, MPG as well as functional fillers have traditionally been produced using fossil-based raw materials. UPM will provide alternatives to considerably reduce the CO2 footprint of end-products such as PET bottles, packaging materials, textiles, or rubber products used in various automotive applications. Siemens Energy’s scope of supply for the project includes:

Electrification: mill-wide medium- and low-voltage power distribution system and drive system (motor control center, variable speed drives, motors). Automation: Distributed control system (DCS) for multiple process areas and remote I/O cubicles (total of 9,000 process objects), including safety and ATEX functions for explosive atmospheres
Digitalization: Complete digital twin for the entire plant, covering the mill’s whole life cycle – from integrated engineering to integrated operation.

The Leuna Biorefinery will be a big step for UPM to expand its business into wood-based biomolecular products and solutions. "We are confident that the bio-based mono-ethylene glycol, mono-propylene glycol, and renewable functional fillers made in Leuna will meet the strong demand of customers and end-users looking to change towards a truly sustainable portfolio,” said Juuso Konttinen, Vice President UPM Biochemicals. “By implementing Siemens Energy’s digitalization solutions and digital twin, we can help ensure safe and efficient operations."

The biorefinery is scheduled for start-up in late 2022. When fully operational, it will have a total annual capacity of 220,000 tons. “As a global leader in industrial decarbonization, we are proud to be selected as a trusted partner and facilitator for this groundbreaking project,” said Jennifer Hooper, Senior Vice President, Industrial Applications Solutions for Siemens Energy. “We look forward to helping UPM reduce the world’s reliance on chemicals produced from fossil fuels as we move toward creating a more sustainable world."

As per MRC, As part of a strategic partnership, BASF and Siemens Energy plan to accelerate commercial implementation of new technologies designed to lower greenhouse gas emissions. By combining BASF’s technological expertise with Siemens Energy’s innovative product and services portfolio, BASF aims to extend its leading role in lowering CO2 emissions in chemical production. Several pilot projects at its Ludwigshafen site are under discussion. BASF’s headquarters is one of the largest chemical production sites in the world.

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 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.
MRC