Eni and Chevron Lummus partner for complete suite of residue hydrocracking technologies

Eni and Chevron Lummus partner for complete suite of residue hydrocracking technologies

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Italian energy group Eni and Chevron Lummus Global LLC, (CLG) have announced the execution of a Joint Cooperation and Licensing Agreement for a complete suite of residue hydrocracking solutions, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

This will include Eni's EST (Eni Slurry Technology) and LC-FINING, LC-MAX, LC-SLURRY and LC-LSFO technologies from CLG. These world-class technologies will offer refiners a wide range of conversion options, including complete conversion of residua to valuable distillate products.

Both CLG and Eni bring deep investments in research and development that have led to the fast commercialization of cutting-edge residue hydrocracking technologies and superior technical and engineering services to support these technologies. Eni brings its EST technology to this cooperative arrangement as the market leader in slurry hydrocracking processes, offering to its clients a very high conversion competitive advantage. CLG's residue hydrocracking technologies based on a liquid circulation ebullated bed platform are the most widely used and solidly reliable residue hydrocracking technologies in the market for moderate to high conversion.

The agreement will enable Eni and CLG to utilize and enhance the complementary nature of their respective hydrocracking technologies, offering clients the most comprehensive array of solutions on a large commercial operating base. Eni and CLG will work closely at their leading-edge R&D facilities in Italy and the United States to develop the next generation of process and catalyst technologies suited to address the complete conversion of low-value residua and alternative feedstocks to valuable transportation fuels and petrochemical precursors.

As MRC reported earlier, Eni is evaluating conversion of its Livorno refinery in northwest Italy into a biorefinery, as part of the Italian company's wider strategy to make its activities more environmentally sustainable. Eni has already converted two of its Italian refineries and is looking to almost double its biorefining capacity to around 2 million mt/year by 2024, and expand this to at least five times by 2050, as part of its pledge to achieve complete carbon neutrality by 2050.

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 1,176,860 tonnes in the first half of 2021, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 727,160 tonnes in the first six months of 2021, up by 31% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased. Supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.

Eni, abbreviation of Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi, in full Eni SpA, Italian energy company operating primarily in petroleum, natural gas, and petrochemicals. Established in 1953, it is one of Europe's largest oil companies in terms of sales.
MRC

PepsiCo to cut the use of virgin plastic by 50%

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PepsiCo wants to cut the use of virgin plastic by 50% serving and use 50% recycled content in plastic packaging by 2030, said Canplastics.

Beverage and food supplier PepsiCo has announced a new goal to cut virgin plastic per serving by 50 per cent across its global food and beverage portfolio by 2030 as part of its new “pep+,” or PepsiCo Positive, company initiative.

In a Sept. 15 news release, the company also said it plans to use 50 per cent recycled content in its plastic packaging by 2030.

According to the news release, 11 European markets are moving key Pepsi-branded products to 100% rPET bottles by 2022. PepsiCo estimates that shifting to a 100 per cent recycled PET (rPET) bottle will lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by approximately 30 per cent per bottle.

And in the U.S., all Pepsi-branded products will be converted to 100 per cent rPET bottles by 2030, with Pepsi Zero Sugar beginning to be sold in 100 per cent rPET bottles by 2022.

Finally, PepsiCo says it has been investing in food packaging technology and is now introducing a fully compostable bag made with plant-based materials. “Starting with Off The Eaten Path, one of Frito-Lay’s plant-based brands, this industrially compostable packaging will be available to consumers in the U.S. at Whole Foods stores beginning this month,” company officials said.

These moves are part of the larger “pep+” initiative, which PepsiCo officials call “a strategic end-to-end transformation” that puts sustainability at the centre of how the company will operate.

As per MRC, petrochemical majors Dow, LyondellBasell and NOVA Chemicals on Wednesday announced a new USD25 million Closed Loop Circular Plastics Fund to stimulate polymer recycling. The fund, which is expected to eventually invest USD100 million, will invest in technology. companies and infrastructure projects that will improve the recovery and recycling of polymers, including polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), in the United States and Canada.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PET consumption totalled 411,200 tonnes in the first six month of 2021, up by 12% year on year. Russian companies processed 62,910 tonnes in June, compared to 85,890 tonnes a month earlier.
MRC

COVID-19 - News digest as of 21.09.2021

1. China resumes storing crude oil inventories in August

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China resumed adding crude oil to inventories in August after four consecutive months of draws, but this was a reflection of weak refinery processing rather than a bullish demand signal, reported Reuters. The world's biggest oil importer added about 760,000 barrels per day (bpd) to stockpiles in August, according to calculations based on official data for crude imports, domestic output and refinery throughput. This partially reverses inventories draws in the prior four months, with about 223,700 bpd leaving in July, about 980,000 bpd in June, 589,000 bpd in May and 280,000 bpd in April. China doesn't disclose the volumes of crude flowing into or out of strategic and commercial stockpiles. But an estimate can be made by deducting the total amount of crude available from imports and domestic output from the amount of crude processed. Refinery throughput in August was the equivalent of 13.74 million bpd, the lowest since May 2020, at the height of the economic lockdowns imposed to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

MRC

Crude oil futures rise in Asia on supply tightness

Crude oil futures rise in Asia on supply tightness

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude oil futures were higher during mid-morning Asian trade Sept. 21, as output in the US Gulf of Mexico continued to impact supply and tightness in the European gas market, which in turn is supporting oil prices, reported S&P Global.

Now At 10:57 am Singapore time (0257 GMT), the ICE November Brent futures contract was up 62 cents/b (0.84%) from the previous close at USD74.54/b, while the NYMEX October light sweet crude contract rose 64 cents/b (0.91%) to USD70.93/b.

"Oil may draw some support in that some US Gulf outputs are still offline due to storm damages, with additional supplies to potentially come only in October," IG's market strategist Yeap Jun Rong said Sept. 21, adding that the USD73.50/b level for Brent may remain as a key support to watch and a recovery from current levels may point to a higher low formed.

Analysts have also said that higher gas prices spurred by the tightness in the European gas market has offered support to the oil market.

"European natural gas prices continued to trade higher. Gazprom yesterday booked no additional pipeline capacity via Ukraine for October, while only around a third of the capacity offered via the Yamal-Europe pipeline was booked, which has intensified concerns over tightness," ING research analysts said Sept. 21.

The tight supply in the European gas market suggests that prices are likely to remain elevated. These higher gas prices should offer some support to the oil market, with a growing potential for gas to oil switching, they added.

Over at the US Gulf of Mexico, less than a quarter of crude production remain offline, nearly three weeks after Hurricane Ida ravaged the Louisiana Gulf Coast. About 331,078 b/d of crude, or 18%, were still offline Sept. 20, according to the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, after Hurricane Ida shut in 95% of production at the end of August.

Despite the proportion of offline production on the decline, Shell has, however, pointed out that it will take some time to restore output to pre-Hurricane Ida levels. At the moment about 60% of the company's US offshore Gulf of Mexico output is back online. However, with serious damage sustained to a transfer facility, the remaining output is only expected to be fully restored Q1 2022.

As informed earlier, Shell said earlier this month it observed damage from Hurricane Ida to its transfer station West Delta-143 offshore facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. West Delta-143 serves as the transfer station for all production from its assets in the Mars corridor in the Mississippi Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico to onshore crude terminals. Shell said then it was not yet safe to send personnel offshore to learn the full extent of the damage and estimate the effect on production.

We remind that in late August, 2021, US crude stocks dropped sharply while petroleum products supplied by refiners hit an all-time record despite the rise in coronavirus cases nationwide, the Energy Information Administration said. Crude inventories fell by 7.2 million barrels in the week to Aug. 27 to 425.4 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 3.1 million-barrel drop. Product supplied by refineries, a measure of demand, rose to 22.8 million barrels per day in the most recent week. That's a one-week record, and signals strength in consumption for diesel, gasoline and other fuels by consumers and exporters.

We also remind that US crude oil production is expected to fall by 160,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2021 to 11.12 million bpd, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a monthly report, a smaller decline than its previous forecast for a drop of 210,000 bpd.
MRC

Formosa raises September PVC prices in the USA after Hurricane Ida

Formosa raises September PVC prices in the USA after Hurricane Ida

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Formosa Plastics USA, part of Formosa Petrochemical, has announced a price increase for September shipments of domestic polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in the USA after Hurricane Ida, according to a customer letter seen by S&P Global.

Thus, the company's PVC prices rose by 5 cents/lb or USD 110/tonne effective September 15, 2021, or as contract terms permit.

The increase was in addition to a 2 cents/lb price rise announced earlier to be effective September 1. If accepted, the latest increase would push prices up by 7 cents/lb or USD156/tonne for September.

The present announcement came after Hurricane Ida's August 29 landfall in Louisiana that prompted five US PVC plants representing 41% of North American PVC capacity to shut down.

As MRC reported earlier, Formosa Plastics USA has postponed the start-up of its expanded PVC production capacities at its existing plant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to Q4 2022. Initially, the company planned to launch the expanded capacities at its 513,000 mt/year of PVC plant in Q4 2021. Formosa did not respond to inquiries about the delay. The company intends to debottleneck production at this plant, adding 130,077 mt/year of PVC capacity, according to permitting documents.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall production of unmixed PVC totalled 580,500 tonnes in the first seven months of 2021, up by 4% year on year. At the same time, one producer reduced its output.

Formosa Petrochemical is involved primarily in the business of refining crude oil, selling refined petroleum products and producing and selling olefins (including ethylene, propylene, butadiene and BTX) from its naphtha cracking operations. Formosa Petrochemical is also the largest olefins producer in Taiwan and its olefins products are mostly sold to companies within the Formosa Group. Among the company's chemical products are paraxylene (PX), phenyl ethylene, acetone and pure terephthalic acid (PTA). The company"s plastic products include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resins, polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP) and panlite (PC).
MRC