Siemens and Technip to make JV to decarbonize olefin production processes

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Technip Energies and Siemens Energy announced an exclusive agreement to jointly develop, commercialize, and license the ROC technology to decarbonize olefin production processes, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The ROC technology employs a dynamic reactor system that replaces conventional furnaces used for pyrolysis when manufacturing light olefins – the building blocks for chemical products used in everyday materials, from packaging to polymers.

The ROC technology offers driver flexibility, and when driven by electric-powered motors or hydrogen-fired gas turbines, the technology leads the path to decarbonize the process used to produce light olefins. The decarbonization impact is even more significant when the electric power or hydrogen fuel is derived from renewable sources. The ROC process, once fully commercialized, is also expected to have better first pass olefins yields with similar operating costs compared to the currently commercially available technologies.

The companies have already validated the fundamentals of the reactor technology in laboratory testing and intend for the first turbomachinery prototype to enter shop testing in the first half of 2022. Both companies bring specialized experience to commercializing this technology: Siemens Energy contributes its expertise in turbomachinery, while Technip Energies has extensive knowledge in pyrolysis cracking to produce light olefins and process integration.

As a significant milestone in the commercialization of this groundbreaking technology, today Technip Energies and Siemens Energy entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the COF. The MOU expresses the intent of the parties to negotiate a contract to install a hydrocarbon demonstration unit utilizing the ROC technology in a plant operated by one of the COF members.

The COF comprises major industry players Borealis (member of the OMV Group), BP, Repsol, TotalEnergies SE, Versalis (Eni), and coordinator Brightlands Chemelot Campus. The COF selected the ROC technology after assessing many electricity-based heating technologies for olefin crackers. “The ROC technology is a step-change in cracking technology that leads to a significant reduction in greenhouse gases when combined with clean energy sources,” said Stan Knez, Chief Technology Officer at Technip Energies. ”This collaboration with Siemens Energy highlights our commitment to decarbonization, and we are delighted to have the ROC technology selected for the COF demonstration unit."

“It is our ultimate goal to turn ideas into reality as we support our customers in transitioning to a more sustainable world,” said Thorbjorn Fors, Executive Vice President, Industrial Applications at Siemens Energy. “Engaging directly with major operators in the Cracker of the Future Consortium is a great opportunity to materialize this objective. Furthermore, by working together with our partner Technip Energies, we are taking an important step towards driving decarbonization forward."

“The ROC technology is a new paradigm in chemical process technology, as heating hydrocarbon molecules by converting the molecular kinetic energy into heat so that that thermal cracking can occur, has never been done before,” said Walter Vermeiren, Chair of the Cracker of the Future Consortium. “The Cracker of the Future Consortium is delighted to cooperate with Siemens Energy and Technip Energies on this unique opportunity."

As per MRC, Technip Energies (Paris, France) announced that its work on the Azerikimya modernization project in Azerbaijan has been completed on time. The overhaul of the Socar petrochemical complex near the nation’s capital, Baku, is now complete and the plant has been handed over and is fully in operation. It has been producing ethylene and propylene on demand since October 2020.

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 1,396,960 tonnes in January-July 2021, up by 7% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 841,990 tonnes in the first seven months of 2021, up by 29% year on year. Supply of propylene homopolymers (homopolymer PP) and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Neste Corporation has signed an agreement to sell its existing base oils business to Chevron Corporation, one of the world's leading integrated energy companies, said the company.

The agreement covers a combination of share and asset deals forming Neste's entire global base oils business. As part of the divestment, the parties have also agreed on a long-term offtake for Neste’s base oils supply from Porvoo, Finland. With the same date, Neste has signed an agreement to exit its base oils joint venture with Bahrain Petroleum Company and Nogaholding.

"I want to thank our people in the base oils business who have been known for their pioneering spirit throughout the years. They have built the foundation for Neste to become one of the world’s leading producers of Group III base oils, and we can be extremely proud of that. Chevron being a leading manufacturer of base oil products is therefore an excellent company to nurture and develop the NEXBASE base oils business further,” says Neste’s President and CEO Peter Vanacker.

Neste’s base oils have been produced in Porvoo, Finland and by a base oils joint venture with Bapco and Nogaholding in Bahrain. The agreement with Chevron will cover Neste’s Porvoo base oils production volumes, its premium brand NEXBASE™, all formulation coverage associated with the brand, as well as a global marketing and distribution platform. In connection with the divestment, Neste is exiting the joint venture with Bapco and Nogaholding, and will no longer have presence in Bahrain.

The parties are committed to ensuring a seamless transition to NEXBASE customers and all other stakeholders including employees. The parties have agreed that the transaction price shall remain confidential. The transaction will not have a material effect on Neste’s financial position. The completion of the divestment is subject to the approval of the competition authorities and customary closing conditions, with estimated completion date by the end of Q1/2022.

As MRC reported earlier, in August 2021, Chevron and other partners said they are investing in a startup to build modular waste-to-green hydrogen and renewable synthetic fuel facilities in northern California with tentative plans to eventually grow worldwide. The USD20 million investment in Wyoming-based Raven SR is focused on technology to develop combustion-free, green hydrogen for transportation that is cleaner than so-called blue hydrogen derived from natural gas.

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.

Headquartered in San Ramon, California, Chevron Corporation is the the second-largest integrated energy company in the United States and among the largest corporations in the world. Chevron is involved in upstream activities including exploration and production, downstream activities including refining, marketing and transportation, and advanced energy technology. Chevron is also invested in power generation and gasification processes.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Global packaging and recycling company ALPLA Group has announced its acquisition of German PET recycler, BTB PET-Recycling, for an undisclosed sum, said Foodbev.

BTB PET-Recycling is based in Bad Salzuflen in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The business turns PET bottles into recycled material, which is then predominantly used for the production of new beverage bottles.

Georg Lasser, head of corporate recycling at Alpla, said: "The team in Bad Salzuflen is highly motivated and does a fantastic job. For us, buying this company is an investment in the future, enabling us to increase the existing capacities and further strengthen the bottle-to-bottle loop."

BTB stands for ‘bottle-to-bottle’ and describes the closed packaging loop that turns bottles collected in the area into new bottles. BTB sorts, shreds and cleans the input material, then sorts it again. It is then melted down in an extrusion process and turned into food-grade rPET pellets.

The facility processes 20,000 tonnes of PET bottles each year.

The contract was signed on 28 September by both parties.

As per MRC, ALPLA Group, the global packaging solutions and recycling specialist, is investing in the construction of a recycling plant in Targu Mures, Romania as part of a joint venture with its partners. The plastic granulate recycled there in the future will come from PET bottles collected from household waste and will be used to manufacture new PET bottles.

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.

Headquartered in Hard, Austria, ALPLA specializes in blow molded bottles and caps, injection molded parts, and preforms and tubes.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Reliance Industries said on Saturday it had set up a wholly-owned subsidiary in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for trading in crude oil, petroleum, petrochemical products, and agricultural commodities, said the company.

Reliance International Ltd (RINL), the new subsidiary, is yet to commence operations, the parent company said in an exchange filing, adding it had invested USD1 million in the new business.

In its brief statement, Reliance Industries, which operates the world's biggest refining complex at Jamnagar in western India, gave no reasons for its decision to set up the new unit and its reasons to locate it in the UAE, though it is in line with it becoming more international in its focus.

It previously bought stakes in a number of overseas exploration and manufacturing assets, and in June it entered an agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) to build a multi-billion dollar chemical project in Ruwais, marking the group's first investment in a Greenfield overseas project.

Reliance Industries in June announced the appointment of Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan as a director of Reliance's board and said this was the "beginning of the internationalization of Reliance". The group hopes to formalize this year a deal to sell a 20% stake in its oil-to-chemical business to Aramco.

As MRC informed earlier, Reliance Industries (RIL) has taken off-stream one of its polypropylene (PP) plants in Jamnagar, India for a scheduled maintenance. Thus, this unit with an annual capacity of 400,000 tons/year of PP was shut on 5 August 2021 and will remain idle for approximately one month. The local supply is expected to take a hit from the shutdown, especially when demand is recovering from the COVID-19 outbreak.

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.

Reliance Industries is one of the world's largest producers of polymers. Thus, the company produces among others polypropylene, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- BP announced plans for a USD269 million investment in three projects at its Cherry Point Refinery in Washington state, aimed at improving the refinery’s efficiency, reducing its carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and increasing its renewable diesel production capability, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

These projects are expected to create more than 300 local jobs over the next three years. This includes more than 200 construction jobs, 25 engineering jobs and approximately 40 support roles. bp currently supports more than 36,600 jobs in Washington. The investment is aligned with bp’s aims to be net zero across its operations by 2050 or sooner and to reduce the carbon intensity of the products it sells by 50% by 2050 or sooner.

David Lawler, chairman and president, bp America: “bp’s new investment in Cherry Point builds on a half century of innovation in Washington state. It will position us to provide lower carbon energy while creating jobs and reducing emissions in our operations."

The USD169m Hydrocracker Improvement Project (HIP) will improve efficiency and reduce periods of planned maintenance, resulting in fewer unit shutdowns and associated flaring events. The hydrocracker is the “heart” of the refinery. In this unit, heavy oils are subjected to high temperatures and pressure – in the presence of hydrogen – to produce gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

Upon project completion, the hydrocracker will consume less hydrogen, which is produced at the refinery by conversion of natural gas, producing CO2 emissions. In addition, the hydrocracker will require less heat input from the consumption of gaseous fuel in refinery process heaters than it does today. Work on the hydrocracker will begin later this year and is expected to finish in 2023.

The USD55m Cooling Water Infrastructure Project (CWI) will enhance cooling water infrastructure, allowing for increased utilization, better energy efficiency, and a related reduction in CO2 emissions.

Just as a radiator in a car cools the engine, cooling towers in the refinery enable cooling for process units through circulation of water. Water is recycled in this system, and as much ambient heat as possible is recovered.

Cooling water is vital to safe operations. This project will improve reliability by enabling the refinery to maintain an optimum cooling water temperature year-round. Increasing efficiency in cooling produces fewer light hydrocarbons, such as methane and ethane, that are combusted in process heaters and utility boilers. Work on the cooling water infrastructure will begin later this year and is expected to be completed in 2023.

The HIP and CWI projects are together estimated to reduce CO2 emissions from operations at Cherry Point by approximately 160,000 tons per year, or seven percent – equivalent to taking more than 32,000 US cars2 off the road.

As MRC reported before, BP and Lukoil want to quit their Iraqi energy projects due to the current investment environment, the country's oil minister said earlier this month, as OPEC's second biggest producer faces an exodus of international oil companies that want to exit unattractive contracts. Lukoil wants to sell its stake in West Qurna 2 to Chinese companies.

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 1,396,960 tonnes in January-July 2021, up by 7% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 841,990 tonnes in the first seven months of 2021, up by 29% year on year. Supply of propylene homopolymers (homopolymer PP) and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.

BP is one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, serving millions of customers every day in around 80 countries, and employing around 85,000 people. BP’s business segments are Upstream (oil and gas exploration & production), and Downstream (refining & marketing). Through these activities, BP provides fuel for transportation; energy for heat and light; services for motorists; and petrochemicals products for plastics, textiles and food packaging. It has strong positions in many of the world's hydrocarbon basins and strong market positions in key economies.
MRC