Albemarle announced new technology product

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Albemarle Corporation, a leader in the global specialty chemicals industry, announced today the addition of ACTION+ Catalyst Technology to the company’s cornerstone ACTION FCC Catalyst line following two successful commercial trials, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The company announced this new technology product during the 2021 AFPM (American Fuel & Petroleum Manufacturers) Summit in New Orleans, an annual two-day industry education event.

“Introduced in 2007, Albemarle’s ACTION Catalyst Technology has delivered best-in-class performance in butylene yield/selectivity and gasoline octane to refiners worldwide,” said Raphael Crawford, President, Catalysts. “Today’s introduction of ACTION+ catalyst technology builds off that strong history with next-generation butylene yields and gasoline octane."

ACTION+ leverages the core technology of ACTION, the shape-selective ZT-400, in conjunction with ZT500, a new, innovative, Y-zeolite stabilization system. ZT-500 minimizes hydrogen transfer reactions, providing maximum LPG olefinicity with unrivaled butylene/propylene selectivity, and preserves those species which maximize gasoline octane.

"Albemarle understands that today's refiners face new, diverse and daunting obstacles to profitable FCC operation in an extremely challenging and competitive business environment,” said Crawford. “Our goal is to continue to provide novel, creative solutions for shaping and optimizing product yield slates to ensure maximum returns."

ACTION+ Catalyst Technology is available on a global basis after completing two commercial campaigns.

As MRC wrote previously, in 2018, W. R. Grace & Co. completed the USD416 million acquisition of the Polyolefin Catalysts business of Albemarle Corporation. The acquired business primarily develops and manufactures proprietary and custom-manufactured single-site catalysts as well as metallocenes and activators used in the production of plastic resins. The transaction also includes a comprehensive series of highly optimized Ziegler-Natta catalysts for polyethylene (PE) production.

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.

Albemarle Corporation, headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is a global specialty chemicals company with leading positions in lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. The company actively pursues a sustainable approach to managing our diverse global footprint of world-class resources.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Royal Dutch Shell warned of a USD400 million hit to third-quarter earnings from the damage caused by August’s Hurricane Ida, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

However, in an update ahead of quarterly results this month, the oil major also flagged a boost to cashflows from soaring natural gas and electricity prices. Gas and power prices have been surging as tight gas supplies have collided with strong demand in economies recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Shell is the world’s top seller of liquefied natural gas (LNG), accounting for about 20% of global demand, though its sales have declined in recent months because of production problems.

The company said third-quarter cashflow at its LNG division “is expected to be significantly impacted by large variation margin inflows on the back of the prevailing gas and electricity price environment”.

Shell will be holding more cash from buyers as deposits in the face of the large fluctuations in gas prices. The cash will eventually flow back out as prices cool. Liquefaction in the quarter is expected to be between 7 and 7.5 million tonnes, the lowest since 2016, “reflecting feedgas constraints and additional maintenance”, Shell said. LNG earnings will, however, receive a boost from stronger trading results, it added.

As per MRC, Royal Dutch Shell has suspended scheduled repairs at a cracker on Pulau Bukom Island, Singapore due to measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. Shell has suspended repairs to its cracking unit due to staffing problems related to the tightening of measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 by the Singapore government. The original plan was to close the plant for about a week in the first half of October.

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.

Royal Dutch Shell is an Anglo-Dutch oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague (Netherlands). Shell conducts geological exploration and production of oil and gas in more than 80 countries around the world. The company fully or partially owns more than 30 oil refineries. In addition, Shell owns a significant number of chemical plants, as well as the production of solar panels and other alternative energy sources.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Plastics Industry Association on behalf of 67 companies urged US Congress to drop the inclusion of a 20 cent/lb tax on virgin plastic resin in the USD3.5tr budget reconciliation package, said the organization.

In the letter sent to both chambers of Congress, major plastic producers raised concerns about increased costs to the entire plastic industry chain and reduced US manufacturing competitiveness. Among the companies signing the letter were Chevron Phillips, Eastman, Epsilyte, ExxonMobil, Formosa, LyondellBasell, NOVA Chemicals, SABIC, Shell and Westlake Chemical.

The group of companies argued that while they are committed to increasing the amount of recycling resin, the proposed tax ignores the supply constraint that it would cause due to limited recycled resin supply, especially for food-grade packaging.

Legislators have not yet fully vetted the proposed tax with the regular legislative process, which includes expert analysis and public debate. The letter signed by major chemical companies follows another similar letter sent to Congress last week from 23 trade associations.

The revenue from the REDUCE Act’s proposed 10 cent/lb tax for 2022 would have gone into the creation of a Plastic Waste Reduction Fund to implement initiatives to reduce plastic waste and improve recycling rates. Now, the 20 cent/lb tax is one of several options highlighted by the US Senate Finance Committee to pay for the budget reconciliation bill.

The proposals could likely need to be developed further before being included in any legislation, as the details of the spending bill continue to be discussed.

As per MRC, Eastman is increasing capacity for its Naia-brand cellulosic filament yarn at its plant in Barcelona, Spain. Eastman is increasing its capacity to produce Naia cellulosic filament yarns at its plant Barcelona, by 30% by mid-2021, and by more than 50% by the end of 2022.

As per MRC's ScanPlast, Russia's consumption of PC granules (excluding imports and exports to Belarus) decreased by 14% and reached 62,000 tonnes in January-August 2021 against 72,100 tonnes in the same period of 2020. 13,500 tonnes of PC were consumed for the production of injection moulding products in Russia over the stated period, down by 29% year on year, whereas the last year's figure was 10,500 tonnes.

The Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS) is the only organization that supports the entire plastics supply chain, representing nearly one million workers in the $395 billion U.S. industry. Since 1937, PLASTICS has been working to make its members and the industry more globally competitive while advancing recycling and sustainability.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SABIC (Jubail, Saudi Arabia) has announced the start-up of its new polypropylene (PP) compounding line in Genk, Belgium with a virtual inauguration event, said the company.

The new line is an addition to the company’s existing production capacity for SABIC® polypropylene compounds at the Genk site and will use raw materials from SABIC’s PP plants at Gelsenkirchen, Germany, and Geleen, The Netherlands. It has been equipped with cutting-edge large-scale extrusion technology to meet the market’s growing demand for high-quality, high-performance PP compounds with reliable and consistent supply.

“This investment is part of our business strategy for growth through advanced PP compound solutions designed to help customers develop next-generation lightweight applications in industries such as automotive, home appliances and consumer goods,” says Lada Kurelec, General Manager for PP & E4P Business, SABIC. “The added capacity also enhances our on-site production flexibility for introducing innovative new PP polymer technology without compromising the security of supply of established compound products."

The unique virtual opening was presided over by Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh, Executive Vice President for Petrochemicals, and other SABIC executives, providing insight on how customers can benefit from the company’s extended capacity to drive innovation in their markets. “We all are seeing industries evolve rapidly, with an increasing demand for high-performance PP compounds that are lighter, yet strong and durable while meeting rigorous standards,” said Mr. Al-Fageeh. “At SABIC, we are playing our part by relentlessly pursuing cutting-edge technologies, both in production and new material development. This new production line will support our company’s strategy to develop new sustainable material solutions that help our customers achieve their goals, as we work with them in ever-closer collaboration."

Earlier it was reported that in March of this year, BASF SE (Germany), Sabic (Saudi Arabia) and Linde (Germany) signed an agreement to develop electrically heated cracking furnaces. Steam cracking units require significant amounts of energy to break down hydrocarbons into olefins and aromatics. BASF and SABIC have combined their chemical process developments with their experience and expertise in the operation of steam cracking units, while Linde contributed with its intellectual property, expertise in the design and construction of steam cracking furnace technologies.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's 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.

SABIC is a diversified company manufacturing chemicals, industrial polymers, fertilizers and metals. It is the largest state-owned company in Saudi Arabia. SABIC is currently the world's second largest producer of ethylene glycol, the third largest polyethylene producer, and the fourth largest polypropylene producer.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - The Tatarstan company Danaflex plans to switch to recyclable packaging by 2025, RBK reports.

The Ministry of Ecology of the Republic of Tatarstan is confident that it is quite possible to do this by the announced date, but all the advantages will not appear immediately.

"We have a number of successful recyclable solutions in our portfolio and are promoting the concept of Non-existent package or“ Packaging that was not there. ”Recyclable packaging for the food and non-food industry is made of a mono-material polypropylene or polyethylene. easy to recycle packaging and create something new from it. The need for sustainable packaging solutions is clear. We are now working with our clients on projects to offer sustainable solutions to the end consumer. The strength, barrier properties, print quality and tactile properties of packaging are preserved " - said the head of the company Airat Bashirov.

The company intends to increase the share of collection and recyclability of the material. The idea is to mark the packaging with a wide, bright green stripe visible to the eye, which will distinguish recyclable from non-recyclable packaging.

Earlier it was reported that Danaflex (Tatarstan) plans to build a new plant on the territory of the special economic zone "Alabuga" in Tatarstan. It is planned to create a new packaging plant on the territory of the special economic zone. The volume of investments is over 4.5 billion rubles. The commissioning of the plant is scheduled for the first half of 2022.

In addition, Danaflex launched the production of IML labels for food and non-food products in February 2020. Danaflex has created a product that meets the most important requirement of the time - recycling, since the product and packaging consist of mono-raw materials. This is the reason for the general trend of transition of other types of marking (self-adhesive, dry label, direct print, etc.) to IML label.

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.

Danaflex Group of Companies was founded in 2001. The main activity is the production of flexible packaging materials for various industries. The group positions itself as the largest manufacturer of packaging materials. The structure of the GC includes four production facilities: CJSC Danaflex, LLC Danaflex-Nano, LLC Danaflex-Alabuga and DGPack s.r.o (in the Czech Republic).
MRC