Chemours, Honeywell partner with Greek officials to stop illegal refrigerant imports

The Chemours Company (Chemours) and Advanced Performance Materials, and Honeywell announced they have engaged with the Interagency for Market Control of the Hellenic Ministry of Development (DIMEA), the Hellenic Police, and Hellenic Customs to stop illegal fluorinated gas (F-gas) refrigerants from entering the European Union (EU) at the Greek border, said the company.

Approximately 15.6 tons of suspected unauthorized refrigerants including R-1234yf used as an automotive refrigerant were seized, tested, and determined to infringe valid patents or deemed illegal in the European Union, according to Greek officials. These illegal products will be safely destroyed before year-end 2023 in a process that protects workers as well as the planet.

Chemours collaborated with Honeywell in the operation to protect the Intellectual Property (IP) of refrigerant innovations owned by both companies and to detect and confiscate illegal F-gases. These efforts are part of an ongoing commitment by Chemours and Honeywell to not only protect IP, but to defend people, businesses, communities and the planet against the ramifications of illegal import activities. As phasedowns of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) progress in the EU, United States, and elsewhere, black market activities of refrigerants are expected to increase exponentially, driving authorities and companies like Chemours and Honeywell to collaborate on educating invested parties as well as strengthening enforcement efforts to deter illegal trade of HFCs.

Reports by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) have shown that in 2021 alone, more than 230 tons of illegally imported F-gases were seized in multiple countries. Illegal trade of F-gas refrigerants poses threats in several areas, mainly because these “products” are unauthorized and may have unknown flammable contents such as hydrocarbons, impurities, and other contaminants. Illegal refrigerants can undermine climate objectives and disrupt the transition to lower-GWP refrigerants, erode the supply chain and economies that surround it, threaten the safety of workers, and compromise rapidly accelerating efforts to achieve a circular economy.

Both Chemours and Honeywell recognize and appreciate the strong efforts by Greek officials and OLAF working with private industry to support patent rights and combat the illegal import of F-gases.

In addition to collaborating with enforcement authorities, the two companies actively communicate with customers, vendors, and other stakeholders to raise awareness about the importance of avoiding illegal and Patent Infringing products. The efforts aim to help businesses protect themselves from the negative legal impacts of buying or selling illegal products and promotes responsible practices in the industry.

We remind, Chemours Company has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Glycolic Acid business for USD137 M in cash to PureTech Scientific, a company founded and backed by Iron Path Capital, a private equity firm focused on lower-middle market investments across the speciality industrial and healthcare sectors. The Chemours Company is a chemistry company with market positions in titanium technologies, thermal & specialized solutions, and advanced performance materials.

mrchub.com

Trinseo, a specialty material solutions provider, announced today the release of its 2023 Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility Report, which details how the Company is materializing a sustainable future through progression of its 2030 Sustainability Goals, said the company.

Addressing Scope 3 Emissions: Trinseo completed baseline calculations for Scope 3 emissions in 2022. The Company continues to refine this data in 2023, as well as integrating a supplier engagement plan and training the Procurement team and other stakeholders.

Securing Supplies of Sustainable Feedstocks: In January 2022, Trinseo acquired Heathland B.V., located in the Netherlands. This backward integration strategically positions the Company within the market and enhances its footprint and capability as a sustainable solutions provider. Heathland is the first recycler that Trinseo has acquired, which is a milestone step in the Company’s transformational journey into a specialty material solutions provider.
Expanding Availability of Sustainably Advantaged Materials: One of Trinseo’s Sustainability Goals is to have 40% of its product portfolio sustainably advantaged by 2030. In 2022, the Company’s sustainably advantaged materials sales increased by 11%. This demand is an opportunity to bolster Trinseo’s business strategy for growth through innovative products.

The Company’s 13th annual Sustainability Report was prepared with reference to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) 2021 Universal Standards, which were implemented this year. GRI is the leading independent organization providing a common language and framework for public sustainability reporting, and Trinseo’s transition to the 2021 Universal Standards builds on the Company’s legacy of sustainability transparency. As part of this alignment, Trinseo transitioned its Material Topics away from a matrix to a 360-degree perspective of Environment, Economy, and Social (EES), which better evaluates the Company’s impact on stakeholders. The report also incorporates disclosures referencing frameworks for the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and the Task Force on Climate-Related Disclosures (TCFD).

To complement the Sustainability Report, Trinseo also published a Core Impact Report that provides a holistic view of how the Company defines, creates, and disperses value over time. This year, the report also aligns with an EES perspective that showcases how the Company’s intrinsic value is connected to the impact on their stakeholders.

We remind, Trinseo, a specialty material solutions provider, announced the inauguration of its polycarbonate (PC) dissolution pilot facility in Terneuzen, the Netherlands. The new pilot facility is a major step in Trinseo’s commitment to sustainability, part of the journey in realizing the company’s sustainability goals. The guests of honor at the inauguration ceremony included Jo-Annes de Bat, Provincial Executive (responsible for regional economy) of the Netherlands.

mrchub.com

Brazilian state-run oil firm Petrobras will double down on its strategy to maximize motor fuel from its local refineries even as it boosts imports of cheap Russian diesel, the company's top executive told Reuters .

The comments from CEO Jean Paul Prates follow June data showing that Brazil's foreign diesel purchases rose sharply in the month. Brazil's total diesel imports rose nearly 13% in June to reach 1.08 billion liters, with Russian suppliers providing 64%. In previous months, their share of overall imports never reached half the total, Argus data showed.

"Russian diesel is coming in, it's here for whoever wants it," said Prates in an interview on Monday. "If it's cheap, it's also good for Brazil."

Russia's diesel supplies have been sold at a discount in large part due to economic sanctions imposed by the United States and other wealthy democratic nations on refined products produced in the country in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Prates stressed that while cheaper diesel supplies are attractive, the imported motor fuel cannot replace local output. He described current purchases of Russian diesel as "circumstantial." Petrobras is reaping positive results from the maximum use of its refineries, he also pointed out.

The oil company raised the total utilization rate of its refineries in the second quarter to 93%, their highest level since 2015, according to Petrobras data. "It makes no sense to leave a refinery at half capacity to make room for competitors," added Prates.

We remind, Chevron Lummus Global LLC (CLG) announced a recent contract award from Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) for a new 12,580 BPD hydroisodewaxing (HIDW) unit at the GasLub Hub, a lubricant plant in Itaborai, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. Chevron Lummus Global's scope includes the technology license, basic design engineering, and research unit testing services.

mrchub.com

Chemicals maker LyondellBasell said on Wednesday it has acquired a 50% stake in Dutch recycling company Stiphout Industries B.V., said Reuters.

The company did not disclose financial details of the transaction. Stiphout is involved in the sourcing and processing of plastic household waste into clean flakes of recycled polypropylene and high-density polyethylene materials. It operates a recycling facility located in the Netherlands.

Recycling currently only makes up a tiny fraction of the feedstock for plastics manufacture, and just 9% of plastics are ultimately recycled, according to a Reuters report.

We remind, Lyondell Basell Industries said on Wednesday that it plans to delay its refining business exit from year-end 2023 to no later than the end of the first quarter 2025. The company said in April it would close its Houston refinery by the end of 2023 after two failed attempts to sell the plant, and the closing of Lyondell's five U.S. refineries in the past two years.

mrchub.com

NOVA Chemicals Corp. (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) has made a significant expansion of its Circular Solutions business by announcing an investment into developing its first mechanical recycling facility in Connersville, Ind., said Chemengonline.

The facility will process post-consumer plastic films to produce the company’s SYNDIGO recycled polyethylene (rPE) at commercial scale as early as 2025, delivering over 100 million pounds of rPE to the market by 2026. NOVA Chemicals plans to expand its recycling footprint over the next several years to help it reach its industry-leading 2030 ambition of 30 per cent recycled content as a share of its total polyethylene sales.

The company recently announced its 2030 Roadmap to Sustainability Leadership aspirations, including its anticipated investment of between USD2-4 billion by 2030 to expand its sustainable product offerings, decarbonize its assets, and build a state-of-the-art mechanical recycling business while exploring new advanced recycling technologies.

“NOVA Chemicals continues to show clear leadership in reshaping plastics for a better, more sustainable world,” said NOVA Chemicals President and CEO, Roger Kearns. “We are committed to helping our customers achieve their recycled content goals through a variety of business models and we look forward to making more announcements like this as we work to enable a low-carbon, zero plastic waste future.”

We remind, NOVA Chemicals Corporation ("NOVA Chemicals") and Plastic Energy have entered into an agreement to explore the feasibility of developing a pyrolysis-driven advanced recycling facility in the Sarnia, ON, Canada, region. If constructed, the facility would be the largest of its kind in Canada with a potential initial capacity of 66,000 tonnes/y.

mrchub.com