LG Chem opens North America innovation center in Atlanta

South Korea's LG Chem Ltd. announced on Wednesday it has opened its North America Innovation Center in Georgia, the US, said Kedglobal.

The company also signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) for new technology research and development.

LG Chem said it plans to internalize research and development (R&D) capabilities related to three new growth engines in the North American region: next-generation battery materials, recycling, and bioplastics. The company also aims to identify top talent in these fields.

The North America Innovation Center will play a key role in expanding LG Chem's R&D capabilities and talent pool in the region. The center will focus on local technology surveys and task development, joint research with local universities and research institutions, securing local talent, and independent R&D.

LG Chem also plans to expand and reorganize the center by 2025 to establish it as a core research hub in North America with independent facilities.

We remind, LG Chem Ltd. and GS Caltex Corp. are accelerating their efforts in the eco-friendly bio-material business involving 3-hydroxypropionic acid (3HP). 3HP is an eco-friendly substance produced through microbial fermentation processes and can be used to substitute various disposable plastic materials.

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Air Liquide's group revenue fell by 17.4% year on year to €6.81bn in the third quarter, weighed by the drop in energy prices, the French industrial gases major said on Wednesday.

Q3 revenue also weighed by negative currency impacts. Primary Gas & Services business revenue fell by 17.9% year on year to €6.48bn.

"In 2023, Air Liquide is confident in its ability to further increase its operating margin and to deliver recurring net profit growth, at constant exchange rates," the company said.

The company's net profit rose by 7.3% year on year in 2022.

We remind, INPEX Corporation, Air Liquide Group, LSB Industries and Vopak Moda Houston LLC have agreed to collaborate on pre-front-end engineering design (FEED) for the development of a large-scale, low-carbon ammonia production and export project on the Houston Ship Channel. The project’s first phase is expected to produce more than 1.1m tonnes/year of low-carbon ammonia by the end of 2027, with options for future expansions.

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Azelis, a leading innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry, announces that it has acquired 100% of the shares of BLH SAS (“BLH”), a well-known distributor of flavors & fragrances focused on the fine perfumery market in France, said the company.

The acquisition strengthens Azelis’ global footprint in flavors & fragrances, which was created over the last two years following the acquisition of Quimdis in France, Vigon in America and Ashapura in India.Experts in the distribution of premium fragrance ingredients, BLH’s attractive portfolio perfectly complements the current natural ingredient ranges offered by Azelis. The transaction is expected to close in November.

A family-owned business founded in 1983, BLH has developed long-standing relationships with global blue-chip suppliers and a diverse portfolio of specialty ingredients, creating a strong market expertise in fine perfumery under the leadership of Philippe Becot. The company is currently led by Nicolas Becot, who will stay on to ensure successful integration, as well as continued development of the business. The company employs 42 experienced and highly qualified staff and operates a laboratory in the Grasse region, in the southeast of France, serving 400 customers, including major players in the perfume industry.

We remind, Azelis, a leading innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry, announces today that Shiona Stewart will join the company in a senior management role as Managing Director of CASE in the United States. Commencing her role on November 7, 2023, Shiona will play a pivotal role in leading Azelis' CASE U.S. business, collaborating closely with the company's strategic principals to devise and implement a robust business strategy geared towards sustainable growth. Shiona will report to Vuk Milojkovic, Managing Director of Azelis U.S..

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North American chemical rail traffic rose for a 10th consecutive week, with railcar loadings for the week ended 21 October up 3.7% year on year to 45,549, said the company.

For the first 42 weeks of 2023 ended 21 October, North American chemical rail traffic was down 1.0% year on year to 1,903,429 - with the US down 2.2% to 1,307,333.

In the US, chemical railcar loadings represent about 20% of chemical transportation by tonnage, with trucks, barges and pipelines carrying the rest. In Canada, chemical producers rely on rail to ship more than 70% of their products, with some exclusively using rail.

We remind, Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending October 14, 2023. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 492,781 carloads and intermodal units, up 0.5 percent compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending October 14 were 225,405 carloads, down 2.0 percent compared with the same week in 2022, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 267,376 containers and trailers, up 2.8 percent compared to 2022.

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Linde announced that its entities in India have signed long-term agreements for the supply of industrial gases to Indian Oil Corporation’s Panipat refinery in Northern India, said the company.

Linde’s entities will build, own and operate major new on-site facilities to supply hydrogen, nitrogen and compressed dry air to IndianOil. The new on-site facilities will support the multi-billion-dollar expansion of the Panipat refinery from 15 to 25 million metric tons per year.

Industrial gases play several important roles in refining, whether removing sulfur to make clean fuels, cracking crude oil into various products or purging and cleaning process equipment and control instruments.

Panipat will be the second large-scale hydrogen plant which is built, owned and operated by Linde entities for IndianOil. It will also be one of Linde’s largest on-site plants in India, with a total combined industrial gas production capacity of 142,200 cubic metres (Nm3) per hour. The plant is expected to start up in 2025.

In addition to supplying IndianOil, the new on-site complex will cater for demand for nitrogen from companies across end markets including chemicals & energy and manufacturing.

“We won this project on the basis of the best-in-class efficiency offered by our technology, plus Linde’s track record of safely and reliably supplying our customers,” said Moloy Banerjee, President ASEAN & South Asia, Linde. “We look forward to building on our existing relationship with IndianOil, while also increasing our network density in Northern India.”

We remind, Linde announced it has signed two major agreements in Brazil for the supply of renewable energy. White Martins, Linde’s subsidiary, has entered into agreements to secure more than two million megawatt hours per year of renewable energy, replacing almost half of its existing power usage in Brazil. Supply has already commenced from the Futura I Solar Complex, one of the largest photovoltaic parks in Latin America, and the Chui Wind Farm, in Rio Grande do Sul.

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