Ineos goes solar to reduce carbon footprint of PVC production

Ineos Inovyn, the chlorvinyls arm of UK-based chemical company Ineos, has announced that its PVC production operations in Jemeppe, Belgium, will be partly powered by solar energy starting this summer, said the company.

The Jemeppe site is one of the largest PVC production facilities in Europe, with 420,000 tonnes supplied to sectors such as building, automotive, and piping every year.

PerPetum Energy is building the solar park, which is owned and financed by Green4Power. Ineos has signed a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA) to purchase all the renewable electricity produced at the site. The 60 MW solar installation is expected to come online in July 2024. Over 90,000 solar panels will occupy the equivalent of 56 football pitches and reduce carbon emissions by 14,000 tonnes annually, helping Ineos' to diversify its energy sources.

An interesting feature of the solar park is its east-west orientation, deviating from the more usual south-orientation choice in the northern hemisphere. East-west installations produce less energy per installed module. However, an east-west structure can squeeze in more rows and panels, increasing the generation capacity per surface area and reducing the amount of land used. Moreover, east-west solar parks generate more electricity during the morning and evening hours and less during the midday peak sunny hours, when electricity is cheaper.

This orientation can be a good match for clients like Ineos, whose operations are energy intensive over the entire day. Ineos will be able to power its PVC operations with renewable electricity when using grid-based energy would be the most expensive. Reducing the energy bill can in turn deliver a competitive advantage at a time when European plastic producers are paying much higher prices than in the US or China, for example.

“European plastics face a competitiveness gap with the US and China, driven by higher energy costs, less access to raw material and a challenging regulatory landscape,” Ineos said in a statement. “Measures are needed to safeguard the competitiveness of our industry and avoid Europe becoming dependent on imports from abroad. Support schemes that provide access to renewable energy are critical to a sustainable future,” the company concluded.

We remind, INEOS Inovyn announces a new Ultra Low Carbon range (ULC) of Chlor-Alkali products that reduce the carbon footprint of caustic soda, caustic potash and chlorine by up to 70% compared to industry averages, said the company. The new range uses renewable energy sources to power INEOS Inovyn manufacturing sites. The first production sites include Rafnes in Norway, which uses local hydroelectric power and Antwerp in Belgium, where electricity comes directly from North Sea wind turbines.

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South Korea’s top chemicals maker LG Chem Ltd. and food and biotechnology firm CJ CheilJedang Corp. have agreed to launch an eco-friendly bio-nylon joint venture to create a new revenue source and cut carbon emissions, said Kedglobal.

The two companies said on Thursday that LG Chem Chief Executive Shin Hak-cheol and CJ CheilJedang CEO Choi Eun-seok have signed a head of agreement (HOA) to build a JV plant to produce eco-friendly nylon based on bio-materials, called PMDA, which are produced by fermenting corn, sugarcane and other crops.

Once up and running, the JV will be Korea’s first bio-nylon project to produce both raw materials and finished products, according to LG.

Under the agreement, CJ will produce PMDA with its microbial precision fermentation technology while LG will polymerize or combine raw materials to produce bio-nylon, also known as bio-polyamide, and sell products.

We remind, LG Chem Ltd. striving to become a leading global battery materials player broke ground on its first-ever cathode plant in the US, expected to be the biggest of its kind in the world’s third-largest EV market. The plant’s groundbreaking ceremony took place in Clarksville, Tennessee on Tuesday (local time) about a year after the Korean company and the US state government in November last year signed a memorandum of understanding to invest $3.2 billion in total to build a cathode manufacturing facility in the US.

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LyondellBasell announced it has acquired mechanical recycling assets containing rigid plastics recycling processing lines from PreZero, a global recycling leader and waste management service provider, said the company.

The transaction includes leasing the processing facility in Jurupa Valley, Calif., which has a production capacity of approximately 50 million pounds per year for recycled materials.

"This acquisition further strengthens our U.S. presence and will deliver value for our customers and plastic recycling rates in the West Coast," said Yvonne van der Laan, LyondellBasell executive vice president, Circular and Low Carbon Solutions. "We will build upon our existing experience in plastic recycling in Europe and deliver a state-of-the-art, mechanical recycling facility to meet growing demand for recycled products in the U.S."

LYB plans to operate its newly-acquired mechanical recycling plant in California to manufacture post-consumer recycled resins using plastic waste feedstock. LYB will offer these recycled polymers under its CirculenRecover brand, part of the company's Circulen portfolio of products that enable the circular economy. LYB expects to commence operations at its new facility in 2025.

The transaction supports the company's efforts to build a circular economy for plastic, help end plastic waste in the environment and meet customers' growing demand for sustainable products. Together with the previously announced equity stake in the Cyclyx joint venture and investment in the Cyclyx Circularity Center in Houston, this latest California-based transaction will further enhance the competitiveness of LYB in the U.S. recycled products market.

We remind, LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (Rotterdam, the Netherlands) announced that China Coal Shaanxi Yulin Energy & Chemical Co., Ltd. (China Coal Shaanxi), will use the LyondellBasell Spherizone, Hostalen Advanced Cascade Process (Hostalen ACP) and Lupotech T technology for its new facility. The process technology will be used for a 300,000 metric tons per year (m.t./yr) Spherizone polypropylene plant, a 300,000-m.t./yr Hostalen ACP high-density polyethylene plant and a 250,000-m.t./yr Lupotech T vinyl acetate copolymer plant, to be built in Yulin City, Shaanxi Province, P.R. China.

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South Korea’s Lotte Chemical Corp. announced on Monday its commencement of commercial production at the plant of Hydroxy Ethyl Cellulose (product name: Hecellose) in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province earlier this month, said Kedglobal.

In December last year, Lotte Chemical constructed the Hecellose production facility on its Yeosu development site, specializing in Lotte Fine Chemical Co. 's key specialty product, Hecellose. Hecellose, a cellulose derivative made from ethylene oxide and pulp, serves as an additive in various industries such as water-based paints, household goods, and cosmetics, providing viscosity and moisture retention.

With the completion of the Yeosu Hecellose plant, the entire process, from sourcing raw materials for 10,000 tons of Hecellose products to production, now takes place in one location.

Lotte Chemical has established a system to safely supply ethylene oxide, a key raw material for Hecellose products, through pipelines to the new plant, instead of conventional land transportation.

This enables Lotte Chemical to generate revenue through the sale of ethylene oxide products and commissioned production of Hecellose. Simultaneously, Lotte Fine Chemical will benefit from a stable raw material supply, strengthening its foundation for expanding the Hecellose business.

We remind, Lotte Chemical sells JV stakes in China, eyes other profitable markets. South Korea’s Lotte Chemical Corp. has sold its entire stakes in joint ventures with Chinese partners as the Korean company faces a supply glut amid weak demand in the world’s second-largest economy. The petrochemical unit of Lotte Group, Korea’s fifth-largest conglomerate, recently sold its stake in the JV, Lotte Chemical Jiaxing Corp.

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Evonik is announcing a net price increase of up to 10% on MetAMINO® (DL-methionine 99%, feed grade) with immediate effect, said the company.

All existing contracts and supply agreements will be honored.

We remind, Evonik Hydroxylterminated Polybutadienes Production CapacityEvonik, a specialty chemicals company, begins work to expand its POLYVEST® HT plant in Marl, Germany. The Coating & Adhesive Resins business line expects the additional production capacity for its hydroxyl-terminated polybutadienes (HTPB), marketed under the brand name POLYVEST®, to be ready as early as the second quarter of 2024 following the double-digit million-euro investment.

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