ExxonMobil awards EPC work to Foster Wheeler to upgrade Antwerp refinery

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Foster Wheeler has announced that a subsidiary of its global engineering and construction business has been awarded an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract by ExxonMobil Petroleum & Chemical (Esso) to upgrade its Antwerp refinery in Belgium, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The Esso project is officially named the Antwerp Northwest Europe Resid Upgrade Project - Revamp and Offsites facilities.

Foster Wheeler's contract value was not disclosed, and a small initial release of work was included in the company’s first-quarter 2014 bookings.

The full release of work was included in the company's second-quarter 2014 bookings.

"After the successful completion by Foster Wheeler of the front-end engineering design for this project and for the new delayed coking unit that will be built at the same facility, we are very pleased to have won this significant EPC contract for this challenging project," said Roberto Penno, CEO of Foster Wheeler's global engineering and construction group.

Foster Wheeler’s scope of work is expected to be completed in December 2016.

As MRC informed previously, in early 2014, ExxonMobil officially opened its multi-billion dollar Singapore chemical plant expansion on Jurong Island, to serve growth markets in the Asia-Pacific region. The expansion included a second 1-million-t/y steam cracker, two 650,000-t/y polyethylene plants, a 450,000-t/y polypropylene plant, a 300,000-t/y specialty elastomers unit, an aromatics extraction facility to produce 340,000 t/y of benzene, and a 125,000-t/y oxo-alcohol expansion.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world's oil and about 2% of the world's energy.
MRC

Naushad Jamani named Senior Vice President Olefins and Feedstock of NOVA Chemicals

MOSCOW (MRC) -- NOVA Chemicals Corporation has announced that Naushad Jamani has been named Senior Vice President Olefins and Feedstock, effective January 1, 2015, replacing Grant Thomson who will be retiring at the end of the year, according to the company's press release.

Mr. Jamani will become a member of the NOVA Chemicals Management Board.

"The Board of Directors is pleased to be able to continue the strong leadership that NOVA Chemicals has shown in feedstocks with the appointment of Mr. Jamani," stated His Excellency Khadem Abdulla Al Qubaisi, NOVA Chemicals Chairman and IPIC Managing Director. "We thank Mr. Thomson for his positive contributions to NOVA."

Mr. Jamani has nearly 35 years at NOVA Chemicals with roles in various engineering and commercial segments of the business. He is currently responsible for the acquisition of all feedstock for the Corunna, Ontario facility as well as sales and marketing of all NOVA Chemicals olefins products. Over his career, he has been centrally involved in the transformation of the Corunna cracker from its original 100% naphtha feedstock slate into its current ability to utilize up to 100% natural gas liquid and the interim steps along the way.

The NOVA Chemicals Board of Directors continues the search for a permanent CEO.

As MRC reported earlier, Canada's Nova Chemicals remains on target for a late-2015 startup for its Polyethylene 1 expansion project in Alberta, expected to add at least 950 million lbs/year of linear low density (LLDPE) production the plant.

Nova Chemical is one of the largest world's petrochemical companies, a manufacturer of polyethylene, styrene polymers, monomers, and many other related products.
MRC

Clariant Catalysts receives special mention for ICIS Innovation award 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, has achieved a special mention in the Best Process Innovation category of the ICIS Innovation Awards 2014 for its Heat Generating Material (HGM) concept, proven to significantly improve the efficiency of CATOFIN on-purpose olefin production units, reported the company on its site.

The ICIS judges selected HGM for particular recognition because of its step-change contribution to feedstock utilization efficiency through increasing olefin selectivity and yield by several percent. The new concept reduces the carbon emissions of a typical CATOFIN unit by several 10’000t of CO2 per year. CATOFIN technology based on Clariant’s Houdry catalysts creates a reliable and less complex production process for on-purpose olefins production with efficient energy consumption. Licensed through CB&I is the CATOFIN technology currently used in more than 30 propane and butane dehydrogenation plants around the world.

Metal oxide-based HGM is loaded into the catalyst bed of the dehydrogenation plant. It is oxidised and reduced during the process. This reaction produces heat inside the catalyst bed where it drives the dehydrogenation reaction. It significantly reduces the amount of heat that needs to be supplied and also establishes a more favorable catalyst bed temperature profile. This increases olefin selectivity and consequently the yield, while also saving energy and reducing CO2 emissions.

Several Catofin units utilizing HGM have gone on-stream since 2011, all confirming the advantages of the HGM technology at full commercial scale.

"Shale gas development is creating significant need for on-purpose olefin production, and with HGM we are offering step change improvements to the efficient CATOFIN technology. Several percentage of olefin yield improvement for CATOFIN plants translate into tremendous economic benefit. Further competitive advantages for our customer are brought through sustainability aspects of energy consumption and CO2 emission reduction," said Stefan Heuser, Head of BU Catalysts at Clariant.

As MRC informed previously, in July 2014, CB&I and Clariant announced that their new Ziegler-Natta (ZN) polypropylene catalyst plant in Louisville, Kentucky, is on schedule to begin production in 2015. The plant is part of a long-term strategic partnership between Clariant’s catalysts business and CB&I’s Lummus Novolen Technology business. Based at Clariant’s largest US production hub, the new facility will combine innovative catalysts jointly developed by both companies with high-capacity output.

Clariant AG is a Swiss chemical company and a world leader in the production of specialty chemicals for the textile, printing, mining and metallurgical industries. It is engaged in processing crude oil products in pigments, plastics and paints.
MRC

US Williams Q3 net income rises to USD1.68bn on Access acquisition

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Williams Companies Inc. reported third-quarter 2014 net income attributable to Williams of USD1.678 billion or USD2.22 per share, compared with net income of USD141 million, or USD0.20 per share for third-quarter 2013, said Nasdaq.

The USD1.537 billion increase in net income during third-quarter 2014 was primarily the result of a USD2.522 billion pre-tax non-cash re-measurement gain related to the consolidation of its previous equity-method investment in Access Midstream Partners as of July 1, 2014.

Adjusted income from continuing operations for third-quarter 2014 was USD110 million, or USd0.15 per share, compared with USD130 million, or USD0.19 per share for third-quarter 2013. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of USD0.19 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

The decrease in adjusted income for the quarter was driven by USD86 million higher net interest expense, including interest associated with debt at Access Midstream Partners, and USD28 million lower NGL margins, partially offset by the segment results of our now consolidated Access Midstream Partners business and growth in Williams Partners' fee-based revenues.

The company expects dramatically higher results for Williams Partners in the fourth quarter and 2015.

As MRC wrote before, Williams Olefins in August 2014 restated its ethylene force majeure allocation, reducing its August sales allocation from 25% to 0%. In mid-June 2013, Williams Olefins declared force majeure on ethylene supplies out of its Geismar, Louisiana, olefins complex that was impacted by an explosion and fire.

Williams is one of North America"s largest natural gas gatherers and processors. Williams also has a growing midstream business in Canada focused on processing oil sands off-gas into NGLs and olefins. It also has a domestic olefins business that provides customers in the petrochemical industry with a full suite of products and services.

MRC

Clariant posts Q3 profit

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Swiss specialty chemicals maker Clariant AG reported that its third-quarter net income was 59 million Swiss francs, compared to a loss of 204 million francs in the same quarter last year, said the producer in its press-release.

Net income from continuing operations dropped to 58 million francs from last year's 129 million francs. The decrease was entirely caused by higher tax charges compared to the year-ago period and a one-time gain from the joint venture transaction with Wilmar in the previous year.

EBIT declined to 122 million francs from 147 million francs in the previous year.

But, quarterly sales rose 4% to 1.507 billion francs from 1.443 billion francs last year. Sales from continuing operations rose 8% in local currencies.

For the full-year 2014, Clariant expects around mid single-digit sales growth in local currencies and an EBITDA margin before exceptional items above full-year 2013.

Clariant confirmed its mid-term target of achieving a position in the top tier of the specialty chemicals industry.This corresponds to an EBITDA margin before exceptional items in the range of 16 % to 19 % and a return on invested capital (ROIC) above the peer group average in 2015 and beyond.

As MRC wrote before, CB&I and Clariant announced that their new Ziegler-Natta (ZN) polypropylene catalyst plant in Louisville, Kentucky, is on schedule to begin production in 2015. The plant is part of a long-term strategic partnership between Clariant’s catalysts business and CB&I’s Lummus Novolen Technology business.

Clariant AG is a Swiss chemical company and a world leader in the production of specialty chemicals for the textile, printing, mining and metallurgical industries. It is engaged in processing crude oil products in pigments, plastics and paints.
MRC