Fluor awarded Sasol oxygen train project in Secunda, South Africa

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Fluor Corporation has been awarded a contract by Sasol Group Technology, a division of Sasol South Africa Ltd., for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the Additional Oxygen Capacity Train 17 outside battery limits project at its Secunda plant in South Africa, said Engineeringnews.

Fluor will book the undisclosed contract value in 3Q of 2016. The Additional Oxygen Capacity Train 17 project comprises the construction and commissioning of the world’s largest air separation unit at the Secunda Synfuels Operations site.

Fluor will provide engineering, procurement and construction of the outside battery limits facilities for this project including the integration of Train 17’s product streams with other live operations. These include high pressure oxygen, high pressure and low pressure nitrogen as well as dry air. Also included in the scope is the supply of electricity with associated infrastructure and utilities upgrades to the air separation unit.

Fluor’s relationship with Sasol dates back to the award of the first project in Sasolburg in the early 1960s. In 1975, Fluor was named the managing contractor by Sasol to provide EPC services for Sasol II, and later for Sasol III, the Secunda oil-from-coal complexes, and has since supported various other Sasol projects globally. In 2013, Fluor Corp secured the front-end engineering and design work for a chemicals plant in Louisiana being built by South Africa's Sasol Ltd aimed at putting cheap U.S. natural gas liquids to use.

Sasol Limited is an integrated energy and chemical company that began in Sasolburg, South Africa in 1950. It develops and commercialises technologies and builds and operates world-scale facilities to produce a range of product streams including liquid fuels, chemicals.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PKN ORLEN will continue to work with Saudi Aramco as a supplier of crude oil to its refineries in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Lithuania. The contract has been extended for another year, until December 31, 2017.

The contract, concluded in May, 2016, provides for an option of automatic renewal for subsequent years if both parties are willing to continue cooperation. The monthly volume to be supplied is approximately 200 Mt. The oil may be processed by PKN ORLEN’s refineries in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Lithuania.

"Cooperation with Saudi Aramco has been most satisfactory for us. The Saudi crude has become part of the key feedstock for our refineries,” said Wojciech Jasinski, President of the PKN ORLEN Management Board. "Moreover, we can see the positive effects of the consistently pursued strategy for diversification of supplies to our refineries, of which the contract with Saudi Aramco is an essential component," added CEO of PKN ORLEN.

Ensuring stable oil supplies to the refineries is one of PKN ORLEN’s top priorities. Therefore, long-term supply contracts are a vital element of our procurement strategy. At the same time, considering the opportunities offered by the crude oil market, PKN ORLEN does not rule out the possibility of purchasing oil from other sources under spot contracts.

Saudi Aramco is an integrated oil and chemicals company, a global leader in hydrocarbon production, refining processes and distribution, as well as one of the largest global oil exporters. It manages proven reserves of crude oil and condensate estimated at 261.1bn barrels, and produces 9.54 million bbl daily. Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the company employs over 61,000 staff in 77 countries.

PKN Orlen is a major Polish oil refiner and petrol retailer. The company is a significant European publicly traded firm with major operations in Poland, Czech Republic, Germany, and the Baltic States. It currently (2015) ranks 353, with a revenue of over USD33.8 billion.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Dow Chemical Company has awarded Veolia Water Technologies a contract for a total overhaul of the process water treatment plant at Dow’s Pittsburg Operations facility in California, said Veolia Water on its site.

The technologies chosen were Veolia’s proprietary Multiflo for softening and HPD MVR Evaporators. Dow has been investigating the replacement of an existing process water treatment system at its Pittsburg facility as the current system has come to the end of its life cycle.

The first stage of this new Veolia system is the Multiflo process. This is a high rate chemical softening technology which features a modular multi-stage softening design that reduces installation costs. It is also more resistant to process upsets than a conventional reactor or clarifier system.

The feed to the process water treatment system exhibits seasonal variations in flow and composition. The plant has existing tankage to provide buffer capacity to moderate variations in softener feed flow. In or der to accommodate the specified flow variation, two HPD Evaporators were proposed, each with the capacity to accommodate 50% of the maximum design flow rate. These two evaporators used after the softening process use a mechanical vapor recompression (MVR) configuration.

These HPD MVR Evaporators enable a high quality recovered water stream to be produced and utilized as makeup water for the upstream processing facility on site. This is especially important to Dow due to location of the plant.

Veolia Water Technologies, Inc. CEO, Klaus Andersen, explained, "California’s water scarcity means water restrictions are quite common for many industrial operations. The solution that Veolia put forth will reduce the overall amount of water used by the facility a d thus reduce its environmental imp act. Long term, it will also be more economical for Dow."

As MRC informed earlier, Dow Chemical Co, whose merger with DuPont is now likely to close early next year rather than end-2016, reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit as it benefited from its focus on consumer markets such as automotive and electronics.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation. Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber. In 2014, Dow had annual sales of more than USD58 billion and employed approximately 53,000 people worldwide.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The global polymer nanocomposites market will reach USD11,549 mln, in terms of revenue and 6,014 kilo tons corresponding volume by 2022, registering revenue growth of 10.9% during 2016-2022, as per Plastemart with reference to Research and Markets.

North America held one-third share in the world polymer nanocomposites market in 2015, and is expected to maintain its lead during the forecast period. The dispersion of nanofillers in polymer matrices are known to enhance the physical, mechanical, and barriers properties of the material. These enhanced properties make them more beneficial for use in industrial sectors such as construction, packaging, electrical & electronics among several others.

Increasing use of polymer nanocomposites in the automotive as well as packaging industry and the stringent government regulations for automotive emissions in several countries such as the U.S., Germany, India, and China is invariably supporting the growth of global polymer nanocomposites market. On the contrary, high cost of processing is dampening the market growth. The growing consumption of graphene and related materials would drive the future growth of the market.

As MRC informed before, the market for polymer nanocomposites in terms of value is expected to cross USD5100 mln by 2020, growing at a significant CAGR from 2014 to 2019, as per MarketsandMarkets. The demand of light weight automotive parts has given an edge to polymer nanocomposites due to its high strength and light weight properties. The use of polymer nanocomposites enabled automotive parts reduction in light weight vehicles, improved engine efficiency, reduction in CO2 emissions and superior performance. The automotive industry can benefit from polymer nanocomposites in several applications such as powertrain, suspension and breaking systems, exhaust systems and catalytic converters, lubrication, tires and body parts.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Solvay is expanding its composite materials capacities with a state-of-the-art resin facility and an upgraded site in Germany, to meet growing demand from aircraft customers for lightweighting materials and to provide first-rate products and services for parts like engine fan blades, said the producer.

Located in Ostringen, Solvay's site will produce and supply materials including for the LEAP engine produced by CFM International, the joint company between GE and Safran Aircraft Engines, for Airbus programs and Boeing.

"This new facility and the site’s upgraded infrastructure further strengthen Solvay’s long-term support to its customers in response to their growing demand for its industry-leading lightweighting materials and technology," said Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, CEO of Solvay.

Solvay will produce its unique infusion resins and resins for reinforced composite materials from this facility, which is expected to be taken into production in the second quarter of 2017 after customer qualifications. Resin infusion processing technologies are increasingly important in the manufacturing of composite parts as they meet demands from the aerospace industry for faster and higher volume processing of key parts.

As MRC informed before, in May 2016, Solvay signed a definitive agreement with Brazilian chemical group Unipar Carbocloro to sell its 70.59% stake in Solvay Indupa. The transaction is based on a total enterprise value of USD 202.2 million, which shall be subject to customary adjustments. Created in 1948, PVC and caustic soda producer Solvay Indupa has 956 employees and two production sites in Brazil and Argentina. Indupa, with a manufacturing capacity of more than 500,000 tpa of PVC, runs facilities at Santo Andre, Brazil, and Bahia Blanca, Argentina.

Solvay, with a market share 27%, is the second largest PVC manufacturer in Europe, after Kerling with 29% of the market. Solvay is headquartered in Brussels with about 30,900 employees spread across 53 countries. It generated pro forma net sales of EUR12.4 bn in 2015, with 90% made from activities where it ranks among the world’s top 3 players.
MRC