Honeywell invests in cyber security innovation center in Asia Pacific

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Honeywell Process Solutions, with the support of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), will establish a new industrial cyber security center of excellence (COE) for Asia Pacific in Singapore. The COE will feature a cyber security research and development lab, an advanced training facility and a security operations center that provides managed security services, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

"Honeywell's major investments in new industrial cyber security technologies, services, and advanced research – including this new center of excellence in Singapore – will further strengthen our ability to secure and protect industrial assets, operations and people," said Jeff Zindel, vice president and general manager, Honeywell Industrial Cyber Security. "The COE will provide a world-class innovation platform for smart industry, critical infrastructure protection and securing the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) in the Asia Pacific region."

The new facility in Singapore, which is the first for Asia Pacific, is a further expansion of Honeywell's global network of innovation centers. The lab will be used for proprietary research and development of new cyber security technologies and products, hands-on training and certifications, and testing and validation of industrial cyber security solutions. It will enable rapid development and introduction of innovative cyber security solutions to the regional and global markets.

The facility will also deliver managed industrial cyber security services to help users reduce the risk of security breaches and proactively improve their security posture. Managed services include continuous security and performance monitoring and alerting, security asset management, and incident response with 24-hr expert support 365 days a year.

The COE will be located at Honeywell's office in Singapore's Changi Business Park and is expected to open by the end of 2017. In addition, Honeywell is opening a similar facility in Dubai this year. Honeywell's first cyber security lab is based in Atlanta.

As MRC informed earlier, UOP LLC, a division of Honeywell International Inc. has won a contract from Dangote Oil Refinery Company Ltd. for critical equipment, technology licensing and design services for a world-scale integrated refinery and petrochemical plant.

Honeywell UOP's Advanced MTO process combines the UOP/Hydro MTO process and the Total/UOP Olefin Cracking Process to significantly increase yields and feedstock efficiency. The process converts methanol from coal and natural gas into ethylene and propylene. At the heart of the technology are UOP's proprietary catalysts, which make it possible to efficiently adjust the ratio of propylene and ethylene produced so operators can most effectively meet demand for those products.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Brazilian government is not meddling in pricing decisions by state-controlled oil producer Petroleo Brasileiro SA, which on Wednesday kept cooking gas out of a pricing system based on international parity, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Chief Executive Officer Pedro Parente, speaking at a news conference, said the decision helps Petrobras comply with rules set by Brazil's most powerful energy policy body to help contain fuel costs for households.

As MRC informed before, in April 2017, Alpek, S.A.B. de C.V. announced that it had obtained all necessary corporate approvals to acquire 100% of PetroquimicaSuape and Citepe from Petrobras for USD385 MM. Petroquimica Suape and Citepe operate an integrated PTA-PET facility in Ipojuca, Pernambuco, Brazil with an installed capacity of 640 Mtpy and 450 Mtpy PTA and PET, respectively. Citepe also operates a 90 Mtpy texturized polyester filament plant on site.

Headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, Petrobras is an integrated energy firm. Petrobras' activities include exploration, exploitation and production of oil from reservoir wells, shale and other rocks as well as refining, processing, trade and transport of oil and oil products, natural gas and other fluid hydrocarbons, in addition to other energy-related activities.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP (Chevron Phillips Chemical) announced it has successfully completed a low viscosity polyalphaolefins (PAO) capacity expansion at its Cedar Bayou plant in Baytown, Texas, said the company on its website.

The 20% capacity expansion enables the company to meet the increasing demand for lubricants in automotive and industrial applications. Chevron Phillips Chemical develops and produces PAOs, marketed under the brand name Synfluid PAO, which are used for a variety of applications including engine oils, gear oils and greases.

The project improves process safety and overall unit efficiencies while reducing waste generation for Cedar Bayou’s PAO unit. The feedstock for the new unit will be provided from Cedar Bayou’s recent 100,000-metric-tpy expansion of its normal alpha olefins capacity.

Construction began in April 2016 and supported up to 135 construction and engineering jobs.

Headquartered in San Ramon, California, Chevron Corporation is the the second-largest integrated energy company in the United States and among the largest corporations in the world. With a net income of USD21.42 billion in 2013, Chevron is involved in upstream activities including exploration and production, downstream activities including refining, marketing and transportation, and advanced energy technology. Chevron is also invested in power generation and gasification processes.

Phillips 66 is a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company with a portfolio of integrated businesses: Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties. The company processes, transports, stores and markets fuels and products globally. Phillips 66 Partners, its master limited partnership, is an integral part of the portfolio.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Effective 1 June, or as contracts allow, BASF increased prices for numerous pigments by up to 15% worldwide, said the producer on its site.

The price increase predominantly affects phthalocyanine and inorganic pigments used in the coatings, plastics and printing industries. The price adjustments are necessary due to higher raw materials costs e.g. copper, TiO2 or cobalt, as well as further challenging environmental, health and safety costs.

As MRC reported earlier, BASF formed a global business unit (GBU) combining all of its pigments activities effective January 2016. In the second half of 2016, BASF carved out its pigments business and establish separate legal entities.

BASF is the largest diversified chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries. BASF generated sales of about EUR58 billion in 2016.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Technology company The Linde Group has been awarded a major contract by PJSC Nizhnekamskneftekhim (NKNK) to supply an olefin plant in the city of Nizhnekamsk, located in the Republic of Tatarstan in the Russian Federation. Both partners officially signed the agreement in St. Petersburg, Russia, as per Linde's press release.

A further agreement covering strategic cooperation between Linde and the TAIF Group was also concluded in the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Minister President of Bavaria Horst Seehofer and President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov.

PJSC Nizhnekamskneftekhim is one of Europe's largest petrochemical companies and a member of the TAIF Group.

"This large-scale project, coupled with plans for a strategic alliance with the TAIF Group, take our successful collaboration to a whole new level," said Dr. Aldo Belloni, Chief Executive Officer of Linde AG. "It also gives us a strong footing to position ourselves for further contracts in the industrial gases and plant engineering sector in this key Eastern European growth market."

As part of this major contract, Linde is responsible for licensing, design, material procurement and technical engineering consulting for the plant.

NKNK’s new olefin complex will be built in Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan, at what is currently Eastern Europe's largest petrochemical hub. In the first expansion stage, it will have the capacity to produce 600 Mt of ethylene and over 600 Mt of other chemical products per year. The annual production capacity will be doubled in the future through the addition of a further plant. Linde also aims to support NKNK in the subsequent project phases.

The new plant is a naphtha cracker that thermally breaks down hydrocarbon feedstocks - naphtha in this case - into olefins such as ethylene, propene and butadiene. These are then used as feedstocks for manufacturing various plastics. The new olefin plant is scheduled to go on stream in 2022.

As MRC informed previously, in early 2016, Linde AG agreed with Gazprom to build a gas processing plant in eastern Russia. The plant will be part of Gazprom’s pipeline taking gas from eastern Siberia to China. The Amur Gas Processing Plant will be one of the largest in the world, with capacity of up to 49 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually. The plant will be constructed in five phases due for completion in 2024.

The Linde Group is a world-leading gases and engineering company with around 62,000 employees in more than 100 countries worldwide.
MRC