Bahrain discovers largest oilfield in decades

MOSCOW (MRC) - Bahrain said on Sunday it had discovered the country's largest oilfield in decades, located off the west coast of the kingdom, according to Reuters.

The new light shale oil and gas resource is expected to contain many times the amount of oil produced by Bahrain's only existing oilfield, as well as large amounts of gas, BNA reported.

The oil discovery is the kingdom's largest since 1932, BNA said. It did not give any details on the oil reserves discovered.

Bahrain relies on the Abu Safa oilfield for the majority of its oil, and shares the field with Saudi Arabia.
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China leads globally with most upcoming hydrotreater capacity additions by 2021

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Analysis of hydrotreater capacities for global refineries shows that China has the highest capacity globally with 1,591.8 thousand barrels per day (mbd) to be added between 2018 and 2021, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Nigeria and Iran follow with 919.6 Mbpd and 789.7 Mbpd added respectively by 2021, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

In 2021, China will account for 23 percent of the total global planned hydrotreater capacity additions. A total of six planned refineries are expected to start operations by 2021. Among these, Dayushan Island refinery will have the highest hydrotreater capacity of 576.0 Mbpd, followed by Jieyang and Dalian III refineries with a capacity of 310.0 Mbpd and 288.0 Mbpd, respectively.

Nigeria will contribute approximately 13 percent of total global planned hydrotreater capacity additions in 2021. The country has 10 planned refineries expected to start operations by 2021, with total hydrotreater capacity of 919.6 Mbpd. Lagos I refinery will have the greatest hydrotreater capacity of 504.0 Mbpd, followed by Ibafon and Ibeno I refineries with capacities of 180.0 Mbpd and 72.0 Mbpd, respectively.

Iran will contribute about 11 percent of total global planned hydrotreater capacity additions in 2021. Iran has five planned refineries with combined hydrotreater capacity of 789.7 Mbpd. Siraf refinery will have the utmost hydrotreater capacity of 438.0 Mbpd, followed by Pars and Mazandaran refineries with capacities of 136.0 Mbpd and 105.7 Mbpd, respectively.

Kuwait will account for around 10 percent of total global planned hydrotreater capacity additions in 2021. Al-Zour refinery has planned hydrotreater capacity of 696.0 Mbpd and is expected to come online by 2019.
Malaysia will contribute about 6 percent of total global planned hydrotreater capacity additions in 2021. The country has two planned refineries with combined hydrotreater capacity of 413.5 Mbpd: Pengerang refinery will have the capacity of 368.0 Mbpd, followed by Kuantan Port refinery with capacity of 45.5 Mbpd.

Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Turkey are the other countries that will contribute 4 percent each to the total global planned hydrotreater capacity additions in 2021. Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Turkey are expected to add planned capacity of 288.0 Mbpd, 288.0 Mbpd, 279.1 and 258.0 Mbpd, respectively.
MRC

ADNOC signs 2 new deals for sale of up to 1.5 MMtpy of naphtha

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has announced that it has signed two new agreements, with Idemitsu Kosan Co. Ltd. of Japan and SCG Chemicals of Thailand, for a combined amount of up to 1.5 million tons of Naphtha per year, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing.

These deals follow the recent announcement from ADNOC that it had signed a similar three-year agreement with Malaysia’s Lotte Chemical Titan (LCT), one of the largest polyolefin producers in South East Asia, for the sale of up to 1 million tons per year of naphtha.

Abdulla Salem Al Dhaheri, Director, Marketing, Sales and Trading at ADNOC, said: "As part of ADNOC’s 2030 growth strategy, we are prioritizing the fast-growing markets of Asia, where the demand for refined and petrochemical products is accelerating. These latest long-term deals, yet again, demonstrate how ADNOC is committed to ensuring reliable and secure access to important refined and petrochemical products, as part of mutually beneficial partnerships that create sustainable value."

Both sales agreements were concluded during visits by ADNOC’s Marketing, Sales and Trading Directorate to customers in Japan, South Korea and Thailand.

ADNOC produces more than 12.5 million tons per annum of naphtha, which can be used as a feedstock to produce a variety of petrochemical based products, including plastics. The naphtha is converted to olefins and then further converted to polyolefin resins. The products produced end up in applications including light-weight automotive components, essential utility piping and cable insulation, durable goods, a range of every-day plastics, detergent, CDs, milk bottles and food packaging.

As part of its 2030 smart growth strategy, ADNOC is pursuing profitable and integrated Downstream growth to meet the needs of the evolving and expanding market for refined and petrochemical products, particularly in Asia, where the petrochemical market is set to double by 2030. Its Downstream strategy will allow ADNOC to boost margins by introducing asset flexibility and product marketing initiatives.

As MRC informed previously, in November 2017, ADNOC unveiled plans to to sell at least 10% of its fuel distribution unit in an initial public offering in Abu Dhabi, as Gulf states step up plans to privatize energy assets in an era of cheap crude.

ADNOC is making significant investments in new downstream projects to grow its refining capability and expand its petrochemical production three-fold to 14.4 mpta by 2025. Planned projects include a world scale, mixed liquid feedstock Naphtha cracker, as well as investments in new refinery capacity. As a result of the planned expansions in its Downstream business, ADNOC will create one of the world’s largest integrated refining and petrochemical complexes at Ruwais, located in Abu Dhabi’s Al Dhafra region.

Idemitsu Kosan produces a variety of basic chemicals, including olefins such as ethylene and propylene, and aromatics like benzene, para-xylene and styrene monomer. It is also a supplier of plastics for uses such as CD pressing and circuit boards.

SCG Chemicals is one of the largest integrated petrochemical companies in Asia. SCG Chemicals manufactures and supplies a full range of petrochemical products ranging from upstream monomers to downstream polymers including polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene and MMA.
MRC

Clariant introduces next-generation diesel dewaxing catalyst for superior cold flow improvement

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, announced the launch of its latest diesel dewaxing catalyst, HYDEX E, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The new catalyst is an extension of Clariant’s well-established HYDEX series, designed for selective hydrocracking of long-chain normal paraffins to improve the cold flow properties of middle distillates. HYDEX E maintains its predecessors’ exceptional robustness and flexible application, yet considerably increases diesel yield while reducing by-product formation. Consequently, producers not only benefit from higher cost-efficiency but also improved sustainability.

Catalytic dewaxing is essential for regulating fuel fluidity characteristics of diesel fuel to ensure reliable applicability and performance. This is particularly true for cold weather conditions. Clariant’s HYDEX catalysts have been successfully used for this purpose at more than 30 refineries around the world for over 20 years. The robust dewaxing catalysts allow versatile cold flow adjustment from 0°F to 120°F. Besides their excellent activity, long service cycles, and high tolerance to contamination, the catalysts also owe their success to extremely convenient installation. They offer a simple drop-in solution as a dewaxing layer in existing hydro processing units and require no further equipment.

Until now, the series included HYDEX G for dewaxing diesel and kerosene, HYDEX L for viscosity adjustment of heavy hydrocarbons, and special catalyst solutions tailored to customer needs. The range was expanded to create a new catalyst that allows operation under full sour service conditions. HYDEX E achieves this thanks to its robust zeolite content, which is combined with non-precious metal composition to ensure stable hydrogen transfer. On-site testing of HYDEX E in an ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) hydro treater pilot plant resulted in approximately 4%-wt. more on-road diesel product compared to previous HYDEX generations. This significant reduction in by-products presents a major financial advantage for producers.

Detailed standalone testing also demonstrated further benefits of the new catalyst’s non-precious metal groups. These included improved desulfurization, additional product swelling, and a favorable shift towards combustion-benign mono-aromatics. These features will prepare producers for upcoming fuel regulations, which will stipulate more stringent limits on particulate formation. Even facing the conversion of complicated opportunity crudes.

Stefan Heuser, Senior Vice President & General Manager Business Unit Catalysts at Clariant, commented on the development of HYDEX E, “Improving on our popular and proven HYDEX series catalysts was an important achievement. Through intensive research and development, we have succeeded in creating a product that will bring our satisfied customers even greater economic and regulatory benefits. As the only company in the world that delivers solutions from crude production to fuel terminal, we believe it is Clariant’s duty to add value to our customers’ businesses through continuous innovation."
MRC

Petrofac secures contract with Petroleum Development Oman

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Petrofac has been awarded a contract worth USD265million for the development of the Marmul Polymer Phase 3 (MPP3) Project in southern Oman, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

This is the first award to be secured under a 10-year Framework Agreement with Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) signed in 2017, which enables Petrofac to provide Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management (EP+Cm) Support Services for PDO’s major oil and gas projects.

The award of the MPP3 project builds on Petrofac’s existing track record of EP+Cm support contract delivery for the Rabab Harweel Integrated Project and Yibal Khuff Project on behalf of PDO and further consolidates the effectiveness of its EPCm business unit in aligning to client needs through tailored delivery models. It is the latest in a series of awards for Petrofac in Oman, where the Group has been operating for more than three decades, delivering projects and services on both a lump-sum and reimbursable basis.

The scope of MPP3 involves Engineering, Procurement and Construction support for the extension of off-plot and on-plot production facilities associated with around 500 producing and 75 injector wells. In line with its commitment to further increasing in-country value, Petrofac will undertake the engineering, procurement and project management activities from its Muscat office, which will be expanded to support the needs of the MPP3 project.

Roberto Bertocco, Managing Director, EPCm for Petrofac said: “We are delighted to have been awarded our first project within the framework agreement with PDO. This not only builds on our collective achievements and track record for EP+Cm support service delivery but also paves the way for future success through the transfer of key people, skills and experience in our Muscat office.
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