PetroChina-invested new crude unit in Guangdong province to start up in Q1 2022

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Jieyang Petrochemical, part of Asia's largest oil and gas producer- PetroChina, may begin trial runs at its greenfield 400,000-bpd plant in southern Guangdong province in the third quarter of 2022, reported Reuters with reference to market sources.

PetroChina didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

As MRC informed previously, PetroChina, Asia's largest oil and gas producer,aims to have oil, gas and green energies to each account for a third of its portfolio by 2035, as the Chinese oil major shifts toward a lower-carbon future.

We remind that in August, 2021, PetroChina Liaoyang Petrochemical Co Ltd , part of PetroChina, successfully started up its new polypropylene (PP) plant last week. Based in Liaoning City, Liaoyang Province, China, the new PP plant has a production capacity of 300,000 tons/year.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

PetroChina Company Limited, is a Chinese oil and gas company and is the listed arm of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation, headquartered in Dongcheng District, Beijing. It is China's biggest oil producer.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Phillips 66, a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company, announces fourth-quarter 2021 earnings of USD1.3 billion, compared with earnings of USD402 million in the third quarter of 2021, as per the company's press release.

Excluding special items of USD25 million, the company had adjusted earnings of USD1.3 billion in the fourth quarter, compared with third-quarter adjusted earnings of USD1.4 billion.

Midstream fourth-quarter 2021 pre-tax income was USD593 million, compared with USD629 million in the third quarter of 2021. Midstream results in the fourth quarter included asset retirement costs of USD70 million related to the shutdown of the Alliance Refinery in connection with plans to convert it to a terminal, USD4 million of hurricane-related costs and USD1 million of pension settlement expense. Third-quarter results included a USD10 million impairment and USD3 million of pension settlement expense.

Transportation fourth-quarter adjusted pre-tax income was USD273 million, compared with USD254 million, mainly reflecting the recognition of deferred revenue.

NGL and Other adjusted pre-tax income was USD284 million in the fourth quarter, compared with USD357 million in the third quarter. The decrease was primarily due to lower unrealized investment gains related to NOVONIX Ltd., partially offset by inventory impacts. The increase in value of the company’s investment in NOVONIX was USD146 million in the fourth quarter, compared with USD224 million in the third quarter.

The company’s equity investment in DCP Midstream, LLC generated fourth-quarter adjusted pre-tax income of USD111 million, an USD80 million increase from the prior quarter. The increase was mainly driven by favorable hedging impacts.

The Chemicals segment reflects Phillips 66’s equity investment in Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LLC (CPChem). Chemicals fourth-quarter 2021 pre-tax income was USD436 million, compared with USD631 million in the third quarter of 2021. Chemicals results in the fourth quarter included a USD14 million benefit from insurance proceeds associated with winter-storm-related damages, partially offset by a USD2 million reduction to equity earnings for pension settlement expense. Third-quarter results included a USD2 million reduction to equity earnings for pension settlement expense and USD1 million of hurricane-related repair costs.

CPChem’s Olefins and Polyolefins (O&P) business contributed USD405 million of adjusted pre-tax income in the fourth quarter, compared with USD613 million in the third quarter. The USD208 million decrease was primarily due to lower polyethylene margins, reduced sales volumes, as well as increased utility costs. Global O&P utilization was 97% for the quarter.

CPChem’s Specialties, Aromatics and Styrenics (SA&S) business contributed fourth-quarter adjusted pre-tax income of USD36 million, compared with USD37 million in the third quarter.

Refining had fourth-quarter 2021 pre-tax income of USD346 million, compared with a pre-tax loss of USD1.1 billion in the third quarter of 2021. Refining results in the fourth quarter included USD122 million of asset retirement and exit costs related to the shutdown of the Alliance Refinery in connection with plans to convert it to a terminal, as well as USD30 million of hurricane-related costs and USD5 million of pension settlement expense. These costs were partially offset by an USD88 million reduction in estimated RIN obligations for the 2020 compliance year and other tax benefits of USD11 million. Third-quarter results included a USD1.3 billion impairment of the Alliance Refinery, USD12 million of pension settlement expense and USD10 million of hurricane-related costs.

Refining had adjusted pre-tax income of USD404 million in the fourth quarter, compared with adjusted pre-tax income of USD184 million in the third quarter. The increase was primarily due to higher realized margins and improved volumes, partially offset by higher costs. Fourth-quarter realized margins were USD11.60 per barrel, up from USD8.57 per barrel. Impacts from lower market crack spreads were more than offset by lower RIN costs from a reduction in the estimated 2021 compliance year obligation and lower RIN prices, as well as favorable inventory impacts and improved clean product differentials.

Pre-tax turnaround costs for the fourth quarter were USD106 million, compared with third-quarter costs of USD81 million. Crude utilization rate was 90% and clean product yield was 86% in the fourth quarter.

Phillips 66 generated USD1.8 billion in cash from operations in the fourth quarter of 2021, including cash distributions from equity affiliates of USD757 million. Excluding working capital impacts, operating cash flow was USD1.4 billion.

During the quarter, Phillips 66 funded $597 million of capital expenditures and investments, paid USD403 million in dividends and repaid USD450 million of floating rate senior notes due 2024. Additionally, Phillips 66 closed its public offering of USD1 billion in senior unsecured notes due 2052 and used the proceeds to redeem USD1 billion in senior notes due April 2022.

In 2021, Phillips 66 generated USD6.0 billion in cash from operations, funded USD1.9 billion in capital expenditures, distributed USD1.6 billion to shareholders and paid down USD1.5 billion in debt.

As of Dec. 31, 2021, Phillips 66 had USD8.8 billion of liquidity, reflecting USD3.1 billion of cash and cash equivalents and approximately USD5.7 billion of total committed capacity under revolving credit facilities. Consolidated debt was USD14.4 billion at Dec. 31, 2021, including USD3.9 billion at Phillips 66 Partners. The company’s consolidated debt-to-capital ratio was 40% and its net debt-to-capital ratio was 34%.

As MRC reported earlier, in December 2021, Six Pines Investments LLC, a wholly-owned, sustainable investment subsidiary of CPChem, announced its equity investment in two leading circular plastics recyclers, Nexus Circular LLC (Nexus) and Mura Technology Ltd. (Mura).

We remintd that Chevron Phillips Chemical will make a final investment decision on a new cracker in far southeast Texas in 2022, followed by an FID in 2023 on an USD8 billion joint venture petrochemical complex along the US Gulf Coast in 2023, said Phillips 66 CEO Greg Garland in early August.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

Phillips 66 is a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company. With a portfolio of Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties businesses, the company processes, transports, stores and markets fuels and products globally. Headquartered in Houston, the company has 14,000 employees committed to safety and operating excellence. Phillips 66 had USD56 billion of assets as of Dec. 31, 2021.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ABB and Finnish technology company Coolbrook have signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to commercialize and accelerate the adoption of Roto Dynamic Reactor (RDR) technology in a bid to significantly reduce GHG emissions in steam cracking plants, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The agreement will unite the two companies’ expertise and create a combined offering of Coolbrook’s novel electrically driven RDR technology and ABB’s integrated, pre-engineered energy solutions, initially for use in petrochemical and chemical markets.

Olefins, such as ethylene and propylene, are the key raw materials used in the chemical industry – primarily for polymer production. Currently, the leading technology for olefin production is steam cracking by high-temperature pyrolysis (thermal decomposition) of primarily hydrocarbon feedstock, diluted with steam inside a cracking furnace.

Coolbrook’s novel turbomachine will be able to replace a conventional furnace by directly imparting the rotor shaft’s mechanical energy to the hydrocarbon fluid. This is achieved by aerodynamic action through a rotating blade flow. When powered by electricity from renewable sources, the technology completely eliminates CO2 emissions in the steam cracking process. Coolbrook technology can also be operated with various feedstocks, including recycled and renewable feedstocks.

According to the International Energy Agency’s ‘Tracking Industry 2021’ report, direct global CO2 emissions from chemicals and petrochemical processes amounted to 1.2 billion metric tons in 2020[1]. Electrifying process industries will significantly reduce carbon emissions, and ABB has committed to support their customers in reducing their annual CO2 emissions by 100 million metric tons by 2030.

As per MRC, MOL Group and ABB embark on a three-year collaborative project to transform Asset Integrity Management (AIM) across four key chemical and refinery sites in Europe. ABB has been awarded the contract to improve asset integrity across MOL’s downstream assets, through changing mindset, standardizing processes and software and ensuring integrity management is focused on the right equipment.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Marathon Petroleum, the largest refiner in the United States, is evaluating a conversion of Phillips 66’s Alliance, Louisiana, refinery into a renewable fuel plant, said Reuters.

The two companies are scheduled to meet next week and tour the 255,600 barrel-per-day refinery, which has been idled since late August, a day before Hurricane Ida roared over the area and swamped the site. Phillips 66 spokesperson Bernardo Fallas declined to comment.

Marathon spokesperson Jamal Kheiry said the company does not comment on “rumor or market speculation." It was unclear if Marathon was interested in acquiring the refinery or operating it through a joint venture with Phillips 66, one of the people said.

Phillips 66 said in November it would convert the Alliance refinery into an oil and refined products terminal to take advantage of its location on the Mississippi River, 20 miles (26 km) south of New Orleans.

Hurricane Ida caused flooding that breached the flood wall around the refinery and inundated control systems causing millions of dollars of damage to the facility.

At least three companies were potential buyers of the refinery before the hurricane struck. They included Hilcorp, Valero Energy and Saudi Aramco’s Motiva Enterprises , people familiar with the matter had said.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) is a leading, integrated, downstream energy company headquartered in Findlay, Ohio. The company operates the nation's largest refining system. MPC's marketing system includes branded locations across the United States, including Marathon brand retail outlets.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China's privately-owned Shenghong Petrochemical is expected to reach commercial operation at its newly commissioned 320,000-bpd plant in Lianyungang in May, 2022, reported Reuters with reference to two sources.

Shenghong declined comment.

As MRC informed previously, Shenghong Petrochemical started test runs at this crude unit in late, 2021. The new plant, based in the eastern port city of Lianyungang, will be the only greenfield oil refinery that came on stream in China last year, with its capacity equal to nearly 3% of the country's crude oil imports.

Initially, commercial operations at the plant were expected to begin in the first quarter of 2022, upon completion of its downstream petrochemical facilities.

Shenghong Petrochemical's complex includes an oil refinery, a paraxylene plant of 2.8 million mt/year and an ethylene plant of 1.1 million mt/year, as well as various other plants.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.
MRC