Evonik expands its capacities for petrochemical specialties in Germany

Evonik has invested a double-digit million euro sum to increase production capacity for isobutene derivatives at its Marl location, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The isobutene part of the C4 production network produces the petrochemical specialties tertiary butanol (TBA), di-isobutene (DiB) and 3,5,5-trimethylhexanal (TMH). The expansion, which was recently completed, increases capacity for isobutene derivatives by more than 50%. In addition, the expansion improves security of supply, flexibility and product quality for the customers.

Evonik's isobutene specialties are already in high demand as intermediates for the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. "As a leading European key supplier of high-purity isobutene derivatives, we willingly rise to the challenge of supporting our customers' dynamic growth and continuing to invest in product quality and security of supply," said Dr. Hinnerk Gordon Becker, head of the Specialties market segment at Evonik Performance Intermediates. "That's why, in June 2020, we already began the targeted expansion of our C4 Verbund and to eliminate existing bottlenecks in production and logistics. In this way, we are further expanding our position in the field of high-purity isobutene derivatives and also living up to our leadership role."

The conversion work has increased the purity of the 3,5,5-trimethylhexanal produced in Marl from around 88% to more than 95%. Customers will benefit from this: In future, they will be able to use the isobutene derivative directly in their own production process without having to purify it first.

As MRC reported earlier, in March, 2022, Evonik launched a new biosurfactant produced from renewable feedstocks.
The rhamnolipids are produced at Evonik’s plant in Slovenska Lupca, Slovakia following a triple-digit million-euro investment in the site, which is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2023. The biosurfactant range is made using feedstocks which are locally sourced and fully biodegradable, meeting demand for low-emission, low-impact cleaning products in the market.

We remind that in February, 2020, Dow and Evonik entered into an exclusive technology partnership. Together, they plan to bring a unique method for directly synthesizing propylene glycol (PG) from propylene and hydrogen peroxide to market maturity.

Evonik is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. The company is active in more than 100 countries around the world and generated sales of EUR12.2 billion and an operating profit (adjusted EBITDA) of EUR1.91 billion in 2020. Evonik goes far beyond chemistry to create innovative, profitable and sustainable solutions for customers. About 33,000 employees work together for a common purpose: to improve life today and tomorrow.
MRC

Shell Plc started to withdraw staff from its joint ventures with Russia’s Gazprom PJSC as it moves forward with plans to exit investments in response to the war in Ukraine, said Bloomberg.

Dozens of Shell employees on temporary assignment at the Sakhalin-2 liquefied natural gas export project in Russia were removed over the weekend to be relocated back to other offices, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Operations at the facility are unlikely to be affected by the move, the people said, requesting anonymity to discuss private details.

Shell is demobilizing its seconded employees in ventures with Gazprom and Gazprom Neft in a phased process, according to an emailed statement from the company. “Our key focus in this process is safety of our people and operations and compliance with applicable laws,” a Shell spokesperson said.

Some of the world’s top energy producers, including Shell and Exxon Mobil Corp., pledged to exit Russian projects in a bid to reduce reputational damage after the invasion of Ukraine. Shell said earlier this month that the withdrawal will result in USD4 billion to USD5 billion of impairments.

London-based Shell has increased its effort to distance itself from Moscow after the company came under fire in early March for purchasing Russian crude at a steep discount. Since then, Shell said it won’t make any new purchases of Russian oil or gas. The energy major has also idled LNG vessels chartered from Russian companies.

Shell also owns a 50% of stake in the Salym Petroleum Development in Russia. The company previously said it would end an exploration partnership with Gazprom called Gydan, and withdraw from the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which was already suspended by German authorities.

In early March, Shell plc announced its intention to phase out participation in all Russian hydrocarbon projects, including oil, oil products, gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Earlier it was noted that in April 2019, Shell announced its withdrawal from the Baltic LNG project after Gazprom's decision to change the concept of the project development, fully integrating it with the gas processing plant in Ust-Luga. In 2015, Shell became the sole partner of Gazprom in the Baltic LNG, and in 2018, the development of a technical project began. Initially, Shell estimated the capacity of the plant at 10 million tons of LNG per year, with a possible subsequent increase in capacity to 13 million tons.

Shell is a British-Dutch oil and gas concern engaged in the extraction, processing and marketing of hydrocarbons in more than 70 countries.
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A fire and chlorine spill at Olin Corp’s plant in Plaquemine, a tenant at the Dow Chemical facility, was reported to Iberville Sheriff’s office around 8:40 p.m., sheriff’s office official Clint Moore told Reuters by telephone.

Louisiana authorities lifted a shelter-in-place order within five hours of issuing it after a chlorine leak on Monday.

“After continuously monitoring the air quality, we feel it is safe to return to normal activities. However, we are still investigating the source of fire and the leak,” Moore said.

“No injuries have been reported from the incident and there is no offsite potential exposure too. Meanwhile, efforts towards chlorine response continue along with analysis to identify the cause of the event,” an Olin Corp spokesperson told Reuters by email.

As MRC informed previously, Olin Corp. (Calyton, Mo.) and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (Tokyo) announced a global strategic alliance to better serve customers. The companies have agreed to a memorandum of understanding to establish a joint venture that brings together Mitsui’s top-notch global logistics, deep supplier and customer relationships, and breadth of product portfolio with Olin’s scale, North American export capability, and production flexibility across the electrochemical unit (ECU) portfolio.

We remind that Olin Corp., one of the largest PVC producers in the country, plans to close production at the phenol and acetone plant in Oyster Creek (Oyster Creek, Texas, USA) in mid-April for planned preventive measures. Maintenance at this facility with a capacity of 295,000 tonnes of phenol and 180,000 tonnes of acetone per year will be short and will take one week.

It was previously reported that in 2019, Olin carried out scheduled maintenance at the phenol and acetone plant in Oyster Creek from 15 to 31 March.

Phenol is the main feedstockl for the production of bisphenol A (BPA), which, in its turn, is used for the production of polycarbonate (PC).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall consumption of PC granules (excluding exports from Belarus) totalled 7,800 tonnes in January 2022, down by 4% year on year (8,100 tonnes a year earlier).

Olin Corporation was founded in 1892 and is currently based in Clayton, Missouri, USA. The company's activities are concentrated in three segments: the production of military ammunition and chlor-alkali products, and their distribution. It is one of the main producers of polyvinyl chloride in the USA along with Shintech, Formosa Plastics, Westlake Chemical and Axiall.
MRC

Toyo Engineering Corporation has been awarded a contract for a project to construct a 50,000-kW biomass power plant. This plant will be built in Tomakomai-shi, Hokkaido, Japan for Tomatoh Biomass Power GK, said Hydrocarbonpprocessing.

This project is to construct a dedicated biomass-fired power plant using wood biomass fuel. This power generation facility is a highly efficient biomass-fired plant based on the reheat system. TOYO will carry out the EPC contract on a full turn-key basis that includes engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning services for a power generation unit.

TOYO has positioned the infrastructure field centered on power generation plants as one of its core businesses and is actively working on renewable energy projects such as biomass power generation, following photovoltaic generation projects in Japan which TOYO has ten project experiences. Regarding biomass power generation, this project is the eleventh project, after the two 50 MW class biomass power generations which already started commercial operation, and the six 50 MW class and the two 75 MW class projects currently under construction.

Reheat system: Steam, after expansion through high pressure steam turbine, is sent back and reheated in the boiler, then resent to the low-pressure steam turbine for further expansion. This system realizes high power generation efficiency.

As per MRC, TEC Project Services Corp., a subsidiary of Toyo Engineering, said it was awarded a propylene splitter project from Maruzen Petrochemical to produce a "high-grade product" at Maruzen's plant in Ichihara-shi, Chiba, Japan. TEC will be responsible for detailed engineering, procurement of equipment and materials, and construction.

As MRC informed before, in February 2019, Toyo Engineering Corporation was awarded a contract to build a 650,000 t/y ethylene and polyethylene (PE) plant located in Ust-Kut, Irkutsk region, Russian Federation by Irkutsk Polymer Plant, a subsidiary of Irkutsk Oil Company (INK).

TOYO has completed more than 40 projects in the former Soviet Union and Russian Federation since 1960’s. TOYO also focuses on the expansion of the business opportunities for ethylene and polyethylene projects as its core business, and this award marks TOYO’s outstanding track record as the 47th ethylene plant project worldwide as well as the 26th polyethylene plant. TOYO’s long experience in Russia, established performance and reliability in worldwide ethylene projects led to this award. TOYO will continue contributing to the development of the petrochemical industry in Russia as well as to further development of Japan-Russia relation and cooperation.
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LyondellBasell has entered into a multi-year agreement with Citrine Informatics to utilize the Citrine Platform for Materials Informatics and artificial intelligence-guided product development, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

In 2021, LyondellBasell successfully launched and implemented the Citrine Platform resulting in the expansion of their collaboration with Citrine. The Citrine Platform enables users to become more agile in their approach to product development and gain additional insights into the end-to-end value chain, from raw materials to manufactured products.

"Our collaborative relationship with Citrine is another step to significantly enhance our agility while continuing to be the trusted market leader our customers rely on,” said Anup Sharma, LyondellBasell’s senior vice president of Global Business Services. With the Citrine Platform, LyondellBasell can more effectively unlock new value at the boundary of materials development and discrete product development.

“The demands on chemicals and materials manufacturers to innovate faster, more efficiently, and more sustainably will continue to grow. LyondellBasell entered this collaboration with clear expectations to thrive among these existential challenges, and we are proud to be supporting this effort,” said Citrine Informatics CEO Greg Mulholland. “This multi-year agreement is testament to the strength of the Citrine Platform and the leadership position LyondellBasell holds in the industry."

As per MRC, LyondellBasell has agreed to sell its Australian polymer business, LyondellBasell Australia (LBA), to Viva Energy. BA’s operations include polymer manufacturing and distribution at Viva’s Geelong refinery near Melbourne.
LBA's Geelong plant is Australia’s only producer of polypropylene (PP). The refinery provides the propylene feedstock for PP.

As MRC wrote earlier, in July, 2021, Neste and LyondellBasell announced a long-term commercial agreement under which LyondellBasell will source Neste RE, a feedstock from Neste that has been produced from 100% renewable feedstock from bio-based sources, such as waste and residue oils and fats. This feedstock will be processed through the cracker at LyondellBasell’s Wesseling, Germany, plant into polymers and sold under the CirculenRenew brand name.

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 2,487,450 tonnes in 2021, up by 13% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 1,494.280 tonnes, up by 21% year on year. Deliveries of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

As a leader in the global chemical industry, LyondellBasell strives every day to be the safest, best operated and most valued company in our industry. The company's products, materials and technologies are advancing sustainable solutions for food safety, access to clean water, healthcare and fuel efficiency in more than 100 international markets.
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