Fire hits Qilu Petrochemical refinery

Fire hits Qilu Petrochemical refinery

A fire erupted at Qilu Petrochemical’s Shengli refinery in Shandong, China on 24 April due to hydrogen leakage, prompting the shutdown of its reformer and hydrocracking units, said Reuters.

The incident occurred at 00:02 Beijing time (16:02 GMT) on 24 April and was extinguished about an hour and-a-half later, Qilu Petrochemical said on social media platform Weibo. The company is a subsidiary of Chinese petrochemical major Sinopec.

The 14m tonne/year refinery is currently running at around 70%-80% load, but there is possibility of a reduction in operating rates after the incident, the company source said. The reformer that was shut has an 800,000 tonne/year capacity, while the site produces 800,000 tonnes/year of ethylene, according to the Qilu Petrochemical’s website.

Qilu Petrochemical’s 100,000 tonne/year benzene unit was shut down due to the fire, but downstream styrene production was not affected so far. Its 240,000 tonne/year styrene unit continues to run at 80-90% of capacity, market sources said.

As MRC reported earlier, a fire at Chembond Chemicals’ plant in Maharasthra, India has killed one person. The fire, which broke out at the plant in Tarapur at 9:30 am India time (04:30 GMT) on 21 April , was immediately brought under control, the company said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Operations at the plant have been temporarily suspended as the fire had damaged raw materials and finished goods stored at the plant, the machinery and the building, Chembond said. The plant will resume operations once it receives necessary approvals from statutory authorities.
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Masdar to develop green hydrogen hubs in Egypt by 2030

Masdar to develop green hydrogen hubs in Egypt by 2030

Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company Masdar and its Cairo-based partner Hassan Allam Utilities, have secured Egypt’s support to develop green hydrogen hubs on the Red Sea and the Mediterranean coasts of the country, targeting up to 4 GW of electrolysers by 2030, according to Kemicalinfo.

The partners signed two memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC), The Sovereign Fund of Egypt, and The General Authority for Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZONE) to cooperate on the project development, Masdar announced on Sunday.

Masdar and Hassan Allam Utilities expect to develop the project in stages. In the first phase, they plan to build a green hydrogen production plant to produce 100,000 tonnes of e-methanol per year for bunkering in the Suez Canal.

That plant would be operational by 2026.

In the following stages, the electrolysis capacity in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and on the Mediterranean could be expanded to up to 4 GW by 2030 to produce 2.3 million tonnes of green ammonia for exports, and to supply green hydrogen to local industries.

The latest agreements come as the government of Egypt prepares to revise its 2030 renewable energy strategy to include green hydrogen. The nation’s green hydrogen strategy is currently in development and is expected to be released by October 2022, according to Masdar.

As MRC informed before, in September 2021, bp, ADNOC and Masdar signed three agreements with the potential to lead to billions of dollars of investment into clean and low carbon energy, creating potentially thousands of energy jobs.

The first agreement would see the companies collaborate to initially develop 2GW of low carbon hydrogen across hubs in the UK and UAE, with the intention to expand as the project progresses. Access to clean hydrogen - a critical fuel in the decarbonization of hard-to-abate industries - can reduce emissions, enable new, low carbon products, and unlock future fuels. This announcement could enable a significant contribution towards the UK Government’s target to develop 5GW of hydrogen production by 2030.

We remind that bp expects to invest around USD2 billion in low carbon energy in 2021, rising to USD3-4 billion in 2025 and aiming for around USD5 billion in 2030.
MRC

Reliance and TA’ZIZ sign shareholder agreement for EDC and PVC project in the UAE

Reliance and TA’ZIZ sign shareholder agreement for EDC and PVC project in the UAE

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and RSC Ltd (TA’ZIZ) have signed the formal shareholder agreement for the TA’ZIZ ethylene dichloride (EDC) & polyvinyl chloride (PVC) project, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The TA’ZIZ EDC & PVC joint venture will construct and operate a chlor-alkali, EDC and PVC production facility, with a total investment of over USD2-B. These chemicals will be produced in the UAE for the first time, unlocking new revenue streams and opportunities for local manufacturers to “Make it in the Emirates.”

The formal shareholder agreement was signed by senior executives during a visit of Mr. Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance, to ADNOC headquarters. During the visit, Mr. Ambani met with His Excellency Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, and discussed opportunities for partnership and growth in Upstream, new energies and decarbonization across the hydrocarbon value chain.

H.E. Dr. Al Jaber and Mr. Ambani exchanged a signed framework agreement between ADNOC and Reliance to explore collaboration in the exploration, development and production of conventional and unconventional resources in Abu Dhabi as well as in decarbonization of operations, including in CO2 sequestration. Mr. Ambani was also briefed on the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties which is set to be held in the UAE in 2023.

The TA’ZIZ EDC & PVC project is making solid progress towards the detailed design phase in advance of the Final Investment Decision which is expected to be taken later this year.

The TA’ZIZ EDC & PVC project is well positioned to strengthen domestic supply chains and support the UAE’s national strategy to empower the industrial sector and become the driving force of a dynamic and robust domestic economy over the next 50 years. It is anticipated that the TA’ZIZ complex will benefit from the free trade agreement between India and the UAE, which was signed in February of this year. Bilaterial trade between both nations will be boosted as new trade and development opportunities, such as TA’ZIZ, are further unlocked.

The production of Chlor-Alkali, EDC, and PVC will create opportunities for export to target markets in Southeast Asia and Africa, as well as providing local industry with a source of critical raw materials manufactured in the UAE for the first time, strengthening in-country value. Final Investment Decision for the chemical project is expected later this year and is subject to relevant regulatory approvals.

As MRC informed before, in November 2021, Reliance Industries and Saudi Aramco decided to re-evaluate their agreement for the Middle Eastern producer to buy a stake in the refining and petrochemical business of India's biggest private refiner, and both companies would look at broader areas of cooperation due to the changing energy scenario.

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, whreas.shipments of PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

Reliance Industries is one of the world's largest producers of polymers. The company produces polypropylene, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride and other petrochemical products.
MRC

Clariant determined the need for a restatement of the financial statements and corrections to the quarterly reporting

Clariant determined the need for a restatement of the financial statements and corrections to the quarterly reporting

Clariant, a focused, sustainable, and innovative specialty chemical company, today announced that the investigation of accounting issues related to provisions and accruals (as disclosed by Clariant on 14 February 2022) conducted by independent advisors and external counsel (Deloitte and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher), has been concluded, said the company.

After reviewing the results of the investigation, the Board of Directors has determined the need for a restatement of the 2020 financial statements and corrections to the quarterly reporting of key financial data for 2020 and 2021.

"We appreciate that our employees brought this matter to our attention, and I am glad that we have now concluded the investigation and can leave this matter behind us. As part of our purpose-led strategy, it remains our utmost priority at Clariant to continue to strengthen a culture built on the highest ethical standards. Following a thorough investigation, we have closely reviewed its results and are committed to further strengthening our controls and processes,” said Conrad Keijzer, Clariant’s Chief Executive Officer.

The identified deviations from previously reported figures resulting from the restatement of the 2020 financial statements are due to over- or understated provisions or accruals. The preliminary corrected 2020 figures result in a continuing operations EBITDA of CHF 597 million compared to the previously reported CHF 578 million and a corresponding EBITDA margin of 15.5 % compared to the previously reported 15.0 %. The preliminary figures 2020 and 2021 are subject to the processing of the financial restatement bookings in Clariant’s accounting systems and completion of the external audit, hence minor deviations might occur.

Based on preliminary, unaudited figures, Clariant currently expects a Full Year 2021 continuing operations EBITDA of CHF 708 million and a corresponding EBITDA margin of 16.2 %, in line with the guidance confirmed on 14 February 2022. The results of the investigation have no impact on the sales, cash and cash equivalents figures reported in 2020 and 2021.

As MRC wrote previously, Clariant has recently announced that its StyroMax UL3 catalyst is demonstrating successful results at Risun’s new styrene monomer (SM) plant located in Tangshan, China.

We remind that in October 2020, Clariant announced the construction of a new state-of-the-art catalyst production site in China. This project represents a significant investment which further strengthens Clariant’s position in China and enhances its ability to support its customers in the country’s thriving petrochemicals industry.

Clariant AG is a Swiss chemical company and a world leader in the production of specialty chemicals for the textile, printing, mining and metallurgical industries. It is engaged in processing crude oil products in pigments, plastics and paints.
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Avient to acquire DSM Dyneema business

Avient to acquire DSM Dyneema business

US polymer and materials company Avient has agreed to acquire DSM's protective materials business for USD1.485bn in a deal expected to close later this year, said the company.

DSM's protective materials activities mainly consist of the Dyneema fibre business. The planned acquisition includes six production facilities, four R&D centres and about 1,000 employees around the world. The business' 2022 sales and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) are estimated at USD415m and USD130m, respectively.

The addition of the Dyneema portfolio would raise Avient's material offerings “to the highest levels on the performance spectrum of composites and engineered fibres," said CEO Robert Patterson. In conjunction with the planned acquisition, Avient plans to explore a sale of its distribution business.

The divestment of the distribution business would allow Avient to remain "modestly levered" at 2.9x adjusted EBITDA while also expanding adjusted EBITDA margins from 12% to 18%, Patterson said. Also on Wednesday, Avient reported that its Q1 sales rose 11% to USD1.3bn, with sales growth in nearly all end markets.

We remind, DSM Engineering Materials, a division of Dutch chemical maker DSM, has partnered with Ford Motor Co. and cable component maker HellermannTyton for an award-winning new auto part made from recycled ocean plastic.

Also, Royal DSM has started a review of strategic options for its materials businesses, including the possibility of selling them.

DSM Engineering Materials is a business group of Royal DSM.
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