Japan gasoline demand almost at pre-pandemic levels after subsidy

The head of the Petroleum Association of Japan (PAJ) said the country's subsidies for gasoline had helped restore demand close to pre-pandemic levels in May and June, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The government adopted the temporary subsidy program in January to ease the blow from high crude prices because of tight global supplies, exacerbated by the Ukraine conflict. "The subsidies are having a great effect and consumers are benefiting greatly," PAJ President Tsutomu Sugimori told a news conference, while giving the details on demand.

The subsidy - over 40 yen a liter as of this week - has kept current gasoline prices at around 174 yen a liter, below a peak they reached in 2008. Sugimori said he did not know what price level would cause a drop in gasoline demand, but consumers would be clearly discouraged from buying gasoline if retail prices rose above 200 yen (USD1.5) a liter.

Sugimori, also chairman of Japan's biggest oil refiner Eneos Holdings, said the nation's refinery capacity would continue to decline as demand was falling about 2% a year due to the ageing and shrinking population. Eneos plans to shut down its 81-year-old Wakayama refinery in October 2023 as part of a long-term restructuring.

Last week, oil refiner Idemitsu Kosan said it would terminate Yamaguchi refinery in western Japan of its affiliate Seibu Oil by March 2024, cutting its group capacity by 13%.

Asked about demand for fuel oil used to generate electricity in the summer, when tight power supply is predicted, Sugimori said Eneos received 83% higher demand in April-September against a year earlier, but it could only provide 56% higher supply. "Despite a surge in coal prices, coal is still cheaper than oil (as power generation fuel). But oil is still economically superior to LNG," he said.

As per MRC, Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd. and JERA Co., Inc. have today concluded a memorandum of understanding (MoU) stipulating that they will jointly consider establishing a hydrogen supply chain based in the Ise Bay area. On the back of demand for decarbonisation, hydrogen—which emits no CO2when burned—is expected to be used in large quantities at power plants and in industrial areas as a next-generation replacement for fossil fuels. It is essential, therefore, to develop large-scale receiving and supply bases near areas where hydrogen will be in demand.
mrchub.com

Neptune Energy, ExxonMobil subsidiary XTO Netherlands, Ltd., Rosewood Exploration Ltd., and EBN Capital B.V. announced the signing of a Cooperation Agreement to progress the L10 large-scale offshore carbon capture and storage project in the Dutch North Sea, said the company.

The agreement brings together the technical and commercial capabilities necessary to create a robust carbon storage offering for industrial customers in the Dutch sector. It intends to take the L10 carbon capture and storage development to the concept select stage in 2022 and to have the project FEED-ready by the end of the year, followed by the submission of a storage licence application.

Exploratory discussions with industrial emitters from various sectors are continuing, ahead of the upcoming round for applications for SDE++ funding from Dutch authorities.

Neptune Energy’s Managing Director in the Netherlands, Lex de Groot, said: “CCS is crucial for achieving the Dutch climate goals for 2030. This Cooperation Agreement is a significant step in the development of the Neptune-operated L10 project which supports our strategy to go beyond net zero and store more carbon than is emitted from our operations, scope 1, and sold products, scope 3, by 2030.

“After the successful feasibility study, we can now combine our knowledge in the field of CCS with these parties. This next important step will enable us to jointly develop one of the largest CCS facilities in the North Sea. The reuse of our existing infrastructure means that, together, we can help achieve the climate goals, but also ensure this part of the energy transition becomes cleaner, cheaper and faster."

EBN’s Program Manager CCUS, Berte Simons, said: “We’re pleased to co-operate with our joint venture partners in this carbon capture and storage project where we can re-use existing infrastructure. With our subsurface knowledge and experience on storage we’ll be able to contribute extensively to the development of this project. The offshore storage of CO2 is pivotal in meeting climate goals and EBN is determined to contribute to a carbon-neutral energy system."

"ExxonMobil welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with industry and the government in support of the L10 carbon capture and storage project,” said Dan Ammann, president of ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions. “Carbon capture and storage is a proven, ready-to-deploy technology that can help reduce emissions in some of the highest-emitting sectors and advance society’s net-zero goals."

This stage of the L10 carbon capture and storage project has the potential to store 4-5 million tonnes of CO2 annually for industrial customers within depleted gas fields around the Neptune-operated L10-A, B and E areas. It represents the first stage in the potential development of the greater L10 area as a large-volume CO2 storage reservoir.

As per MRC, ExxonMobil expects to add approximately 20,000 bpd of light, heavy and extra-heavy lubricant base stocks when upgrades at its Singapore integrated refining and petrochemical complex are complete in 2025.
mrchub.com

GTC Vorro Technology (GTC Vorro), a turn-key provider of environmental services and process technologies to oil & gas, refining and petrochemical companies, has expanded with the launch of its technology licensing division, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The company’s commercial portfolio in the gas production, refining and petrochemical process industries is now served via two divisions, Environmental Services and Technology Licensing. Along with providing full-service sulfur removal and H2S management, the newly expanded company offering will include process technology licensing in the refining and petrochemical sectors. Areas of application include gasoline conversion to petrochemicals, non-traditional feedstocks into fuels and petrochemicals, and specialty products from steam cracker pygas such as hydrocarbon resins.

Pinti Wang, president of GTC Vorro, said, "Our continued growth will come through transfer of innovative technologies and services to the downstream refining and petrochemical areas based on trends in energy usage, environmental awareness, and consumer consumption patterns."

As per MRC, QatarEnergy and Chevron Phillips Chemical Company (CPChem) have awarded the early site works contract for the Ras Laffan Petrochemical Project (RLPP) to Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC). The contract award marks the commencement of execution of the RLPP. CCC has secured a lump-sum contract to prepare the site for the new facility within Ras Laffan Industrial City. Early works on the project will begin in June, at the conclusion of which the EPC contract for the project is expected to be awarded.
mrchub.com

Eastman Chemical Company is increasing prices on the following products 1 Jul 2022, or as contracts allow, said the company.

Eastman Admex, (All Grades and Package Types), list and off-list price increase of USD0.075/lb (USD0.170/kg) in North America and Latin America; Eastman Versabond, All Grades and Package Types: list and off-list price increase of USD0.100/lb (USD0.220/kg) in North America and Latin America; Eastman Benzoflex, All Grades and Package Types: list and off-list price increase of USD0.100/lb (USD0.220/kg) in North America and Latin America; Eastman Versafix, All Grades and Package Types: list and off-list price increase of USD0.100/lb (USD0.220/kg) in North America and Latin America; and Eastman TEG-2EH, All Grades and Package Types: list and off-list price increase of USD0.100/lb (USD0.220/kg) in North America and Latin America.

As per MRC, Eastman has entered an exclusive negotiation with Port-Jerome-sur-Seine as the preferred location of the molecular recycling facility it plans to build in France. This is an important step toward a significant milestone in the company's plan to invest up to USD1 B and build the world's largest material-to-material molecular recycling plant in France - a facility that will recycle approximately 160,000 tpy of hard-to-recycle polyester waste.

We remind that Eastman is increasing capacity for its Naia-brand cellulosic filament yarn at its plant in Barcelona, Spain. Eastman is increasing its capacity to produce Naia cellulosic filament yarns at its plant Barcelona, by 30% by mid-2021, and by more than 50% by the end of 2022.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PET consumption remained steady in December 2021 year on year. December estimated PET consumption totalled 67,880 tonnes (67,710 tonnes in December 2020).

Eastman is a multinational chemical company serving customers in approximately 100 countries. Sales in 2015 amounted to around USD9.6 Billion. The company is headquartered in Kingsport, Tennessee, USA. The company employs approximately 15 thousand people around the world.
mrchub.com

The American Chemistry Council (ACC) filed comments with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on June 17 regarding the Commission’s proposed rulemaking, "The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors, said Americanchemistry.

ACC and its members are committed to being partners and solution providers in supporting the nation’s path to a lower-emissions economy. Our companies are continually seeking new ways to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions while advocating for policies to enable climate progress. ACC has had engagement with robust and rigorous third-party climate disclosure frameworks for nearly a decade.

“ACC has long supported an approach to disclosure of climate-related information that is company-specific, guided by materiality, and built off existing third-party frameworks,” said ACC Senior Director for Energy, Climate, and Environment Charles Franklin. “As proposed, the SEC rule does not reflect these core principles."

“The SEC proposal does not pass the ‘materiality’ test, as disclosures are not confined to business-relevant information that governs investment decisions,” Franklin continued. “Also problematic, the proposal applies a ‘one size fits all’ standard rather than the flexible, business-specific approach used by influential third-party frameworks."

Companies share climate-related information with the SEC when it meets the standard definition of financial materiality. While some companies provide additional information in sustainability reports and other public documents, such voluntary disclosures cannot and should not be used to justify economy-wide mandates or the rigid content, attestation, audit, and liability standards proposed here. Mandatory disclosure via SEC filings would upend existing corporate programs and increase the cost and complexity of systems used for compliance. It could also hinder company efforts to develop, advance, report, and invest in sustainability actions.

As per MRC, Air Products, a world leader in industrial gases and large-scale project development, execution and operation, today announced the signing of a long-term supply agreement with Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), India’s flagship national oil company. Air Products will build, own and operate (BOO) a new industrial gases complex supplying hydrogen, nitrogen and steam to IOCL’s Barauni Refinery in Bihar, India.
mrchub.com