BASF welcomes reclassification of recyclability of coextruded polyethylene/polyamide film structures

The „Stiftung Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister” has reclassified the recyclability of polyamides in the minimum standard for assessing the recyclability of packaging subject to system participation pursuant to Section 21 (3) VerpackG: Since September 1, coextruded polyethylene (PE)/polyamide (PA) film structures have been recognized as mechanically recyclable, said the company.

"We appreciate the decision of the Stiftung Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister,” said Dr. Rolf-Egbert Grutzner, Senior Manager Technical Support for Ultramid® extrusion polyamides at BASF. “"It was time to correct the categorization of polyamide 6 and also the related PA6/6.6 co-polyamides and put them on a solid updated basis."

As early as June 2021, the independent testing and certification facility cyclos-HTP systematically examined and confirmed the recyclability of PE/PA multilayer films on behalf of BASF.

The use of coextruded PE/ PA film structures in multilayer films makes it possible to produce very thin films (downgauging), which significantly reduces the use of plastics and also the amount of waste. BASF will present more about the value-adding use of polyamides at the K plastics trade fair from October 19 to 26 in Dusseldorf.

The reclassification is visible through the change in Annex 3 (fraction “Film and LDPE (low-density polyethylene)”) of the minimum standard for the assessment of recyclability of packaging subject to system participation pursuant to Section 21 (3) VerpackG.

We remind, BASF, SABIC and Linde have started construction of the world’s first demonstration plant for large-scale electrically heated steam cracker furnaces. By using electricity from renewable sources instead of natural gas, the new technology has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions of one of the most energy-intensive production processes in the chemical industry by at least 90% compared to technologies commonly used today.
mrchub.com

The Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met with the Italian oil and gas company Eni’s CEO Claudio Descalzi on 30/8/2022 to follow up on Eni’s activities in the country and the areas of common interest and collaboration, said the company.

The two sides had extensive discussions about further boosting natural gas flows to Europe from several Egyptian assets.

Tactical Report has prepared a 254-word report to shed more light on El-Sisi- Descalzi meeting and Eni’s plan in Egypt.

The parties elaborated on Egypt’s vision of becoming a regional gas hub, leveraging existing LNG plants. Eni currently produces about 60% of total gas in the country. The company is committed to supporting gas production increase through an ambitious exploration and development campaign.

This will foster, through the Damietta liquefaction plant, LNG export toward Europe. Eni has recently been awarded from the last bid round five new licenses located in prolific basins that could enable a fast-track development leveraging the nearby existing facilities.

In the light of energy transition, the parties agreed on the opportunity to implement a set of solar and wind power projects, targeting 10 GW of installed capacity in the forthcoming years. Mr Descalzi elaborated also on the strategy to accelerate the decarbonisation and energy efficiency solutions.

Eni has been present in Egypt since 1954, where it operates through the subsidiary IEOC. The company is currently the country's leading producer with an equity production of hydrocarbons of approximately 350,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

We remind, QatarEnergy has selected Eni as a new international partner in the North Field East (NFE) expansion project. The Minister of State for Energy Affairs, President and CEO of QatarEnergy, Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, and Eni CEO, Claudio Descalzi signed a partnership agreement for a new joint venture company during the official ceremony. QatarEnergy will hold a 75% interest while Eni will hold the remaining 25% interest, the company said.
mrchub.com

The Saudi Ministry of Investment (MISA) and Italian energy major Eni have signed an agreement aimed at promoting cooperation between Eni, Saudi institutions and companies mainly in the field of sustainable development around the country, and speciality conversion chemicals, said the company.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) concerns cooperation areas such as the study of joint development of initiatives around sustainable mobility, circular economy and the chemicals industry. The agreement came about as the Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih met the CEO of Eni, Claudio Descalzi.

During the meeting, Descalzi presented the company's decarbonization strategy with a special focus on the many industrial initiatives and technologies supporting the energy technology transition. Al-Falih shared outlooks of the Kingdom vision 2030 and Saudi National Investment Strategy (NIS).

The two parties shared views about the role of Saudi Arabia based on current energy market challenges. Eni has been operating in the refining and chemicals sector in Kingdom since 1984 through its subsidiary Ecofuel.

We remind, Eni informs that it has acquired the company Export LNG Ltd, which owns the Tango FLNG floating liquefaction facility, from Exmar group. The facility will be used by Eni in the Republic of Congo, as part of the activities of the natural gas development project in the Marine XII block, in line with Eni's strategy to leverage gas equity resources. The Tango FLNG, built in 2017, has a treatment capacity of approximately 3 million standard cubic meters/day and an LNG production capacity of approximately 0.6 million tons per year (about 1 billion standard cubic meters/year). The acquisition of this facility allows the development of a fast-track model capable of seizing the opportunities of the LNG market. In addition, the high flexibility and mobility characteristics of the Tango FLNG will favour the development and enhancement of Eni's equity gas by accelerating production start-up time.
mrchub.com

Sabic, a global leader in the chemical industry, has introduced new short-glass fiber-filled pp compounds with enhanced performance for automotive structural applications, said the company.

Sabic PP compound G3430X and Sabic PP compound G3440X grades, the two new short-glass fiber-reinforced polypropylene (PP) compounds offer enhanced performance and processing for demanding automotive under-hood, exterior and interior applications.

The two advanced grades surpass high-performing standard short-glass fiber materials in melt flow, tensile and flexural strength, and flexural modulus. Sabic PP compound G3430X and G3440X grades give customers new opportunities to raise the performance bar for automotive structural components such as brackets, seat structures and centre consoles. Furthermore, thanks to their thin-wall capability, both materials can be used to design parts with lower mass and weight.

"Sabic’s world-class development capabilities and dedication to continuous portfolio improvement have yielded these two exceptional materials, which can empower automotive customers to significantly increase the performance of end applications,” said Abdullah Al-Otaibi, general manager, ETP & Market Solutions, Sabic.

"The launch of these new Sabic PP compounds is an excellent example of our proactive response to customers’ emerging needs. We have set new industry benchmarks for robust performance and thin-wall capabilities in short glass fiber polypropylene, providing critical advantages in the face of escalating automotive requirements."

Sabic PP compound G3430X grade, with 30 percent short glass fiber, and Sabic PP compound G3440X grade, with 40 percent, deliver superior physical properties vs. conventional short glass fiber PP materials and high melt flow for easy processing. Both grades deliver an excellent balance of stiffness and impact for optimal performance in structural parts, with Sabic PP compound G3440X providing a higher degree of stiffness and greater density than the Sabic PP compound G3430X grade.

In addition to offering superior performance compared to other short glass fiber PP compounds, these materials may be candidates for the cost-effective replacement of long glass fiber PP in certain low-temperature applications.

Combined with exceptional stiffness and very good impact properties, the high melt flow of these materials offers opportunities to design thin-wall components to reduce weight without compromising overall part performance. Besides helping to improve overall performance of the vehicle, reducing weight may also contribute to cost savings through the use of less material. Furthermore, cost benefits can accrue from higher productivity associated with faster cycle times, which can be enabled by higher flow. Both Sabic PP compounds are available in standard black and natural and can be custom coloured.

We remind, BASF, Sabic and Linde have started construction of the world’s first demonstration plant for large-scale electrically heated steam cracker furnaces. By using electricity from renewable sources instead of natural gas, the new technology has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions of one of the most energy-intensive production processes in the chemical industry by at least 90% compared to technologies commonly used today.
mrchub.com

TotalEnergies ENEOS Renewables announced the appointment of Gavin Adda as chairman of the new joint venture, as per Fuelsandlubes.

Based out of Singapore, Gavin Adda is also the CEO of TotalEnergies Renewables Distributed Generation (DG) Asia Pacific, a Board of Director at Maxeon Solar Technologies (NASDAQ:MAXN) and co-chairman of the Sustainability Committee at the European Chamber of Commerce, Singapore.

As the Joint Venture Chairman, Adda will be promoting the business to develop 2 gigawatts (GW) of onsite B2B solar projects across Asia over the next five years. Target markets include Japan, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, Singapore and Malaysia.

Prior to TotalEnergies, Adda founded several start-ups in the renewable sector. This includes one of the largest developers in India, now partly owned by Shell. More recently, he sold his start-up to create TotalEnergies Renewables DG for Asia. This appointment took effect on June 24, 2022.

In April 2022, French energy major TotalEnergies and Japan’s leading energy company ENEOS Corporation, announced a 50-50 joint venture to develop onsite business-to-business (B2B) solar distributed generation across Asia.

The partnership capitalizes on the strengths of both companies. TotalEnergies will leverage its expertise on this market segment and its global footprint and ENEOS will use its expertise in renewables and its strong brand mainly in Japan to lower the costs of decentralized solutions offered to industrial and commercial customers, making this joint venture one of the most competitive service providers in the region.

The partners are also conducting a feasibility study to assess the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) at the ENEOS Negishi Refinery in Yokohama City, Japan.

We remind, TotalEnergies publicly shared its principles of conduct for its Russian related business. TotalEnergies reiterated its firmest condemnation of Russia's military aggression against Ukraine and stated that it would ensure strict compliance with current and future European sanctions, no matter what the consequences on the management of its assets in Russia.
mrchub.com