Technip Energies and APChemi collaborating to commercialize plastic waste-to-olefins technology

Technip Energies (Paris) and APChemi Pvt Ltd. have entered into a cooperation agreement to commercialize APChemi’s advanced plastic waste to high quality pyrolysis oil technology, in conjunction with Technip Energies’ pyrolysis oil upgradation and steam cracking technology, said the company.

APChemi’s patented “Pyromax™” pyrolysis technology for recycling plastic waste closes the gap in the plastic supply chain by taking dirty and mixed plastic waste, including municipal solid waste segregated plastics and multilayer packaging, and breaking it down to produce high quality pyrolysis oil which can be chemically recycled into circular plastics. The process has a lower carbon footprint, as it displaces the need for crude-oil-based feedstocks for plastics manufacturing, while reducing the need for intensive plastic waste sorting.

Technip Energies is closing the circular loop from pyrolysis oil to polyolefins building blocks by bringing its ethylene furnace and steam cracker design expertise, along with the preparation and purification technologies. The Pure.rOil by T.EN purification technology ensures safe, reliable and optimized integration with crackers.

Bhaskar Patel, SVP of Sustainable Fuels, Chemicals and Circularity of Technip Energies, commented: “This strategic partnership with APChemi will provide Technip Energies’ clients with an additional option in our growing plastic waste-to-olefins solution portfolio setup around our Pure.rOil technology. It will help to solve the puzzle of circular economy by offering a waste-to-olefins solution, reducing carbon dioxide emissions and end-of-life plastic pollution. The approach is a way to achieve recycled content targets, while continuing the use of current packaging materials."

Suhas Dixit, CEO of APChemi said: “We offer our full support to Technip Energies for extending this plastic waste to polyolefins solution. Our robust Pyromax™ technology would be an integral part of Technip Energies’ efforts to eliminate plastic pollution. This strategic collaboration will help us extend our leadership in pyrolysis technology beyond India. APChemi also intends to utilize this collaboration for building world-class pyrolysis oil manufacturing facilities in India and abroad."

As per MRC, Technip Energies announced the purchase of Biosuccinium technology from DSM, adding a technology solution to its growing Sustainable Chemicals portfolio. This technology synergizes with recently developed proprietary bio-polymer technologies and provides a commercially referenced production of bio-based succinic acid (bio-SAc) that serves as feedstock for the production of polybutylene succinate (PBS).
mrchub.com

The special audit, commissioned by the OMV Supervisory Board, in connection with a possible misconduct by former CEO Rainer Seele has been completed, said the company.

It has been conducted by the German law firm Gleiss Lutz and the Austrian law firm hba. The report was presented to the Supervisory Board. Possible breaches of duty and resulting potential claims for damages against the former CEO Rainer Seele were investigated in the following areas: 1) conclusion of a side agreement with an OMV executive, 2) conclusion of a sports sponsorship agreement with the Zenit St. Petersburg football club in 2018, and 3) the amendments to the gas supply agreements with Gazprom Export in 2018.

According to the investigation report presented to and discussed by the Supervisory Board, the former Chairman of the OMV Executive Board, Rainer Seele, acted within the scope of his authorization when making changes to gas supply agreements in 2018. Indications of deviations from internal company guidelines were found in the conclusion of a side agreement with an OMV executive and in the conclusion of the sports sponsorship agreement with the Zenit St. Petersburg football club. Nevertheless, legal experts are of the opinion that both agreements were concluded in a legally binding manner, explains lawyer Johannes Zink of the law firm hba: “Despite established deviations from internal company guidelines, no actionable misconduct on the part of the former CEO could be determined”. As a result, there are no further reasons preventing the discharge of the former executive at the next Annual General Meeting according to Zink.

Following an extensive discussion, the Supervisory Board has decided not to sue Rainer Seele for damages.
Chairman of the Supervisory Board Mark Garrett: “We have taken the allegations very seriously and we commissioned an external investigation. The Supervisory Board therefore follows the recommendation of the legal experts and, as things stand today, will not instigate legal action and will propose to the upcoming Annual General Meeting that the former Chairman of the Executive Board be discharged.

However, the findings of the investigation also show negligence by the former CEO in the interpretation of OMV’s strict compliance rules and code of conduct, which the OMV Supervisory Board does not tolerate. It was therefore right and important to initiate a comprehensive review of the allegations as a clear signal that behavior of this kind has no place in OMV. As a result, we have sharpened our internal guidelines, which now stipulate a formal approval by the Supervisory Board for strategically significant contracts."

As per MRC, OMV informs that a mechanical incident occurred today at the Schwechat refinery which has been undergoing its maintenance turnaround since 19 April 2022. Two persons were slightly injured. The incident has damaged the main distillation unit for crude oil. For this reason, the start-up of the refinery will be partially delayed. A review of the extent of the damage and the duration of the shutdown is still underway. We will work closely with our customers and suppliers to mitigate any impact on product availability.
mrchub.com

Mitsui Chemicals is building a new production facility for high-performance elastomers in Singapore to increase total manufacturing capacity in the country by nearly 50%, said European-rubber-journal.

Singapore-based subsidiary Mitsui Elastomers Singapore, which already operates an existing manufacturing facility in Jurong Island, will build a new facility to add 120 kilotonnes per annum (ktpa) of capacity for Tafmer-branded alpha-olefin copolymers.

Scheduled for completion in fiscal 2024, the unit, which will also be located in Jurong Island, will bring total production capacity to 345ktpa, said Mitsui 30 Aug.

Tafmer, according to Mitsui’s website, is an -olefin elastomer with lower density, lower modulus, and lower melting point, compared to polyethylene or polypropylene.

It is used both as a soft moulding material and as a resin modifier to improve resin properties, and has wide applications in automotive, solar cells, industrial, and packaging materials.

We remind, Mitsui Chemicals, Inc. (Tokyo) and Teijin Ltd. (Toyko) jointly announced that they will become Japan’s first companies to develop and market biomass-derived bisphenol A (BPA) and polycarbonate (PC) resins, that will support efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions throughout product lifecycles.
MRC

Polish chemicals supplier Synthos has announced that it is reducing its emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber (ESBR) production by 30%, effective immediately, said European-rubber-journal.

In a statement 8 Sept, the synthetic rubber manufacturer said it could no longer operate its ESBR production at full capacity due to “unsustainable and unpredictable utility costs”.

The costs, it said, have increased due to the current developments in connection with the supply of natural gas from Russia to Europe.

“Against this background, the company will reduce ESBR production by approximately 30%, equivalent to around 100 kilotoone per annum, effective immediately,” it said.

Synthos said it will reduce ESBR production until further notice, while production of solution-SBR and butadiene rubber will continue as planned.

Synthos manufactures ESBR at all three of its production sites in Oswiecim, Poland; Kralupy nad Vltavou, Czech Republic and Schkopau, Germany.

As per MRC, Lummus Technology announced that its Green Circle business and Synthos S.A. have reached a major milestone in the development of advanced bio-butadiene technology. After completing a successful feasibility study in 2021, Lummus and Synthos have concluded that the bio-butadiene technology is ready for implementation, and the companies have agreed to move into the engineering and design phase of the project.
mrchub.com

Reliance Industries (RIL) plans to invest Rs 75,000 crore in its oil-to-chemical (O2C) business over the next five years to expand capacities in polyester & vinyl verticals and also set up the country’s first carbon fibre plant at Hazira, said Financialexpress.

Carbon fibre, used in mobility and renewable energy because of its lightweight properties, promises to be a multi-decade growth engine for the O2C segment, RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani told shareholders at the company’s annual general meeting.

Ambani said RIL’s share of domestic gas production would go up to 30% by the end of the year from 20% currently with the commissioning of the MJ field in the KG-D6 basin. Apart from meeting India’s growing demand, the higher production will help the country save $9 billion a year.

In FY22, RIL’s O2C revenues crossed Rs 5 trillion while the earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) crossed Rs 50,000 crore.

"We are committed to maximise O2C integration and convert our advantageous feedstock streams to high-value chemicals and green materials. I am pleased to share that over the next five years, we will invest Rs 75,000 crore and expand capacities in existing and new value chains,” Ambani said.

In the polyester value chain the company will build a three million tonne per annum (mtpa) capacity of purified terepthalic acid (PTA) plant and a 1 mtpa polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plant at Dahej.

“Both PTA and PET will be targeted for completion by 2026. We will also reinvest in polyester filament yarn (PFY) and polyester staple fibre (PSF). Polyester expansion with capacity of over 1 mtpa will be completed in phases by 2026,” he said.

In the vinyl chain, RIL plans to more than triple its existing capacity by adding world-scale plants at Dahej and Jamnagar, and in the UAE. The proposed expansion at Dahej and Jamnagar will be completed in phases by 2026.

“We will also add capacities to make EDC and PVC at Ruwais, in the UAE, as part of Ta’ziz Chemical Zone. With these expansions, Reliance will rank among the top five producers of PVC globally,” he said. The company will also build, in phases, India’s first carbon fibre plant at Hazira with a capacity of 20,000 tonne per annum (tpa), based on acrylonitrile feedstock.

“We will commence acrylonitrile production next year and aim to complete the first phase of the carbon fibre plant in 2025. We will further integrate our composites business with carbon fibre to produce carbon fibre composites,” Ambani said.

While the company’s O2C business in Q1FY23 was expected to benefit from record refining margins and the E&P segment from the sharp rise in gas prices, the numbers were disappointing. The stand-alone earnings before interest and tax from the O2C business of Rs 18,100 crore, up 41% q-o-q, came in below estimates.

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.

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