BASF and Hannong Chemicals plan non-ionic surfactants production JV

BASF and Hannong Chemicals plan non-ionic surfactants production JV

BASF and Hannong Chemicals are planning to establish a production joint venture “BASF Hannong Chemicals Solutions Ltd.”, said the company.

BASF will hold 51% and Hannong Chemicals 49% shareholding, in the proposed joint venture. The joint venture will combine BASF’s strong technology and product innovation capabilities with Hannong’s highly efficient production capabilities to supply best-in-class non-ionic surfactant products to BASF and Hannong Chemicals, each with their own sales and distribution network, enabling the two companies to cater for increasing market demand.

The new company will be located in the Daejuk site at the Daesan Industrial Complex in Korea. “BASF is delighted to partner with Hannong Chemicals. With this proposed joint venture, BASF continues to establish the capability to further serve the Asian market, by offering specialty non-ionic surfactants and a reliable supply experience to our customers,” said Ralph Schweens, President, Care Chemicals, BASF.

Kim, Eung Sang, CEO of Hannong Chemicals, added: “It is an honor to work with BASF, a leading solution provider to the consumer industries. We look forward to cooperating with BASF to strengthen the new joint venture. Together, BASF and Hannong Chemicals will further enhance the joint venture’s position in the non-ionic surfactants market and provide top-tier products to customers in Asia.”

Both companies are striving to receive statutory approvals as soon as possible, and target to establish the joint venture in the first quarter of 2023. Non-ionic surfactants are used in a wide range of industry segments, including home care, personal care, industrial and institutional cleaning applications as well as various industrial formulations segments. They are employed in formulations for laundry detergents, surface cleaners and dishwasher detergents, as well as for leather and textile treatment, metal surface cleaning, and others.

We remind, BASF is working in a partnership project to develop a new process for the recycling of polyurethane insulation materials from old fridges. The depolymerisation chemical recycling process will enable the material to be turned into a polyol, which in turn can be used in the production of new polyurethane materials.

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Technip Energies to perform FEED for gas plant associated with carbon capture in Malaysia

Technip Energies to perform FEED for gas plant associated with carbon capture in Malaysia

Technip Energies has been selected by PTTEP HK Offshore Ltd. to perform the Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) of the Lang Lebah Onshore Gas Plant 2 (OGP2) project located in Bintulu, Sarawak, in Malaysia, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The FEED contract covers the design of an onshore gas plant including the integrated flow assurance of the native CO2 capture, compression and transportation via pipeline up to the offshore wellhead platform where it will be reinjected. The gas coming from the Lang Lebah offshore field will be treated before being sent to the Malaysia LNG complex.

Loic Chapuis, SVP Gas & Low-Carbon Energies of Technip Energies, stated, "We are very pleased to have been selected by PTTEP for this landmark gas development in Sarawak. Bringing Technip Energies expertise in designing large scale gas plants with CO2 capture and transportation, we are committed to making this project another successful milestone in our longstanding relationship with PTTEP and our history in Malaysia.”

The Lang Lebah OGP2 project is one of the key projects of the Sarawak Integrated Sour Gas Evacuation System (SISGES) Development. SISGES is expected to be the catalyst for further development of untapped sour gas resources off the coast of Sarawak.

We remind, Technip Energies has been awarded a large(1) contract for the proprietary equipment supply for INEOS Olefins Belgium NV’s 1,450 kta(2) ethane cracker in Antwerp, Belgium. This latest award is in line with our early engagement strategy and consolidates the successful completion of the Ethylene License and Extended Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) previously awarded to Technip Energies by INEOS.

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SABIC names Conventus Polymers as new distribution partner for specialty thermoplastics in North America

SABIC names Conventus Polymers as new distribution partner for specialty thermoplastics in North America

SABIC, a global leader in the chemical industry, has named Conventus Polymers LLC, as an authorized distributor of high-performance engineering thermoplastics in the US, Canada and Mexico, said the company.

Conventus Polymers will provide SABIC customers with products from SABIC's Specialities business, including ULTEM resins and LNP compounds, and related services such as application development and customer support.

The new distribution partner, based in Parsippany, NJ, offers highly technical expertise and strong relationships with key OEMs in water management, energy, electrical and electronics, healthcare and other important industries.

Conventus Polymers joins Nexeo Solutions Inc, Chase Plastic Services Inc, and Amco Polymers LLC as authorized distributors of SABIC's portfolio of speciality materials.

We remind, SABIC, a global leader in the chemical industry, launched today four new LNP™ ELCRES™ FST copolymer resins that comply with the European railway standard EN45545 R6-HL 2 for train seating.

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.

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North American chemical railcar traffic fell by 2.2%

North American chemical railcar traffic fell by 2.2%

North American chemical railcar traffic fell by 2.2% year on year to 44,376 railcar loadings for the week ended 1 October – marking a second consecutive decline, as per Association of American Railroads (AAR).

The decline was led by the US, where loadings fell by 6.2% as Hurricane Ian forced curtailments of some rail services. Loadings in Canada and Mexico rose.

The four-week average for North American chemical rail traffic was at 46,328 railcar loadings. For the first 39 weeks of 2022 ended 1 October, North American chemical railcar traffic was up 2.2% year on year to 1,806,792 railcar loadings.

In the US, chemical railcar loadings represent about 20% of chemical transportation by tonnage, with trucks, barges and pipelines carrying the rest. In Canada, producers rely on rail to ship more than 70% of their products, with some exclusively using rail.

Shipments of chemicals, coal, motor vehicles and parts, and nonmetallic minerals rose for the first 39 weeks, while shipments in all other freight railcar categories fell.

We remind, Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending September 24, 2022. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 489,111 carloads and intermodal units, down 4.4 percent compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending September 24 were 231,258 carloads, down 3.2 percent compared with the same week in 2021, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 257,853 containers and trailers, down 5.4 percent compared to 2021.
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Carbon recycler LanzaTech strikes financing deal with Brookfield

Carbon recycler LanzaTech strikes financing deal with Brookfield

Carbon recycler LanzaTech NZ Inc has struck a deal with Brookfield Renewable Corp for a USD500 MM commitment by the investment firm to finance upcoming projects using LanzaTech's technology, the companies told Reuters.

The cash from Brookfield, provided through its Global Transition Fund, will be used to construct and operate new projects using LanzaTech's technology in Europe and North America. Brookfield's capital commitment, which will be used to back projects meeting conditions agreed upon by the two companies, could ultimately rise to USD1 billion.

Founded in 2005, LanzaTech has developed technology which takes the carbon out of emissions and converts it into sustainable fuels, fabrics and other everyday products. This has the dual effect of stopping greenhouse gases from escaping into the atmosphere, and providing materials that would otherwise need to come from traditional fossil fuel-based methods.

"LanzaTech's technology provides a new way to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors across the economy," said Natalie Adomait, chief investment officer of Brookfield's Global Transition Fund. Jennifer Holmgren, CEO of LanzaTech, told Reuters the partnership with a blue-chip investor such as Brookfield provides affirmation regarding the potential of the nascent industry of carbon recycling.

"Now we have the opportunity to go a lot faster," she said. Chicago-based LanzaTech has projects using its technology in China, and plans to deploy it this year at an ArcelorMittal plant in Belgium and an Indian Oil Corporation facility. As part of its agreement, Brookfield Renewable is also investing USD50 million in an instrument which converts into LanzaTech equity.

Earlier this year, LanzaTech struck a go-public deal with special purpose acquisition company AMCI Acquisition Corp II that valued the carbon recycler at USD2.2 B. LanzaTech's previous backers include BASF, Mitsui & Co and the venture arm of Malaysian state energy company Petronas.

We remind, a new route to the production of monoethylene glycol, a key monomer in the production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), has been discovered, Illinois-based biotech company LanzaTech has announced. To produce MEG, LanzaTech uses carbon emissions from steel mills or gasified waste biomass and a proprietary engineered bacterium to convert carbon emissions directly into MEG through fermentation. This bypasses the need for an ethanol intermediate, and simplifies the MEG supply chain as it eliminates the multiple processing steps required to convert ethanol into ethylene, then ethylene oxide and then to MEG.
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