NatureWorks begins work on low-carbon polylactic acid complex in Thailand

NatureWorks begins work on low-carbon polylactic acid complex in Thailand

NatureWorks, the world’s leading manufacturer of low-carbon polylactic acid (PLA) biopolymers made from renewable resources, hosted a cornerstone laying ceremony to celebrate construction of their new Ingeo PLA manufacturing complex in Thailand, said the company.

The ceremony which took place on February 1st, 2023 commemorated the progress made to date on the new fully integrated biopolymer facility. The day also featured a ceremonial groundbreaking that mirrored the ceremony held in Blair, Nebraska, USA in 2000 when NatureWorks began construction on the world’s first commercial scale PLA manufacturing facility.

The new manufacturing facility located on the Nakhon Sawan Biocomplex (NBC) in Nakhon Sawan Province, Thailand is designed to be fully integrated including production sites for lactic acid, lactide, and polymer. With completion expected in the second half of 2024, the manufacturing site will have an annual capacity of 75,000 tons and will produce the full portfolio of Ingeo biopolymer grades.

“This ceremony is a meaningful milestone for the entire NatureWorks team,” said Rich Altice, president and CEO of NatureWorks. “For the last three decades, we have not only been building a company and manufacturing facilities, but also a whole new industry and market for low-carbon, renewable biomaterials that are revolutionizing the sustainability and safety of packaging and product materials used in our everyday lives.”

We remind, CJ Biomaterials and NatureWorks have signed an agreement to collaborate on developing products based on their respective renewable plastics, PHACT and Ingeo. CJ Biomaterials is a division of South Korea-based CJ CheilJedang and producer of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). They will work with NatureWorks, an advanced materials company that produces polylactic acid (PLA), in an agreement that calls for the two companies to collaborate on the development of sustainable materials solutions based on CJ Biomaterials’ PHACT Biodegradable Polymers and NatureWorks’ Ingeo biopolymers.

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Shell hit by 'groundbreaking' greenwashing complaint to US watchdog over renewables

Shell hit by 'groundbreaking' greenwashing complaint to US watchdog over renewables

MAn environmental campaign group has filed what it claimed as a “groundbreaking greenwashing complaint” with the US financial watchdog alleging oil giant Shell is misleading investors over its renewable energy investments, said Upstreamonline.

Global Witness asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to investigate the make-up of the supermajor’s Renewables and Energy Solutions reporting segment, which includes Shell’s various energy transition activities such as investments in wind and solar.

The campaign group says in a letter to the SEC: “Despite its title, a significant portion of Shell’s spending on Renewables and Energy Solutions appears to be directed towards the marketing and trading of ‘natural’ gas – a fossil fuel – and gas-generated power.

“Given that gas is neither renewable nor an energy solution, we ask the Commission, first, to investigate whether the activities included in the RES segment have been properly reported pursuant to relevant accounting standards.”

Global Witness goes on to cite its own calculations that Shell in its most recent annual reporting period “spent just 1.5% total capex on developing renewable sources of energy such as wind and solar”. It alleges that flies in the face of a 12% capex share claimed by Shell in 2021.

In light of that it wants the SEC to also probe “whether including gas in RES without reporting how much spending Shell directs to gas has caused Shell to omit material facts necessary to its investors’ clear understanding of Shell’s purported energy transition.

We remind, Shell Chemical Appalachia LLC announced it has commenced operations of its Pennsylvania Chemical project, Shell Polymers Monaca (SPM). The Pennsylvania facility is the first major polyethylene manufacturing complex in the Northeastern United States and has a designed output of 1.6 MMt annually.

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Kazakhstan increased oil exports bypassing Russia in 2022

Kazakhstan increased oil exports bypassing Russia in 2022

Kazakhstan, the world's largest landlocked country, increased oil exports that bypassed Russia last year, but was still heavily reliant on supply channels via its neighbor, Reuters calculations based on industry data and sources show, said Reuters.

Kazakhstan has sought ways to decrease its dependence on Russian exporting routes as it has often faced difficulties in selling oil through Russia.

Kazakh oil is not subject to Western sanctions, unlike Russian crude, although the sanctions have created problems for some Kazakh products.

The main, and most profitable, route for oil exports from Kazakhstan remains the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which supplies oil to the global market via a Russian Black Sea terminal.

Supplies via CPC dipped 1% last year to 51.99 MMt, accounting for more than 80% of total oil supplies from Kazakhstan. CPC faced maintenance and other issues, which hindered oil exports in 2022.

According to Reuters calculations based on industry data and sources, Kazakhstan's oil exports via routes other than Russia reached 1.80 MMt (36,000 barrels per day) last year, up by 638,000 tons from 2021.

That included 1.26 MMt delivered to China, 214,000 tons sent via the Georgian port of Batumi, 141,000 tons to the oil refinery in Baku, 109,000 tons to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and 80,000 tons to Uzbekistan.

We remind, Silleno LLP, a joint venture between Russia's SIBUR Holding and Kazakhstan's national oil and gas company KazMunayGas, will soon start Front End Engineering Design for a polyethylene plant in Kazakhstan, Sergei Komyshan, SIBUR's executive director of marketing and sales. "FEED usually takes a year or so," he said. Commenting on SIBUR's plans in Russia in 2023, Komyshan said the company has considered various scenarios for oil production and refining in Russia and was preparing for any options in terms of feedstock supply.

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LyondellBasell advances towards its 2030 global renewable electricity target

LyondellBasell advances towards its 2030 global renewable electricity target

LyondellBasell announced it has signed the first two European renewable electricity power purchase agreements (PPAs) and two additional PPAs in the United States, said the company.

The combined additional contracts represent a total of approximately 560 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy capacity. LyondellBasell has now signed eight PPA agreements and achieved over half of its 2030 target to procure a minimum of 50 percent of global electricity from renewable sources. These PPAs will generate over 2.6 million megawatt hours (MWh) of renewable electricity annually and reduce LyondellBasell's scope 2 emissions by nearly 1 million metric tons of carbon emissions, equivalent to the emissions associated with the annual electricity consumption of more than 370,000 homes.

"Decarbonizing the electricity supply through purchasing renewable electricity is crucial to meet LyondellBasell's 2030 and 2050 net zero greenhouse gas emissions targets," said Willemien Terpstra, LyondellBasell Vice President, Decarbonization. "These renewable electricity contracts cover nearly one-third of our 2020 baseline electricity consumption. This demonstrates tangible progress towards our overall objective to reduce our scope 1 and 2 emissions by 42% by 2030, relative to a 2020 baseline."

LyondellBasell signed a PPA for multiple Nordic projects, with operations expected to begin in the first quarter of 2026. The projects represent approximately 230 MW of renewable energy capacity on LyondellBasell's behalf.

The Tarragona Solar Project is the first physical PPA project located at a LyondellBasell production site in Spain. This project is expected to begin operations in the third quarter of 2023 with approximately 5 MW of renewable energy capacity. This electricity will help reduce 17 percent of Scope 2 emissions locally in the production of polypropylene compounds used in automotive applications.

We remind, LyondellBasell announced it has made a decision to move forward with engineering to build an advanced recycling plant at its Wesseling, Germany. Using LyondellBasell's proprietary MoReTec technology, this commercial scale advanced recycling plant would convert pre-treated plastic waste into feedstock for new plastic production. The final investment decision is targeted for the end of 2023.

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Berry Global CEO announces retirement

Berry Global CEO announces retirement

Thomas E. Salmon, CEO and Chairman of Berry Global Group Inc., announced today that he will retire, effective Dec. 31, 2023, said the company.

The company board has engaged executive search firm Spencer Stuart to assist with the identification of a successor. Both internal and external candidates will be considered, according to the company.

“I am extremely proud of all that our talented team has accomplished as we continue to execute our strategy and trail blaze the industry by developing sustainable and innovative packaging, even during a period of unprecedented global disruption,” Salmon said. “Thanks to the continued hard work and dedication of the entire organization, I am confident the company is well-positioned to continue to deliver significant value for all stakeholders."

In the announcement, Berry Lead Independent Director Stephen E. Sterrett praised Salmon’s tenure at the company. “Under Tom’s outstanding leadership, Berry has achieved record results, established the industry’s most diversified and expansive manufacturing footprint, bolstered our portfolio with sustainability-focused investments in emerging markets, and consistently delivered for customers,” said Sterrett.

Salmon has been with Berry Global for a little more than 11 years, starting in 2011 as president of the Engineered Materials division. In October 2016 he was named President and Chief Operating Officer of the company, moving up to CEO in February 2017. He became chairman and CEO in February 2018.

In a post announcing his retirement on LInkedIn, Salmon expressed gratitude for the “honor and privilege” of leading a company with tens of thousands of employee worldwide “who genuinely care about each other, our customers, our planet, and the communities we serve.” It was “truly an opportunity-of-a-lifetime and the highlight of my career,” he added.

The primary goal in seeking a new CEO, said Sterrett, will be identifying a “strong leader to build on Tom’s legacy, one who shares Berry’s core values and who will continue the company’s momentum. We look forward to Tom’s continued leadership in the year ahead and fully expect a seamless transition,” added Sterrett.

We remind, Berry Global Group, Inc. is the first plastic packaging manufacturer in Europe to supply The Coca-Cola Company with a lightweight, tethered closure for its carbonated soft drinks in PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles. Bolstered by the European Union (EU) Single-Use Plastics Directive, Berry’s new tethered closure for Coca-Cola is designed to remain intact with the bottle – making it less likely to be littered and more likely to be recycled.

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