Idemitsu and Toray creating Japan first biomass ABS resin supply chain

Toray Industries, Inc., and Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd. have agreed to build a supply chain for plastics made from biomass naphtha. They would manufacture biomass styrene monomer derived from biomass naphtha and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resin made from that monomer, said Chemindigest.

Idemitsu will leverage the mass balance method to manufacture biomass styrene monomer. Toray’s Chiba plant will use that polymerize to become the first in Japan to produce biomass ABS resin, starting in October this year. It has become vital in recent years to combat global warming, which has resulted from rising carbon dioxide emissions. Idemitsu and Toray recognize that striving to achieve a carbon-neutral economy by 2050 is a key business challenge. They both explored establishing a biomass plastics supply chain by deploying eco-friendly biomass raw materials.

Because of its plant-derived raw materials, biomass naphtha’s carbon dioxide emissions are lower than those of petroleum-derived naphtha. Idemitsu and Toray seek to lower emissions from the plastics sector through their joint efforts. Idemitsu aims to achieve net zero carbon dioxide emissions from its own operations by 2050. It will do so by maintaining stable supplies of energy and materials that are essential for industry and daily living while tapping the technologies, expertise, and infrastructure that it has amassed over years of handling fossil fuels. It will also help cut customers’ emissions by delivering energy and materials that make it possible to attain a carbon-neutral, circular economy.

Toray seeks to lower greenhouse gas emissions by expanding Green Innovation businesses that help resolve environmental, resources, and energy issues. It also aims to develop technologies and products that help absorb these emissions, thus helping to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 internally and for the economy as a whole. The two companies will leverage a robust partnership in driving a materials transition to a carbon-neutral, circular economy by building a biomass plastics supply chain.

We remind, Idemitsu Kosan Co, restarted the 100,000 bpd No.2 crude distillation unit (CDU) at its Yokkaichi refinery in central Japan on Dec. 3. The unit was shut on Sept. 26 for scheduled maintenance. Separately, a fire broke out at a catalytic reformer at its Hokkaido refinery in northern Japan on the night of Dec. 20, but was extinguished within a few hours, the spokesperson said. The 150,000-bpd CDU at the refinery continues to operate, she said, but declined to comment on the current run rate and the impact on other equipment.

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NextChem has been awarded a feasibility study by Foresight Group for a sustainable fuel plant in Puglia, Italy, said the company.

The study for a carbon capture and sustainable methanol synthesis plant for the Ener-gie Tecnologie Ambiente (ETA) Manfredonia waste-to-energy plant will aim to save 200,000 tonnes/year of CO2 emissions.

On completing the feasibility study, final investment decision, finalising the permitting process and execution of the engineering and construction phases will be made by other Maire Tecnimont subsidiaries.

NextChem will be responsible for identifying the best decarbonisation proposal for the plant, and emissions reductions will be combined with green hydrogen production for sustainable fuel.

Foresight Group is a EUR13bn sustainability-led alternative assets fund manager investing in several assets globally including waste-to-energy plants.

We remind, Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. announces that its subsidiary NextChem S.p.A. has signed an agreement with Biorenova S.p.A. to acquire, scale up and industrialize the proprietary CatC technology, a continuous chemical recycling process to recover monomers with ultra-high levels of purity from sorted plastic waste, particularly Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA).

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Neste enables its customers to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by offering renewable and circular solutions to replace fossil products, said the company.

In 2022, Neste’s renewable solutions helped customers reduce their GHG emissions globally by 11.1 million tons altogether. This amount equals the annual carbon footprint of 1.8 million average EU citizens (source: World Bank) or the removal of four million passenger cars from the roads for a full year.

“We are on track towards reaching our commitment of helping our customers to reduce their GHG emissions by at least 20 million tons of CO2e annually by 2030. Our ongoing strategic projects will expand our renewables production capacity in the coming years, which supports our efforts to increase our carbon handprint,” says Matti Lehmus, President and CEO of Neste.

Neste’s current global production capacity of renewable products is 3.3 million tons annually. Neste’s ongoing Singapore refinery expansion project and the joint operation with Marathon Petroleum in Martinez, California will increase the total production capacity of renewable products to 5.5 million tons by the end of 2023, and make Neste the only global provider of renewable fuels and renewable feedstock for polymers and chemicals with a production footprint on three continents. When completed, the Rotterdam refinery expansion project will further increase the company’s total production capacity of renewable products to 6.8 million tons by the end of 2026. Furthermore, Neste has started a study on transitioning its refinery in Porvoo, Finland into a globally leading renewable and circular solutions site.

We remind, Neste posted strong revenue and profit growth in its renewable fuels business even as its Chief Executive flagged the long-term need for new raw materials amid growing European demand for sustainable jet fuel.
The company has bet heavily on renewable fuels but is competing in a crowded space as fossil fuel majors enter the green fuel market, pushing up costs for used cooking oil and discarded animal fat. Neste estimates that the maximum available global capacity for waste and residue materials would be around 40 MMtpy.
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Sumitomo Chemical Co, Maruzen Petrochemical Co and Mitsui Chemicals have signed an agreement to jointly study the feasibility of implementing projects at the Keiyo Coastal Industrial Complex in Chiba, Japan, the companies said.

Under the memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreement, the three firms will "explore the possibility of working together to carry out measures for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, such as the conversion of fuels and feedstock", they said in a joint statement. The joint statement did not provide a timeline for the study.

All three firms currently have a target to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. "The three companies will, with the aim of diversifying feedstock, consider utilizing biomass resources instead of petroleum resources and developing and implementing new chemical recycling and material recycling technologies, as well as explore how to source biomass and collect waste for recycling," the companies said.

The three firms will also consider the conversion of fuels used in their manufacturing facilities, such as naphtha crackers, and the renewal of infrastructure associated with it, they added.

We remind, Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd., announced that Sumitomo Bakelite Europe NV (SBE), subsidiary company in Belgium, has become the first member of our group to obtain international sustainability carbon certification/ISCC PLUS (International Sustainability and Carbon Certification) certification for its phenolic resins, said the company.
The ISCC (International Sustainability and Carbon Certification) is already recognized worldwide as a certification system for the processing of biobased and bio-circular materials and is widely used in Europe.

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INEOS has secured EUR3.5bn in financing for its Antwerp, Belgium, cracker project, set to have the lowest CO2 output of any unit in the continent, the European chemicals major said.

The plant, expected onstream in 2026, has the capacity to operate entirely on low-carbon hydrogen, with scope for the addition of a carbon capture facility and electric furnaces in future, according to INEOS. The estimated budget for the project, which INEOS made a final investment decision (FID) on last year, currently stands at EUR4.0bn, according to the company.

The financing includes debt from 21 commercial banks. EUR1.5bn of the debt is uncovered, while EUR1.2bn is being provided by export credit agencies UKEF, Cesce and SACE, and an EUR800m tranche has up to EUR500m of the capital guaranteed by Gigarant, a vehicle of the Flemish government.

INEOS has already issued numerous contracts for work on the site, including to WOOD & Co, Technip, and Tecnicas Reunidas. The first new cracker to be built in Europe in decades, the unit will have a carbon footprint more than three times lower than the average European facility, and less than half of the top 10% lowest-emitting steam crackers in the region, according to INEOS.

“[The cracker] will bring new opportunities to the chemical cluster in Antwerp as well as strengthen the resilience of the whole of the European chemical sector,” said Jason Meers, CFO of INEOS Project ONE, the vehicle for the development of the unit. Banks on the financing include ABN Amro, Barclays, Belfius, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, ING, Intesa Sanpaolo, KBC. BNP Paribas and Linklaters advised INEOS on the deal.

We remind, INEOS Inovyn and Statkraft have today renewed their long-standing partnership in Norway by signing two new long-term power agreements to supply renewable energy for INEOS Inovyn’s Rafnes and Porsgrunn sites, said the company. The first agreement effectively replaces the site’s existing power contract, which will expire in May 2023. It covers a capacity of 100 MW for an annual renewable energy production of 876 GWh each year. The second agreement will come into effect in 2026: it will cover an additional 30MW (263 GWh per year) and will support INEOS Inovyn’s extensive development plan in process electrification and hydrogen production at Rafnes.

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