Vopak unveils new storage facility for waste-based feedstocks in Rotterdam

Vopak NV (Rotterdam) has formally opened 16 new storage tanks with a combined capacity of 64,000 cubic meters at its Vlaardingen terminal in the port of Rotterdam, said the company.

The tanks are designed to store waste-based feedstocks, primarily for the production of biodiesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), to help meet rising demand for renewable energy sources in Europe, it said. Vopak’s terminal at Vlaardingen has a long-term commercial agreement with Shell to store the feedstocks for Shell’s new biorefinery in Rotterdam, it said.

Vopak started repurposing part of the terminal for waste-based feedstocks in 2021 and has invested approximately EUR90 million in new infrastructure, it added.

We remind, Royal Vopak and AltaGas Ltd. are pleased to announce the execution of definitive agreements for a new 50/50 joint venture to further evaluate development of the Ridley Island Energy Export Facility (REEF), a large-scale liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and bulk liquids terminal with marine infrastructure on Ridley Island, British Columbia, Canada.

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SABIC, a global leader in the chemical industry, officially opened its European Pipe Innovation Center, said the company.

The new Center is located near SABIC’s manufacturing site at Geleen, The Netherlands, and compliments the company’s existing Pipe Innovation Centers in Saudi Arabia and China. With customized pipe material development, testing, sampling and validation capacities, it will enable SABIC to collaborate with European pipe manufacturers closer and more effectively than ever before.

Lina Prada, Director Polymer Application Development & Industry Solutions at SABIC, says: "Global urbanization and population growth are driving the demand for plastic pipes and innovative new pipe solutions in a wide range of infrastructural, domestic, industrial, agri- and aquacultural market segments. We at SABIC have been bringing advanced solutions to the pipe industry for many years. Keeping the edge on innovation requires continuous development of our competences and capabilities. Our new Pipe Innovation Center in Geleen and its dedicated team are a good demonstration of our commitment to keep developing those sustainable solutions."

SABIC’s European Pipe Innovation Center is fully equipped for extensive pipe testing according to relevant international standards. Material testing facilities include full notch creep, strain hardening, tensile, rheological and impact testing. Pipe testing capacities span from internal pressure to notched pipe to small-scale steady-state (S4) rapid crack propagation testing. Another focus of the Center’s activities will be to accelerate the adoption of certified circular polymers from SABIC’s portfolio in new and more sustainable pipe developments.

At Geleen, the Pipe Innovation Center team will be able to link its activities more effectively with the pipe polymer development on site and solve even the most complex customer challenges within fast turnaround times. In addition, it will support advanced pipe concepts in collaboration with value chain partners across the European pipe industry. Its close location to major pipe markets as well as to the Brightlands Chemelot industrial park with its focus on chemistry and new materials and to industry relevant universities at Eindhoven and Aachen provides the perfect eco-system for pipe innovations.

Khalid Al-Bani, Global Leader Segment Pipe & Utilities at SABIC, comments: "With customized pipe material development, testing, sampling and validation capacities, the Pipe Innovation Center will enable SABIC to collaborate with European pipe manufacturers closer and more effectively than ever before."

During the opening event, which takes place today May 09 and tomorrow May 10, visitors are given the opportunity to explore the extensive polyolefin resin development and extrusion capabilities of the center, which will be available for sampling and validation as well as for small batch to upscaled production volumes.

On the first opening day, keynote speakers from SABIC will explain the company’s strategicfocus and commitment to excellence in the pipe industry, followed by a tour of the Pipe Innovation Center and other related technology facilities, including the SABIC Technology Center Geleen. The second opening day is dedicated to detailed presentations on the past, present and future of plastic pipes, on new biaxially oriented pressure pipe technology and on pipe challenges with regard to energy transition, circularity and decarbonization. The opening will conclude with a panel discussion on the impact of the energy transition and drive towards circularity on the pipe industry.

SABIC offers a vast portfolio of pipe materials to help designers and contractors build a better future. Recent innovations include SABIC® RELY 5944HT, a high-density polyethylene (PE) compound produced in bimodal technology for infrastructural pipes; a high-density PE-RT II class compound produced in an advanced multi-modal cascade process for domestic pipes; new SABIC® P1600 A polyolefin compound for abrasive slurry transportation in industrial applications such as mining and dredging; and SABIC P438J, a medium-density PE resin for use in agri- & aquaculture.

We remind, SABIC participated in a ceremony to announce the first package of Shareek projects involving large companies in Saudi Arabia. The event was held in the presence of several dignitaries, senior businessmen and heads of major companies participating in the program. During the ceremony, SABIC announced a strategic project to manufacture catalysts, aiming to transform Saudi Arabia into a manufacturing hub for specialized materials in line with the national industrial strategy.

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Westlake’s Q1 net income fell 47.9% year on year to USD394m, the US-based chemicals and building products company reported.

The main reasons for the decline were:
Lower average sales prices and integrated margins in the company’s Performance Materials segment;
Lower production and sales volumes, especially in the Housing and Infrastructure Products (HIP) segment.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell 36.5%, and the EBITDA margin fell to 25%, from 32% in Q1 2022.

Sequentially, results improved from Q4 2022 on higher operating rates and sales volumes, lower feedstock and energy costs, as well as cost synergies from recent acquisitions, partially offset by modestly lower pricing in each segment, the company said.

We remind, Westlake Chemical Corporation aims to buy the parent firm of US-based Dimex from Grey Mountain Partners through one of its offshoots. Dimex makes several consumer products produced from post-industrial-recycled (PIR) polyvinyl chloride (PVC), thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) and polyethylene (PE), and records sales of around USD100 M/y. These consumer products comprise of industrial, home and office matting; landscape edging; masonry joint controls; and marine dock edging.

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SABIC, a global leader in the chemical industry, together with BASF, Covestro, Dow, LyondellBasell, Mitsubishi Chemical, SABIC and Solvay have signed the agreement with renowned Dutch innovation organisation, TNO, which will host the new Hub and execute the R&D projects, said the company.

The first set of projects is set to launch in the second half of 2023. As a private sector driven initiative, the R&D Hub projects are aimed at making significant strides towards more sustainable plastic waste processing and help address industry-specific topics related to the development of mechanical and chemical recycling routes.

"With the launch of its first project, the LCET has demonstrated its role as an 'incubator' for collaborative action to accelerate greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction in the chemical production value chain," said Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh, CEO of SABIC and LCET Co-Chair. "Improving recycling rates can significantly contribute to our progress toward a circular carbon economy, and by bringing together the knowledge and expertise of our companies, we can find new ways to drive net-zero solutions".

Martin Brudermueller, LCET Chair and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE, said: "Finding solutions to protect our climate is a global, societal task that will only succeed if we all contribute with our best ideas. Launching the first spin-off project out of the LCET initiative is a significant achievement and milestone for all the member companies. This enables us to develop breakthrough technologies while sharing early-stage risks. Bringing together seven leaders operating in the same marketplace demonstrates the collaborative spirit in the LCET-initiative that transforms ambition into action."

TNO will lead the technology development, Henk-Jan Vink, Managing Director at TNO adds: "We are very proud to be selected as the host and orchestrator of this great initiative. This unique co-creation between the LCET members, our experts and innovation partners will result in practical and disruptive technology solutions to allow increased levels of circular plastics with a lower environmental footprint. TNO is confident to further build on its experience in the field of circular modelling, packaging and materials know-how and provide the industry with fit-for-use solutions."

The R&D Hub is the first project to be launched out of the LCET initiative, with further projects in the development stage for 2023.

We remind, SABIC participated in a ceremony to announce the first package of Shareek projects involving large companies in Saudi Arabia. The event was held in the presence of several dignitaries, senior businessmen and heads of major companies participating in the program. During the ceremony, SABIC announced a strategic project to manufacture catalysts, aiming to transform Saudi Arabia into a manufacturing hub for specialized materials in line with the national industrial strategy.

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China has decreased its second batch of export quota volumes for refined oil products, consultancies and trader sources said on Thursday, focusing on local demand during the refinery overhaul season and boosting domestic sales amid poor export margins, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The export volumes, comprising 9 million tons of refined products and 3 million tons of marine fuel, were allotted primarily to state-owned refiners, according to two refining sources and consultancies Longzhong and JLC. China Petrochemical Corp (Sinopec), China National Petroleum Corp, China National Offshore Oil Company and Sinochem Group were the main recipients of these quotas, taking around 92% of the total allocation.

Reuters has asked the four companies for comment. In addition, private refiner Zhejiang Petrochemical Corp, a refinery subsidiary of state defense conglomerate Norinco and China National Aviation Fuel Company were assigned 1.01 million tons. China's Ministry of Commerce did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment.

The quota was less than the first batch of 18.99 million tons in early January but double the allocation of 4.5 million tons issued around a year earlier, Reuters records show. The smaller export quota comes as refiners stockpile products amid strong demand expectations for gasoline and diesel in the peak summer season.

China's gasoline and diesel export volumes have fallen for three consecutive months as refiners kept more cargoes for the domestic market where they are earning better profit margins, despite overall slow domestic demand growth. While refiners have been unwilling to export because of the stronger local margins, the year-on-year increase in quotas mean that they can still choose to export should domestic demand turn weak at some point in time.

Longzhong estimated refiners could lose about 482 yuan (USD69.73) a ton on gasoline exports and 734 yuan a ton on diesel exports in the current market. "This year, quota holders have greater flexibility to prepare export plans and capture arbitrage opportunities," said Energy Aspects analyst Sun Jianan. The 3 million tons of low-sulfur fuel export quotas in this second batch was down from 8 million tons in the first batch for this year.

However a trader from a state-owned Chinese oil company said the previous batch of low-sulfur fuel quotas had yet to be used up as marine bunkering demand was weak in the first quarter.

We remind, Chinese customs authorities are stepping up inspection checks on cargoes of heavy crude oil after uncovering several Iranian shipments that were mislabeled as diluted bitumen in an effort to bypass import quotas.
The checks, begun a month ago, are delaying oil discharges into the eastern refining hub of Shandong province. They are also adding to uncertainty over the risk of disruption to shipments from Iran and Venezuela, while cutting into refining operations just as fuel demand recovers.

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