Technip Energies, LyondellBasell and Chevron Phillips Chemical sign MOU for electric steam cracking furnace

Technip Energies, LyondellBasell and Chevron Phillips Chemical sign MOU for electric steam cracking furnace

Technip Energies, LyondellBasell and Chevron Phillips Chemical announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding for the design, construction and operation of a demonstration unit for Technip Energies’ electric steam cracking furnace technology to produce olefins, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The demonstration unit will be located at LyondellBasell’s site in Channelview, Texas, USA, and is designed to prove the technology at industrial scale. Steam cracking furnaces play a significant role in the production of basic chemicals by breaking down hydrocarbons into olefins and aromatics. This cracking process requires a temperature of more than 1,500°F (850°C).

Technip Energies, a leader in the ethylene market, developed the concept and design for the e.Furnace by T.EN technology, which could achieve this temperature using electricity as the heat source. The use of renewable electricity in this process would contribute to significantly reducing GHG emissions associated with olefins production.

Arnaud Pieton, CEO of Technip Energies, stated: “We are delighted to team up with LyondellBasell and CPChem to bring the eFurnace by T.EN to fruition. Consistent with our purpose to engineer a much-needed sustainable future Technip Energies is making huge strides toward reducing the CO2 emissions resulting from the production of ethylene and this design will enable olefins producers to take advantage of the growing supply of available renewable energy to operate the most energy-intensive part of the plant."

Peter Vanacker, CEO of LyondellBasell, said: “We are taking decisive steps toward reducing our absolute scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions, while creating solutions for everyday sustainable living. Deployment of an industrial-scale electric cracking furnace is one option we are considering in this space because of its ability to reduce furnace GHG emissions by up to 90% compared to a conventional furnace. Our Channelview site has the infrastructure, and our people have the expertise to test this advanced furnace technology and help our industry accelerate climate action.”

Bruce Chinn, President and CEO of Chevron Phillips Chemical, said: “Climate change is a global issue that will take action from all segments of society, and we want to be part of the solution by reducing the intensity of our carbon footprint. This project supports our efforts toward lowering the carbon intensity of our operations and demonstrates our continued focus on accelerating change for a sustainable future.”

We remind, Technip Energies is pleased to announce that a joint venture, led by Technip Energies in partnership with Consolidated Contractors Company, has won a major Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning contract by QatarEnergy for the onshore facilities of the North Field South Project.

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China's Sinopec begins construction of Luoyang ethylene project

China's Sinopec begins construction of Luoyang ethylene project
Chin's Sinopec has begun construction of an ethylene plant and a green advanced materials base in the city of Luoyang in central China's Henan province, the state-owned refiner said, as per Reuters.

The project, which is expected to be put into operation in December 2025, is expected to produce around 3 million tonnes of refined chemicals annually, with the ethylene plant expected to produce 1 million tonnes per year, it said.

Sinopec's total planned investment in the project is 27.8 billion yuan (USD4.02 billion).

The project is aimed at reducing China's dependence on imports of high-end refined products, the statement said.

We remind, Sinopec has completed trial runs at a one million tonnes-per-year ethylene plant in the southern Chinese province of Hainan that will boost exports. The facility is part of a 28.6 billion-yuan (USD4.15 billion) complex built at the site and is the second major petrochemical plant starting this year after a similar-sized facility was announced last week by PetroChina in Guangdong province.

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Oil steadies as higher inventories balance U.S debt bill progress

Oil steadies as higher inventories balance U.S debt bill progress

Oil steadied on Thursday as a potential pause in U.S. interest rate hikes and the passing of a crucial vote on the U.S. debt ceiling bill were offset by a report of rising inventories in the world's biggest oil consumer, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

U.S. Federal Reserve officials on Wednesday suggested interest rates could be kept on hold this month and the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill suspending the government's debt ceiling, improving the chance of averting a disastrous default.

Brent crude futures fell 10 cents, or 0.14%, to USD72.50 a barrel by 1339 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) rose 7 cents, or 0.1%, to $68.16. Both benchmarks fell on Tuesday and Wednesday. "Oil markets may have been oversold in the last two trading days," said CMC Markets analyst Tina Teng. "Sentiment rebounded amid the debt bill's passage in the House and (the) Fed's rate hike pause signal."

Mixed demand indications from China, the world's biggest oil importer, have nonetheless weighed on the market, as has industry data showing a rise in U.S. crude inventories. Market sources citing American Petroleum Institute (API) figures on Wednesday said that U.S. crude inventories rose by about 5.2 million barrels last week. Government stocks data is due at 1430 GMT on Thursday.

"The current mood is one of pessimism," said Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM. "Investors have been pragmatic and risk averse of late." Also in focus is the June 4 meeting of the OPEC+ producer group, in which the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia will discuss whether or not to cut oil production further.

Four sources from the alliance told Reuters that OPEC+ is unlikely to deepen supply cuts at their ministerial meeting on Sunday despite a fall in oil prices toward USD70 a barrel. These price levels are "not at all comfortable" for OPEC+ members, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.

"Failure to deliver some price supportive action at the OPEC+ meeting this weekend could see oil prices drop further, but overall, we see the downside risk as limited with last month's production cuts yet to be fully felt and priced in," Hansen said.

We remind, Russia is leaning towards leaving oil production volumes unchanged ahead of an OPEC+ policy meeting on June 4 because Moscow is content with current prices and output. OPEC+, which groups the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries with Russia and other allies, surprised the market on April 2 with further output cuts that pushed up the price of oil.


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ExxonMobil signs carbon capture agreement with Nucor Corporation, reaching 5 MTA milestone

ExxonMobil signs carbon capture agreement with Nucor Corporation, reaching 5 MTA milestone

ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions’ newest carbon capture and storage agreement – with Nucor Corporation, one of North America’s largest steel producers – demonstrates our continued momentum in helping industrial customers reduce emissions, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

We will capture, transport and store up to 800,000 metric tons per year of CO2 from Nucor’s manufacturing site in Convent, Louisiana. The site produces direct reduced iron (DRI), a raw material used to make high-quality steel products including automobiles, appliances and heavy equipment.

It’s the third carbon capture agreement we’ve announced in the past seven months, following previous ones with industrial gas company Linde and CF Industries, maker of agricultural fertilizer.

It also marks a milestone – bringing the total CO2 we’ve agreed to transport and store for third-party customers to 5 million metric tons per year (MTA). That’s equivalent to replacing approximately 2 million gasoline-powered cars with electric vehicles, which is roughly equal to the total number of EVs on US roads today.

“Our agreement with Nucor is the latest example of how we’re delivering on our mission to help accelerate the world's path to net zero and build a compelling new business,” said Dan Ammann, president of ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions. “Momentum is building as customers recognize our ability to solve emission challenges at scale.”

The Nucor project, expected to start up in 2026, will tie into the same CO2 transportation and storage infrastructure as utilized by our CF Industries project, and supports Louisiana’s objective of reaching net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050.

As outlined in our recent Low Carbon Solutions Spotlight event, we are focused on developing and deploying emissions solutions for the energy-intensive sectors of the economy, including industries like steel.

We remind, ExxonMobil Corp has started up its long-planned project to expand light crude oil processing capacity by 250,000 b/d at ExxonMobil Product Solutions Co's integrated refining and petrochemicals complex along the US Gulf Coast in Beaumont, TX, US.

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Lukoil raises oil output at Iraq's West Qurna 2 to 480,000 bpd

Lukoil raises oil output at Iraq's West Qurna 2 to 480,000 bpd

MRC) -- Russia's Lukoil has increased oil production at Iraq's southern West Qurna 2 oilfield by 80,000 barrels per day (bpd) to a total of 480,000 bpd, an oil official told Reuters on Thursday, said Reuters.

Production rose after the completion of the connection of 47 new oil wells which boosted production, an Iraqi oilfield official said, adding that output could reach 500,000 bpd in a short period of time if required.

The increase in Iraq's production comes as Turkey continues to halt Iraq's 450,000 bpd of northern exports through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline.

They have been halted since March 25 after an arbitration ruling by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

Iraq is waiting for a final answer from Turkey regarding the resumption of the northern oil exports, which run from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region to the Turkish port of Ceyhan.

We remind, Lukoil completes reconstruction of several units at Volgograd refinery. A large-scale reconstruction has been completed at the Volgograd refinery. The project included modernization of the CDU-VDU-5 crude distillation unit with production capacity of 3.5 MMtpy and the solvent extraction unit with production capacity of 300, 000 tpy. Over 230 core equipment items were installed and technologically outdated units were decommissioned. The share of Russia-made equipment installed during the reconstruction exceeded 70%. The construction site spanned the area of 34 thousand square metres; investments into the project exceeded 12 B roubles.

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