Mitsubishi, INPEX, Masdar to study making PP from CO2, hydrogen

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mitsubishi Chemical Group, INPEX and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co PJSC - Masdar agreed to conduct a joint feasibility project to study making polypropylene out of carbon dioxide (CO2) and green hydrogen in Abu Dhabi, UAE, the companies said.

If built, the so-called carbon recycle chemicals project (CRC project) would be the first commercial-scale plant of its kind. The companies did not specify the capacity of the plant, they did not provide any timelines and they did not say if the CO2 would come from the exhaust of a plant or captured from the atmosphere.

The plant would produce the PP by combining green hydrogen with CO2 to produce methanol. The methanol would then be converted into propylene, which would be polymerised to make PP. Companies in China have long produced commercial quantities of olefins with conventionally produced methanol.

Recently, companies have started making what they call e-methanol, so called because the hydrogen is produced by using electrolysers powered by renewable electricity. So far, many of these companies, notably HIF Global, have used the e-methanol to make eFuels.

The project in Abu Dhabi could be the first to produce ePlastics, and the resulting PP would function as a way to capture carbon.

We remind, Mitsubishi Chemical UK has confirmed the closure of its methyl methacrylate (MMA) plant at Billingham (Cassel), UK, said the company. The decision comes following a period of over two months of collective consultation with its employees. The company stated in a press release in November announcing its consultation that the “economic sustainability of UK manufacturing operation of methacrylates in an increasingly competitive global market cannot be achieved”.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Arabia and Turkey have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to cooperate in the production, marketing and distribution of refined petroleum products and in petrochemicals production, said Reuters.

The MOU also included cooperation in the electricity supply and exports, the agency added.

We remind, Aramco, TotalEnergies, and SABIC have for the first time in the Middle East and North Africa successfully converted oil derived from plastic waste into ISCC+ certified circular polymers. The plastic pyrolysis oil, also called plastic waste derived oil (PDO), was processed at the SATORP refinery jointly owned by Aramco and TotalEnergies, in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. It was then used as a feedstock by PETROKEMYA, a SABIC affiliate, to produce certified circular polymers.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Aramco, TotalEnergies, and SABIC have for the first time in the Middle East and North Africa successfully converted oil derived from plastic waste into ISCC+ certified circular polymers, said the company.

The plastic pyrolysis oil, also called plastic waste derived oil (PDO), was processed at the SATORP refinery jointly owned by Aramco and TotalEnergies, in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. It was then used as a feedstock by PETROKEMYA, a SABIC affiliate, to produce certified circular polymers.

The project aims to pave the way for the creation of a domestic value chain for the advanced recycling of plastics to circular polymers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The process allows the use of non-sorted plastics, which can be difficult to recycle mechanically, and consequently contributes to solving the challenge of end-of-life plastics.

A first milestone for the project was obtaining ISCC+ certification to assure transparency and traceability of the recycled origin of feedstock and products. Three industrial plants were involved in the process: SATORP refinery, Aramco’s Ju'aymah NGL Fractionation Plant and PETROKEMYA. All successfully obtained the ISCC+ certification, enabling the production of circular materials.

SABIC and TotalEnergies are founding members of the non-profit organization Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), which aims to bring collective knowledge, resources and experience to address current waste management challenges.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- BioPak UK, a plant-based compostable packaging solutions provider, has rolled out a new environmentally friendly food packaging range, said Packaging-gateway.

The announcement was shared by the company in a LinkedIn post. BioPak said its new range includes a 4oz ice cream tub with two different-sized lids, a chip box with a chip scoop, a medium size sushi tray with a matching lid, as well as wrap wedges and sandwich wedges.

The range has been launched as an alternative to plastic packaging in the market, the Nationwide Caterers Association (NCASS) said in an associated report. The NCASS quoted BioPak UK’s managing director Leanne Osborne as saying: “We are excited to launch these new products and add to our extensive range of food packaging.

“We have known for a while now that there is high demand for a more sustainable range of packaging from the quick service restaurant sector in particular, so I look forward to offering these products to our customers and partners.”

The newly launched sandwich wedges and wrap wedges are made using responsibly sourced Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified paperboard alongside a waterproof Ingeo bioplastic lining and window. The company said its takeaway sandwich boxes are industrially compostable and are certified to EN13432 European compostability standards.

The FSC-certified paperboard was further used to make ice cream cups, which can be purchased alongside its domed lids. The company’s new snack range is also industrially compostable and is made from FSC-certified paper.

Designed to replace conventional plastic sushi containers, BioPak states its eco-friendly and disposable sushi tray is made using sugarcane and has a matching lid made from bioplastic.

We remind, Tomra, the world leader in waste transformation; Ineos Styrolution, the global leader in styrenics; and Egn Entsorgungsgesellschaft Niederrhein, a leading recycling company, have announced a ground-breaking project to convert post-consumer polystyrene (PS) waste into recycled polystyrene for food packaging applications.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- India's gasoline demand will likely recover from late August, while diesel consumption is expected to stay weak, an official at refiner Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) said, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The local sale of diesel by private refiners is also denting sales by state-run companies, the official said.

The official did not wish to be named as he was not authorized to speak to media.

Daily gasoline sales by the three state-run retailers, which also includes Indian Oil Corp and Bharat Petroleum during July 1-16 were down by 10.8% month-on-month, preliminary data showed.

We remind, Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IndianOil) and Praj Industries Limited (Praj) signed a term sheet to advance plans to strengthen biofuels production capacities in India. Various biofuels covered under this MoU include Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), Ethanol, Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG), Biodiesel and Bio-bitumen among others. Earlier in October 2021, both the Companies had entered into an agreement to form a 50:50 Joint Venture to this end.

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