Texas crude quality checks rise after excess metal found in oil export

MRC -- U.S. oil pipeline and export terminal operators are stepping up quality checks after finding an out-of-specification cargo that raised worries of excess metals contaminating Texas shale oil, operators and sources said, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

WTI Midland, the crude from the top U.S. shale field which joined the Dated Brent index in June, increasingly is flowing to European refiners. Concerns that contaminated oil could damage refining units and the oil's reputation spurred more routine testing, people familiar with the matter said.

Oil index publisher S&P Global Platts added WTI Midland to the Dated Brent Index and set a quality standard for the crude. Its testing has found only one out-of-specification cargo among this year's 54 trades, a spokesperson said.

WTI Midland crude flows to Europe have set the price of widely used Dated Brent on more than half the trading days since May, according to price reporting agency Argus, putting more of the U.S. crude in the hands of European refiners.

But high levels of iron and vanadium metal in oils blended into WTI Midland can damage European refineries, which typically have less complex processing units and are unable to filter the metals.

U.S. pipeline companies and crude marketers often mix more expensive WTI Midland with cheaper varieties such as West Texas Sour, Domestic Sweet or Eagle Ford to boost profit margins. Those cheaper grades often contain higher levels of iron, vanadium and nickel.

We remind, LyondellBasell along with the Plastics Industry Association announced the use of the equivalent of 520,000 plastic retail bags to pave 4,875 square yards of parking lot at the Louisiana Integrated PolyEthylene JV LLC. The project utilized 8,000 pounds of LyondellBasell CirculenRecover polymers, made from plastic waste using a mechanical recycling process. The asphalt project is an example of LyondellBasell’s commitment to end plastic waste in the environment that would otherwise end up in landfills or incinerated.

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MRC -- Titan Group has signed a cooperation agreement with Wison Engineering Ltd, a division of China's Wison Group, to build a new EP-600 pyrolysis unit with subsequent intensive processing of its products, the Russian group said in a press release on its website.

"This is a part of a large-scale investment project to produce basic chemical products in the Omsk region that will make it possible to provide the market with scarce chemicals for key sectors of the industry, and completely substitute imported ethylene glycols and propylene glycols," Titan said, adding that the project will be carried out at an industrial park in Omsk Region.

The EP-600 ethylene complex is designed to process hydrocarbon feedstock into ethylene, propylene, butadiene, benzene and other petrochemical products.

"Considering the strategic tasks of the country's chemical industry, we've started implementing a large-scale project to manufacture large tonnage chemicals in the Omsk region. It complies with a plan of events aimed at import-substitution. Large tonnage projects, in their turn, will become a base for low- and medium chemicals production. These include such marketable products as PBT, silica gels, silicasols, BOPET films, PET granules, and PIB," Titan chairman Mikhail Sutyaginsky said in the release.

Wison Engineering Ltd is a leading Chinese engineering contractor that operates in the petrochemical industry.

We remind, Omsky Kauchuk , a division of Titan Group, has begun building a polyisobutylene (PIB) production plant with annual capacity of 10,000 tonnes and has launched a technical butane processing unit after modernization.

Titan Group includes a number of petrochemical plants (Omsky Kauchuk , Titan-SM LLC and Pskov Plant Titan-Polymer LLC) and agribusinesses (Petrovsky pig farm, Pushkinsky compound feed plant and Pushkinsky meat processing plant).

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MRC -- Emerson, a leader in industrial software and technology, has been chosen by DG Fuels to provide comprehensive automation and project engineering to help transportation sector decarbonization efforts through production of advanced biofuels, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

To help address the more than 25% of global emissions caused by transportation, DG Fuels’ mission is to provide “drop in” cellulosic sustainable aviation fuels at scale, then expand into renewable or green diesel fuels. Its advanced conversion process creates fuels that can be used in existing aviation and vehicle engines, achieving three times greater yield from biomass feedstock when compared to traditional biofuels production processes.

“Technology and innovation are the foundation of bringing our innovative fuels conversion process to scale,” said Michael Darcy, DG Fuels CEO. “Partnering with Emerson for its project expertise and automation portfolio gives us confidence in achieving our bold vision of being a global leader in synthetic jet and diesel fuel production.”

Chosen for its deep automation project engineering and execution, backed by the industry’s most comprehensive automation portfolio, Emerson will provide DG Fuels with a suite of advanced sensing, control, systems, equipment monitoring and production optimization technologies and software that enable safe, reliable and sustainable production.

“Sustainable aviation fuel is a critical step in the energy transition of the transportation sector,” said Mike Train, Emerson’s chief sustainability officer. “Meaningful progress will require innovative solutions across multiple sources of energy. We look forward to supporting DG Fuels’ mission of creating high-yield, high-quality biomass-derived fuels at scale.”

DG Fuels’ previously announced agreements with aviation leaders for sustainable aviation fuels development and supply include Air France KLM, Delta, Airbus and GE Aviation.

We remind, LyondellBasell along with the Plastics Industry Association announced the use of the equivalent of 520,000 plastic retail bags to pave 4,875 square yards of parking lot at the Louisiana Integrated PolyEthylene JV LLC. The project utilized 8,000 pounds of LyondellBasell CirculenRecover polymers, made from plastic waste using a mechanical recycling process. The asphalt project is an example of LyondellBasell’s commitment to end plastic waste in the environment that would otherwise end up in landfills or incinerated.

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MRC -- Japan-based Asahi Kasei's net profit fell by 40% year on year to Yen 30.8 bn in 1H FY 2023 (ended Sep 2023), partly due to demand weakness in China, said the company.

The company's basic materials business performed better than prediction, recording an operating profit of Yen 17.7 bn and sales of Yen 610.2 bn.

Asahi Kasei Corporation has released its summary of consolidated results for 1Q and 2Q FY 2023 (1 Apr-30 Sep 2023). For the 1Q-2Q 2023, operating results are as follows: net sales [Yen 1,345,924 M (-0.4%)], operating income [Yen 55,887 M (-34.9%)], ordinary income Yen [52,049 M (-39.8%)], net income attributable to owners of the parent [Yen 30,841 M (-40.4%)], and net income per share of Yen 22.25.

Financial position at end of Sep 2023: total assets (Yen 3,618,418 M), net assets (Yen 1,847,598 M), net worth/total assets (50.0%), and net worth per share of Yen 1306.44.

We remind, Asahimas Chemical, a prominent subsidiary of the renowned Japanese petrochemical giant Asahi Glass, has successfully concluded comprehensive repair operations on Vinyl Chloride Line 3 at its facility in Cilegon, Indonesia. The facility, boasting an impressive annual capacity of 400 thousand tons of Vinyl Chloride Monomer (VCM), underwent meticulous repair activities aimed at addressing operational challenges. Despite the successful removal of coke and the subsequent restart of VCM Line 3, technical complexities have limited its current operational capacity to 90%. The precise timeline for achieving full operational restoration remains uncertain.

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MRC -- LyondellBasell along with the Plastics Industry Association announced the use of the equivalent of 520,000 plastic retail bags to pave 4,875 square yards of parking lot at the Louisiana Integrated PolyEthylene JV LLC, said the company.

The project utilized 8,000 pounds of LyondellBasell CirculenRecover polymers, made from plastic waste using a mechanical recycling process. The asphalt project is an example of LyondellBasell’s commitment to end plastic waste in the environment that would otherwise end up in landfills or incinerated.

“LyondellBasell continues to advance sustainability and fosters innovative solutions that will transform the plastics industry,” said Armando Lara, site manager of the Louisiana Integrated PolyEthylene JV Site. “Projects like this are exciting testaments to the capabilities we have to reuse products through recycling that would otherwise go to waste.”

This is the second project LyondellBasell has completed with PLASTICS to reuse recycled polymers in paving projects at manufacturing facilities that we own and operate.

“With the completion of their second plastic to asphalt project, LyondellBasell is demonstrating true leadership and commitment to ending plastic waste in the environment. The Plastic to Asphalt program continues to grow as companies choose to substitute traditional paving methods, which utilize fossil fuels, for the use of recycled polymer technologies. The projects showcase the versatility of recycled polymers and their use in diverse applications, such as construction and building projects,” said PLASTICS’ Vice President of Sustainability, Patrick Krieger.

In June of 2020, PLASTICS announced the completion of research on a new formulation of asphalt binder using the “Dry Process.” This formulation offers many of the same benefits of traditional polymer-modified asphalt, including improved strength properties, and increased lifespan, at a decreased cost.

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