Sika has acquired a 30% stake in Concria Oy

Sika acquires a stake of 30% in Concria Oy, a Finnish startup company specializing in highly innovative concrete floors, said the company.

Concria has developed a new technology for concrete flooring, offering a wide range of advantages to contractors, architects, and property owners. Sika’s global network and complementary product portfolio will provide an attractive growth platform.

Concria has developed an excellent technology that represents a novel approach to concrete floor installation and polishing. It includes special dry shake hardeners as well as a unique procedure and tools for grinding and polishing concrete floors. This innovative technology enables a fast and efficient installment of highly decorative polished concrete floors featuring superior quality and durability properties.

Sika did not disclose how much it paid for the 30% stake.

We remind, Sika continues to invest in its polymer production at its Sealy site in the US state of Texas, Sika’s latest move marks its second polymer investment in the state of Texas in just five years. Polymers are chemical building blocks needed to manufacture Sika® ViscoCrete®, Sika’s high-performance, resource-saving concrete admixture. The company has initiated this expansion due to the rising demand for its concrete admixture in the USA and Canada.

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Adani Total Gas Ltd. (ATGL), a leading energy and city gas distribution company, co-promoted by the Adani Group and TotalEnergies, announces the initiation of a pioneering 'Green Hydrogen Blending Pilot Project', said the company.

As part of the project, ATGL will employ the latest technologies to blend Green Hydrogen (GH2) with natural gas for over 4,000 residential and commercial customers at Ahmedabad, Gujarat. GH2 is produced using electrolysis of water with electricity generated by renewable energy. Hydrogen blending is less carbon intensive than burning gas but has the same heating capabilities.

The project is expected to be commissioned by Q1 FY24-25 and the percentage of green hydrogen will be gradually increased in the blend to upto 8% or more, depending on regulatory approvals. After successfully completing the pilot, hydrogen blended fuel will be supplied stepwise to larger parts of the city and other license areas of AGTL. As per studies, an upto 8% hydrogen blend can reduce emission by upto 4%.

With this pilot, ATGL would like to partner with various stakeholders including regulatory authorities to share its firsthand learning and develop ecosystem about hydrogen blending in city gas distribution in India. This will also help in gaining and sharing knowledge on the operational aspects and the compatibility of blended fuel on existing infrastructure.

We remind, TotalEnergies has reported net income of $6.67bn (€6.33bn) in the third quarter of 2023, a marginal 1% increase compared with $6.62bn in the same period a year ago, said the company. In the July–September quarter of 2023, the French oil and gas company reported $54.41bn in revenue from sales, a 16% decline from $64.92bn in Q3 2022.

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Clariant, a sustainability-focused specialty chemical company, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Conser, part of MAIRE Group, for the supply of maleic anhydride catalysts, said the company.

The partners will develop next-generation catalysts based on Clariant’s successful SynDane series, with the aim of offering superior productivity, cost efficiency and sustainability. The partnership comes at an opportune time as the demand for maleic anhydride continues to grow worldwide, particularly in China. Maleic anhydride is not only an essential component of polymers and coatings used in the construction, automotive, marine, and energy industries, but also an important intermediate for producing biodegradable plastics.

Xaver Karsunke, Head of Specialty Chemicals at Clariant, commented, “We are delighted to partner with renowned technology licensor Conser to accelerate the sustainable production of maleic anhydride. The agreement further strengthens the collaboration between our companies, which started more than a decade ago. To date, five new projects have selected Clariant catalysts with Conser technology for the production of maleic anhydride. Our partnership will increase the number of customers benefitting from our combined capabilities.”

Alessandro Bernini, MAIRE Chief Executive Officer, commented: “With this agreement we further improve the soundness of our Sustainable Technology Solutions portfolio which spans from technology licensing to proprietary equipment and other high-value services, in line with the execution of our ten-year plan. We are eager to work with Clariant to further improve our technological offer to best serve clients’ demands for innovative energy-efficient solutions.”

Conser S.p.A., part of MAIRE Group’s Sustainable Technology Solutions business unit led by NEXTCHEM, is a leading technology licensor of maleic anhydride technology globally, with a strong focus on the growing market in China. The company has extensive experience in the field of maleic anhydride and its derivatives, offering state-of-the-art plant design for lower production costs, higher product quality and reduced environmental impact.

We remind, Clariant posted a 28% decrease on earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) in the third quarter amid lower prices and volumes. Clariant expects to see an easing inflationary environment, but no economic recovery in the final three months of 2023, with macroeconomic uncertainties and risks remaining. Despite that, Clariant confirms its sales guidance for the full year 2023 of Swfr4.55bn–4.65bn, it said.

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A severe storm in the Black Sea region has disrupted up to 2 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil exports from Kazakhtsan and Russia, according to state's officials and port agent data, said Reuters.

Oil loadings from Novorossiysk and the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal in nearby Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka have been suspended since last week. Kazakhstan's largest oilfields - Tengiz, Kashagan and Karachaganak - are cutting combined daily oil output by 56% from Nov. 27 as the storm disrupts loadings at CPC, the main export terminal for Kazakh oil, the Kazakh energy ministry said.

The disruption is expected to lower Kazakhstan's oil production by 631,700 metric tons this week, it said, adding that it was unclear when the situation would normalize. Russia's Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, the largest Black Sea outlet for oil and products, remained closed for loadings on Tuesday, according to port agent data seen by Reuters.

Two oil cargoes carrying 80,000 tons each were waiting for improved weather before sailing. Both have been delayed for more than a week, the data shows, along with about 10 tankers yet to start loading. November's initial oil loading plan from Novorossiysk was set at 2.42 million tons (about 580,000 bpd), with actual loadings likely to be around 1.5 million tons, said two traders familiar with the port's operations.

Russian oil companies are expected to re-route most of their volumes to Baltic ports for December, the traders said.

Unlike Russia, Kazakhstan doesn't have many alternative export routes for its oil. Under the current plan, the Kazakh Energy ministry said, output will fall even further by Dec. 3, with the Chevron-led Tengiz field completely halting production and the country's total output decreasing by 126,000 tons per day.

The ministry now sees November oil output, not including gas condensate, at 1.588 million bpd and December production at 1.673 million bpd, down from the previously planned 1.605 million and 1.599 million bpd respectively, but still above the 1.550 million bpd quota.

Kazakhstan's biggest oilfields are developed mostly by Western oil majors such as ExxonMobil, Shell, Eni and TotalEnergies.

We remind, Lukoil and China National Chemical Engineering & Construction Corporation Seven (CC7) have signed a cooperation agreement on creation of a gas chemical facility in the city of Budennovsk in Russia’s Stavropol Region, the Russian oil major reported, said the company. The document provides for the development of project documentation in cooperation with Russian companies. Moreover, an option to use an incentive mechanism is currently being examined in collaboration with the Stavropol region authorities.

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PlantSwitch (Dallas), a startup aiming to produce bioplastics from upcycled agricultural waste, has raised $7.7 million in an early fundraise round, including $2 million from alternative asset manager NexPoint (Dallas), said the company.

The funding will go toward scaling up plastic resin production at PlantSwitch’s recently acquired facility in North Carolina.

PlantSwitch has entered into framework agreements to supply “several nation-wide restaurant and grocery store chains” with bioplastic products, the company said. The company is also aiming to increase the size of its workforce to 50 employees by the end of 2024.

In addition to the $7.7 million funding round, PlantSwitch has received a $4.94 million grant from the US Department of Agriculture.

We remind, TotalEnergies has reported net income of $6.67bn (€6.33bn) in the third quarter of 2023, a marginal 1% increase compared with $6.62bn in the same period a year ago, said the company. In the July–September quarter of 2023, the French oil and gas company reported $54.41bn in revenue from sales, a 16% decline from $64.92bn in Q3 2022.

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