Portugal's Galp plans to start producing biofuels in 2026

Portugal's Galp Energia expects to start producing biodiesel and biojet fuel from waste in an industrial-scale unit it is building at its Sines refinery in 2026, the company, which is primarily an oil producer and refiner, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Last year Galp entered into a 75%-25% joint venture with Japan's Mitsui 8031.T to invest 400 million euros ($415 million) in the Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO) plant, which will have a production capacity of 270,000 metric tons per year.

It will transform waste materials, such as used cooking oils, into renewable biodiesel and biojet fuel, also known as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), using green hydrogen produced by an electrolyser powered by wind or solar energy.

Galp said in a statement it received on Wednesday the three reactors to process biofuels, which will allow the HVO unit to "produce SAF and biodiesel in 2026... placing Galp at the forefront of developing low-carbon solutions essential for the energy transition".

Galp is also investing 250 million euros in a 100 megawatt (MW) electrolyser unit to produce green hydrogen to power the refinery in Sines.

We remind, China's gasoline exports rebounded in November to the highest level since August 2023, customs data showed on Wednesday, as exporters rushed to sell products before a cut in tax rebates came into effect this month. November gasoline exports rose 42.1% on the year to 1.26 MM tonnes (t) (10.65 MMbbl), according to data from the General Administration of Customs, bouncing off a six-month low in October of 670,000 tons.

mrchub.com

Grupa Azoty has signed a cooperation agreement with Orlen SA, Hyundai Engineering Co., LTD., and Korean Overseas Infrastructure & Urban Development Corporation, said the company.

New agreement extends talks on potential collaboration, transactions between the Polish firms in polymers sector, based mainly around Azoty’s new polyolefins complex at Police.

This agreement resolved some of the disputes between Grupa Azoty and Orlen regarding the Polimery Police plant. Under the agreement, which is valid until March 31, 2025, Grupa Azoty Polyolefins and Hyundai Engineering Co. undertook to perform the contract for the construction of the plant (EPC contract), and Hyundai agreed to defer payments on invoices issued or to be issued during the term of the agreement. The validity period of the performance guarantees specified in the agreement was also extended.

We remind, Orlen SA has terminated the implementation of its largest petrochemical project Olefin III. The decision was approved by the company's Supervisory Board on 11 December 2024. The project became unprofitable due to under-investment, under-estimated capital expenditure and incorrect assessment of infrastructure and costs, which increased its cost five to six times to 45-51 billion zlotys (USD11-12 billion).

mrchub.com

The U.S. recycling rate for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles has increased sharply in 2023, leading to the highest rPET utilization rate in 30 years, according to a report from NAPCOR (National Association for PET Container Resources).

The 2023 PET Recycling Report released by NAPCOR (National Association for PET Container Resources) shows that one in three PET bottles (33%) were recycled in 2023, up 4% from 29% in 2022.

The study notes that the increase in collection to the highest level since 1996 was the result of a decrease in the number of PET bottles available for recycling, as well as an increase in the number of PET bottles actually recycled year on year.

A total of 890,000 tonnes (1.962 billion pounds) of PET bottles were collected for recycling in 2023, up 2.7% from 2022. However, the volume of PET bottles available for recycling in 2023 decreased to 2.7 million tonnes (5.95 billion pounds), down 9.8% from 2022 levels.

“NAPCOR’s 2023 PET Recycling Report shows that while fewer PET bottles were produced in the U.S., more were recycled in 2023, resulting in higher recovery rates. When manufacturers, consumers, retailers, and recyclers work together, it ensures that PET bottles are collected and recycled, and our planet benefits,” NAPCOR Executive Director Laura Stewart said in a statement.

According to NAPCOR, less PET was shipped to non-food bottle applications. Therefore, less rPET was shipped to non-food applications.

At the same time, imports of all virgin PET grades were down 12.1% compared to 2022. However, PET bottle-grade imports were down even more, at 14.5%.

It is noted that a combination of regulatory requirements and brands’ desire to use more recycled material has contributed to the increase in the use of rPET in new products.

In 2023, a total of 438,000 tonnes (966 million pounds) of rPET was recycled into new PET bottles, an increase of 11% over 2022. This represents 59% of the bottle-to-bottle PET use rate, a new record and higher than the previous high of 54% in 2022.

NAPCOR also noted in its annual review that 2023 was a record year for all of North America. The United States, Canada, and Mexico combined achieved a 41.3% recycling rate for PET bottles.

At the same time, the average recycled PET content in bottles produced in the United States in 2023 was 16.2%, up 3% from the 13.2% achieved in 2022.

It was previously reported that in Germany, the share of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in beverage bottle blanks increased significantly, from 44.8% in 2021 to 51.2% in 2023. This means that the share of recycled raw materials exceeded the share of virgin material for the first time. Compared to 2012, this is an increase of 27%.

mrchub.com

Packaging producer Sonoco Products Co., Hartsville, South Carolina, says it has entered into an agreement to sell its thermoformed and flexibles packaging (TFP) business to Tokyo-based Toppan Holdings Inc. for approximately $1.8 billion on a cash-free and debt-free basis and subject to customary adjustments, said Recyclingtoday.

Sonoco says the transaction reflects the completion of a previously announced strategic review of its TFP business and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in the first half of 2025. Net proceeds from the transaction are expected to be used to repay existing debt.

“The decision to sell our TFP business accelerates our portfolio simplification strategy, streamlines our organizational structure and enables more focused capital investments in our remaining industrial paper and consumer packaging businesses,” says Howard Coker, Sonoco’s president and CEO. “TFP is a great business with leadership positions in its served markets. We greatly value TFP’s tenured history as part of the Sonoco family, and I am personally proud of their longstanding commitment to serve our customers with both innovative and high-quality packaging products. We will work closely with Toppan to ensure a successful transition for our employees, customers and suppliers and wish the entire team all the best in the future.”

Toppan says the acquisition is “highly complementary,” and combines TFP’s robust sales network, customer base and product development capabilities in North and South America with Toppan’s global packaging business. The company notes that Sonoco’s TFP business serves customers in the food, retail and medical industries and provides a variety of complex packaging to value-added categories such as snacks, condiments, healthcare, prepared meals, fresh products, coffee and pet food.

Toppan says that on a pro forma standalone basis, TFP had revenue of approximately $1.3 billion in 2023.

mrchub.com

Propylene prices edged lower in China while remaining stable in Korea on Thursday, as per Polymerupdate.

On Thursday, CFR China propylene prices were assessed at the USD 840-850/mt levels, down USD (-5/mt) from Wednesday. An industry source in Asia on condition of anonymity informed a Polymerupdate team member, "Prices drop on the back of a weak regional buying momentum.

Meanwhile, FOB Korea propylene prices on Thursday were assessed at the USD 810-820/mt levels, unchanged from Wednesday's assessed levels.

In plant news, BASF-YPC is likely to shut its cracker in April 2025 for a maintenance turnaround. The exact date and duration of the shutdown could not be ascertained. Located in Jiangsu province, China, the cracker has a propylene production capacity of 400,000 mt/year.

mrchub.com