BASF Intermediates to produce amines at the Geismar site using 100% renewable electricity

BASF’s Intermediates division has announced that its standard grade amine portfolio will soon be produced by 100% renewable electricity credited to the Geismar, Louisiana Verbund site, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The transition is set to begin in Q4 2025 and continue through 2026, complementing the transition currently underway in Europe. Renewable electricity will be generated through the application of solar and wind renewable electricity credits and allocated to the amines portfolio in Geismar. This transformation reflects BASF’s broader strategy towards achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, while maintaining product quality and supply continuity. By leveraging renewable electricity credits and optimizing production processes, BASF Intermediates is delivering measurable reductions in product carbon footprints (PCFs) across its amines portfolio.

“This is a transformation in how we think about carbon dioxide emissions in our value chain,” said Kevin Anderson, BASF Vice President, Business Management - Amines & Specialty Intermediates, Americas. “Our customers can now benefit from lower Scope 3 emissions without any disruption to their operations.”

The use of such credits is expected to result in an annual reduction of about 25,000 tons of CO2 equivalents compared with the base year 2024. This corresponds to an average PCF reduction of about 4.5%1 across the entire amines portfolio. The transition marks an important milestone in the Intermediates Division’s contribution to BASF’s goal to reduce Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 25% by 2030 compared with 2018.

"By investing in renewable electricity, we empower our customers to advance on their sustainability path. We're committed to developing innovative solutions that align with their environmental goals," said Mike Sowinski, Head of Sales, BASF Intermediates Americas. "We look forward to collaborating with our customers to further reduce their product carbon footprints."

With about 300 different amines, BASF has a very diverse portfolio of chemical intermediates. The versatile products prove themselves mainly to manufacture process chemicals, pharmaceuticals and crop protection products, as well as cosmetic products and detergents. They also serve to produce coatings, special plastics, composites and special fibers.

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Russia's Finance Ministry is proposing to extend to 2027 and 2028 the special coefficient (VSPR) that made it possible to reduce government payments to oil companies on the fuel damper subsidy as part of tax changes for the draft budget for the next three years, as per Interfax.

The extension of this mechanism is expected to generate 422.805 billion rubles of additional budget revenue in 2027 and 493.052 billion rubles in 2028, a source familiar with materials for the draft federal budget told Interfax.

The VSPR is the allowance for the Urals crude price discount against Brent built into the formula of the damper. The mechanism of the price differential in the calculation of payments to oil companies was approved by the State Duma in July 2022 (bill No. 136059-8) and went into effect on September 1, 2022. The adjustment brought the indicative export price for gasoline in the damper formula closer to the actual price of Russian gasoline in Europe, meaning the average Urals discount against Brent in a month began to be subtracted from the average price of gasoline in Europe.

Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Sazanov said during debates on the bill in parliament that his ministry estimated this adjustment would make it possible to reduce budget spending on payments to oil companies by about 100 billion rubles in 2022.

Subsequently, in 2023 and 2025, the parameters of the VSPR were refined, but the mechanism for adjusting the damper was expected to be eliminated in 2027.

The amendments prepared by the Finance Ministry also call for setting nominal values for average wholesale motor fuel prices that will be used for calculating the dampening components of the excise on crude oil shipped for refining, which will give the budget an additional 116 billion rubles in 2028.

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The ban on gasoline exports for all participants, except for supplies under intergovernmental agreements, will be extended until the end of the year, while a ban on diesel fuel exports for non-producers will also be introduced until the end of the year, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told journalists, as per Interfax.

"Yes, there is a decision. We will soon extend the ban on gasoline exports until the end of the year, and a ban on diesel fuel exports for non-producers will also be introduced, likewise until the end of the year. This will allow us to additionally supply the market with petroleum products," Novak said.

Gasoline exports will be prohibited until the end of the year for all participants, except for supplies under intergovernmental agreements, he said.

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Fujian Petrochemical Co. Ltd. (FPCL), Sinopec and Aramco have formed a joint venture, Fujian Aramco Re-fining and Petrochemical Co., to develop a large-scale integrated refining and petrochemical complex in Fu-jian Province, China, as per Polymerupdate.

The project, first announced last November, will in-clude a 16-million-t/y crude oil refining unit, a 1.5-million-t/y ethylene facility, paraxylene and down-stream derivatives capacity of 2-million t/y, and a 300,000-t/y crude oil terminal. Operations are expected to begin by the end of 2030.

FPCL, a 50-50 partnership between Sinopec and Fu-jian Petrochemical Industrial Group, holds an equity interest of 50% in the new joint venture, with Sinopec and Aramco each holding 25% stakes.

This project represents further progress in Ar-amco's strategic downstream expansion, which aims to capture additional value through both portfolio diversi-fication and business integration, said Aramco Down-stream President Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani.

We see significant petrochemical demand growth potential in China, and we are delighted to be an active participant in this key market.

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Bulgaria has assured Hungary that it will continue to ensure the transit of Russian gas to Hungary, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Thursday, as per Interfax.

Szijjarto "said his Bulgarian counterpart assured him that Sofia will not put Hungary in a difficult situation, despite media reports on ending Russian gas transit in 2026," Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said on social media.

"Bulgaria will remain a reliable transit partner for Hungary in gas supplies," Kovacs reported Szijjarto as saying.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov said on Wednesday that Bulgaria, as "a member of the EU, we will join the decision to suspend, in the short term, in 2026, contracts for the use or transit of Russian natural gas, and in the long term, by 2028."

Kovacs said Zhelyazkov was commenting on an EU initiative that at this point "is only a proposal, no decision has been made yet."

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