The downstream rundown: In case you missed it
The downstream rundown: In case you missed it 5/27
In case you missed any downstream news, this piece will give you a summary of some of the top stories from last week.
Aramco CEO warns of global oil crunch due to lack of investment
(Reuters) - The world is facing a major oil supply crunch as most companies are afraid to invest in the sector as they face green energy pressures, the head of Saudi Aramco told Reuters, adding it cannot expand production capacity any faster than promised.
Amin Nasser, head of the world's largest oil producer, said on Monday he was sticking to the target of expanding capacity to 13 MM barrels per day from the current 12 MM by 2027, despite calls to do it faster.
"The world is running with less than 2% of spare capacity. Before COVID the aviation industry was consuming 2.5 MM bpd more than today. If the aviation industry picks up speed, you are going to have a major problem," Nasser told Reuters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Honeywell introduces emissions control and reduction initiative
Honeywell announced an Emissions Control & Reduction Initiative designed to help customers achieve carbon neutrality in a wide range of areas. The initiative will initially focus on helping oil and gas customers with upstream, midstream and downstream operations to monitor and reduce fugitive methane emissions, which are more than 25 times as potent as carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
By combining its portfolio of fixed, portable and personal gas detection solutions with gas cloud imaging cameras, Honeywell will provide customers with early detection of fugitive methane emissions, including the precise location of any leaks and associated data analytics and trends. Equipped with this data, users can act quickly to address leaks and other identified risks to minimize production losses and maintain compliance with legislation.
Algeria's Sonatrach awards China $520-MM contract to build MTBE plant
Algeria's national oil company Sonatrach said on Thursday it has awarded China a $520-MM contract to build a Methyl Tert Butyl Ether plant.
The project will enter into production in 2025 with an output estimated at 200,000 tpy, the company added during the signing ceremony.
Panama to develop largest advanced biorefinery to make lower-carbon aviation fuel
The government of Panama and energy companies, including SGP BioEnergy, plan to develop a major, advanced biorefinery to increase supply of lower-carbon aviation fuel.
The move comes as the airline industry seeks to achieve a goal of zero net carbon emissions by 2050 and as governments worldwide are pressing companies to increase clean energy investment.
The biorefinery in Panama will produce 180,000 barrels per day (2.6 billion gallons per year) of biofuels, including sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable marine diesel, when it is complete at the end of 2026.
UAE's ADNOC, BP and Masdar forge energy partnership
The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), oil major BP and Abu Dhabi future energy company Masdar have joined forces to develop clean hydrogen and technology hubs.
Announcing their new-energy partnerships, ADNOC said the H2Teesside low-carbon hydrogen project with BP had moved into the design phase.
S&B selected as contractor for New Hope Energy’s advanced plastics recycling unit
S&B Engineers and Constructors (S&B) signs a multi-year master service agreement to provide engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for New Hope Energy’s plastics pyrolysis unit. The initial project under this partnership is the expansion in Tyler, Texas.
The expansion will add 420 metric tons per day of capacity to convert plastic waste to chemical feedstocks in the existing facility. This expansion will allow the Tyler plant to divert more than 300 million pounds of plastic waste from landfills annually. The project also represents a long-term alliance between S&B and New Hope Energy, an environmental technology company developing advanced chemical recycling systems.
Lummus and Clariant awarded contract for one of the world's largest PDH units
Lummus Technology announced it and its catalyst partner Clariant have been awarded a major contract by Fujian Meide to supply CATOFIN technology and catalysts for a new, world-scale propane dehydrogenation (PDH) unit in Fuzhou, China.
Already operating one PDH unit at its Fuzhou petrochemical complex, Fujian Meide is now building one of the largest PDH units in the world and has selected the CATOFIN process and catalysts for the project's second phase. The new unit will produce 900,000 mtons of propylene annually and is scheduled to commence operation in 2023.
INERATEC’s and Clariant’s partnership to support the scale-up of sustainable fuel production
Clariant continues to join forces with Ineratec in the challenge for a greener future. Since 2017, Clariant’s tailor-made catalysts have supported Ineratec’s power-to-liquid technology for producing sustainable fuels from lab-scale to industrial pilot-scale. Now it will be used in the company’s first globally pioneering pilot plant in Frankfurt Höchst. This new pioneer plant has up to 10 times higher production capacity and the several thousand tons per year will be a main driver for the broad availability of sustainable, CO2-neutral fuels and chemicals.
Neste and ITOCHU celebrate first SAF delivery to Etihad Airways in Japan
Neste and ITOCHU are celebrating the first delivery of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel to Etihad Airways, one of the airlines of the United Arab Emirates, in Japan. The delivery of Neste MY SAF to Etihad marks the first time in Japan that SAF will be supplied to an overseas airline at an airport in Japan. The SAF will be delivered to Etihad’s aircraft at Narita International Airport.
This milestone is a result of the recently expanded partnership between Neste and ITOCHU to grow the availability of sustainable aviation fuel in Japan. ITOCHU acts as the branded distributor of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel in Japan, making Neste’s SAF available first at the two largest Japanese international airports: Tokyo Haneda and Narita.
Blast at Spanish biodiesel plant kills two
(Reuters) - At least two people died in an explosion at a Spanish biodiesel plant in the northeastern region of La Rioja on Thursday, authorities said.
It was not immediately clear what had caused the explosion.
Local TV showed footage of thick plumes of black smoke rising from the site.
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