Plant Watch
Celanese expands production capacities for acetic acid and VAE
April 9, 2024 — Celanese Corp. (Dallas, Tex.; www.celanese.com) started up a new production unit for vinyl acetate ethylene (VAE) in Nanjing, China and completed several downstream debottlenecking projects related to redispersible polymer powders (RDP). This new VAE unit increases capacity by 70,000 metric tons per year (m.t./yr). Celanese also started up a capacity expansion for acetic acid at its site in Clear Lake, Tex.
Shin-Etsu Chemical announces new plant for semiconductor lithography materials
April 9, 2024 — Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. (Tokyo, Japan; www.shinetsu.co.jp) is building a new plant to produce semiconductor lithography materials in Isesaki City, Japan. Investment in the site is expected to amount to about¥83 billion (around $547 million) at the completion of the first phase of construction. The first phase of investment is to be completed by 2026.
Repsol begins large-scale production of renewable fuels in Cartagena
April 9, 2024 — Repsol S.A. (Madrid, Spain; www.repsol.com) began large-scale production of renewable fuels at its industrial complex in Cartagena, Spain. This plant is the first on the Iberian Peninsula dedicated exclusively to the production of 100% renewable fuels. The company has invested €250 million in the construction of the unit, which has a production capacity of 250,000 m.t./yr.
Innophos upgrades production facility for calcium phosphates
April 9, 2024 — Innophos, Inc. (Cranbury, N.J.; www.innophos.com) is investing in production upgrades at its facility in Chicago Heights, Ill., which produces calcium phosphates that comply with European Commission regulatory standards for purity. Calcium phosphates are ingredients in dietary supplements and many food and beverage products.
Borealis invests €4.5 million to upgrade olefins plant in Finland
April 9, 2024 — Borealis AG (Vienna, Austria; www.borealisgroup.com) plans to invest €4.5 million to upgrade the steam-cracker furnaces at its olefins unit in Porvoo, Finland. This investment enables Borealis to increase the share of renewable and recycled raw materials used in its ethylene and propylene production. The Porvoo investment program is expected to be completed in 2025. The Porvoo steam cracker has a nameplate capacity of 430,000 m.t./yr of ethylene and 263,000 m.t./yr of propylene.
Phillips 66 announces milestone in production of renewable diesel
April 5, 2024 — Phillips 66, Inc. (Houston; www.phillips66.com) announced that its Rodeo Renewable Energy Complex project in California has progressed, with the facility now processing exclusively renewable feedstocks and producing approximately 30,000 bbl/d of renewable diesel. The complex is on track to increase production rates to more than 50,000 bbl/d of renewable fuels by the end of the second quarter of 2024.
Archroma to expand manufacturing complex in South Carolina
April 5, 2024 — Archroma (Pratteln, Switzerland; www.archroma.com) is expanding its operations in Martin, S.C. The expansion will include a $750,000 investment in the facility and equipment, with additional growth anticipated. The facility specializes in the production of dyes, chemicals and optical brightening agents for textiles, packaging and paper, as well as coatings, adhesives and sealants.
BASF breaks ground on methyl glycols plant at Zhanjiang Verbund site in China
April 1, 2024 — BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) has broken ground on a methyl glycols (MG) plant at its Verbund site in Zhanjiang, China. The new facility is designed with a capacity of 46,000 m.t./yr, and aims to meet the rapidly growing demand for brake fluids in the region. The plant is scheduled to commence operations by the end of 2025.
Ecolab opens wastewater-treatment plant at Shell Jurong Island in Singapore
March 29, 2024 — Ecolab, Inc. (St. Paul, Minn. www.ecolab.com) announced that its water-management division, Nalco Water, opened a wastewater-treatment plant at Shell Jurong Island, Singapore. This facility is designed to handle variable bio-treater wastewater. The plant utilizes Ecolab’s ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis (RO) membrane system and is almost 100% automated. The plant has capacity to treat and reuse up to 24,000 m3 of wastewater each month.
Eastman selects Longview, Texas as site for new molecular-recycling facility
March 28, 2024 — Eastman Chemical Co. (Kingsport, Tenn.; www.eastman.com) plans to build a second molecular-recycling facility at its location in Longview, Tex. The Longview molecular-recycling facility will have the capacity to recycle approximately 110,000 m.t./yr of hard-to-recycle plastic waste. The investment also includes operations that will prepare mixed plastic waste for processing.
Dow announces new production facility for carbonate solvents
March 27, 2024 — Dow, Inc. (Midland, Mich.; www.dow.com) plans to establish a new production facility for carbonate solvents on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The facility will use captured CO2 from Dow’s ethylene oxide manufacturing unit as feedstock for carbonate solvent production.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Sika acquires California-based polymer-systems specialist KBP
April 5, 2024 — Sika AG (Baar, Switzerland; www.sika.com) has acquired Kwik Bond Polymers, LLC (KBP; Benicia, Calif.), a manufacturer of polymer systems for the refurbishment of concrete infrastructure. KBP has production assets near San Francisco and additional production and warehousing near Pittsburgh, Pa.
SLB to acquire oilfield technologies firm ChampionX
April 2, 2024 — SLB (Houston; www.slb.com) agreed to acquire ChampionX Corp. (The Woodlands, Tex.; www.championx.com) in an all-stock transaction. ChampionX provides a wide range of chemical technologies for the oil-and-gas sector, and also offers technologies for emissions management, artificial lift, digital monitoring and more.
Dow and Procter & Gamble to develop a new recycling technology
April 1, 2024 — Dow and Procter & Gamble Co. (Cincinnati, Ohio; www.pg.com) agreed to jointly develop a new recycling technology that will enable conversion of hard-to-recycle plastic packaging into recycled polyethylene with near-virgin quality. The development program will focus on using dissolution technology to recycle a broad range of plastic materials with a focus on polyethylene and targeting post-household plastic waste — especially rigid, flexible and multilayer packaging.
Ineos acquires TotalEnergies assets in southern France
April 1, 2024 — Ineos Ltd. (London, U.K.; www.ineos.com) acquired TotalEnergies’ (Paris, France; www.totalenergies.com) 50% share of selected petrochemicals assets located in Lavera, in southern France. Acquired business lines include: Naphtachimie (720,000-m.t./yr steam cracker); Appryl (300,000-m.t./yr polypropylene unit); Gexaro (270,000-m.t./yr aromatics unit); and 3TC (naphtha storage unit). These businesses had previously been joint ventures between the two companies. A number of other infrastructure assets have also been acquired, including part of TotalEnergies’ ethylene pipeline network in France.
Talos Energy sells CCS business to TotalEnergies
March 19, 2024 — Talos Energy Inc. (Houston; www.talosenergy.com) entered into an agreement for the sale of its wholly owned subsidiary, Talos Low Carbon Solutions LLC (TLCS), to TotalEnergies E&P USA, Inc. for a purchase price totaling approximately $148 million. The sale includes Talos’s entire carbon-capture and sequestration (CCS) business, including its three projects along the U.S. Gulf Coast: Bayou Bend CCS LLC, Harvest Bend CCS LLC and Coastal Bend CCS LLC. ■