Americas
Lower refining margins cut Valero’s profit in half
Refiners ramped up production in 2015, leading to higher inventories and weaker margins this year as demand softened during the mild winter.
US Gulf gasoline falls as Motiva restarts FCC unit
Traders and brokers noted that aside from planned or unplanned work, refiners are making fuels despite a sharp drop in margins from a year ago, when crude prices were higher.
Argentina’s ethanol producers prepare to boost output by up to 60%
In April, the government raised the amount of ethanol used by motorists by 2 percentage points to 12%. The move boosted the country's sugar industry, which has been battered by low prices.
Gulf Publishing finalizes management buyout, marks 100-year anniversary
The newly-independent company is retaining the Gulf Publishing name and will continue to publish its energy industry-leading magazines, including Hydrocarbon Processing.
Air Liquide upgrades, expands Houston complex
The project included upgrades to four state-of-the-art, energy efficient cogeneration units to increase production capacity and extend the life of the units by more than 20 years.
REG expands Illinois biorefinery’s logistics system
REG Danville recently purchased the tank complex at the adjacent Bunge Milling facility for $1.5 million. The tanks are being connected to REG Danville’s existing infrastructure and will increase the biorefinery’s storage capacity for feedstock by at least 950,000 gal and biodiesel by up to 12 million gal.
Editorial Comment: Maintenance spending to jump in 2016 as refiners catch up with turnarounds
The number of scheduled refinery turnarounds in North America is anticipated to rise this year after declining sharply in 2015, as refiners delayed maintenance shutdowns to capitalize on abundant quantities of low-priced feedstock.
Business Trends: Global petrochemical overview—Part 2
Part 1 of this series provided an overview on the present state of the petrochemical industry, a breakdown on construction project numbers by region, as well as major trends in Africa, the Middle East and the US. Part 2 examines the landscape in Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe and Latin America.
Global Project Data
According to <i>Hydrocarbon Processing’s</i> Construction Boxscore Database, nearly 300 new downstream projects have been announced around the globe over the past year.
People
Elliott Group has made changes to its executive team. Michael Lordi has been named as chief operating officer (COO), succeeding Art Titus, who is retiring after nine years.
- INEOS Inovyn agrees to sell its Italian chlor-alkali business to Esseco Industrial 4/21
- LOTTE Chemical to merge into integrated corporation after spinning off Daesan plant 4/21
- Petronor and H2SITE partner to pioneer high-purity hydrogen production in refining through advanced membrane technology 4/21
- Emerson accelerates edge ecosystem for real-time enterprise operations intelligence 4/21
- Tracerco launches DrumVision™ to deliver real-time process visibility in delayed coking and demanding interface measurement applications 4/21
- IMI signs global framework extension with Solvay for the provision of IIoT sensors 4/21
