By Malini Hariharan Regular readers of the blog will remember a November post that had highlighted delays at ONGC Petro-Additions Ltd’s (OPaL) 1.1m tonnes/year cracker project at Dahej on the west coast of India. This time there is some progress to report. OPaL has finally selected Chevron Philips Chemical to provide technology for a standalone […]
Asian Chemical Connections
Petronas mulls cracker at Kerteh
By Malini Hariharan There is finally some movement at Petronas. After last month’s joint announcement with BASF on a study for a Euro1bn investment in speciality chemicals, news has emerged that the Malaysian major is also exploring the feasibility of a new petrochemical complex at Kerteh. The complex would have a 1m tonnes/year ethane cracker […]
Qapco studies expansion and Echem looks to Sabic
By Malini Hariharan Investment activity is picking up in Qatar. After Total, Shell and ExxonMobil confirmed their interest in new projects, Qatar Petrochemical Co (QAPCO) is talking on expanding its cracker. The company is working on expanding its 720,000 tonne/year cracker to 900,000 tonnes/year by the first quarter of 2014, said QAPCO’s board director and […]
Why bother?
By Malini Hariharan After reading news reports about fresh protests against Kuokuang Petrochemical’s proposed refinery and cracker complex in Taiwan the blog is wondering whether the company should be spending time and money in pursuing this ill-fated project. Kuokuang, a joint venture between state-owned CPC Corp and several Taiwanese private companies, has been unable to […]
Delays at yet another cracker project
By Malini Hariharan The blog is hearing about fresh delays at ONGC Petro-Additions Ltd’s (OPaL) cracker project at Dahej on the west coast of India. Conceived a few years back, the dual-feed 1.1m cracker project, based on ethane separated from LNG and naphtha supplied by parent ONGC, has been jinxed from the start. There have […]
Total waits for Qatar to decide
By Malini Hariharan Qatar Petroleum seems to be in no rush to sign up a foreign partner for its next cracker project. With doubts about ExxonMobil’s participation, the field has narrowed to Total Petrochemicals and Shell. Total’s proposal for a mixed-feed cracker ‘was still in the very early stages,’ said Graeme Burnett, the company’s senior […]
Finding a home for Marcellus ethane
By Malini Hariharan A few weeks back the blog had highlighted the problems related to the disposal of ethane at the Marcellus Shale in northeast US. Shale gas producers in the region are in a fix as ethane needs to be removed to meet pipeline specifications for transporting gas. However, there is no infrastructure or […]
Saudi Kayan commercial production delayed to end-2011?
By Malini Hariharan Sabic’s Saudi Kayan appears to be heading down the same road as other recent Saudi petrochemical projects. After starting up a 1m tonnes/year cracker and a mono ethylene glycol (MEG) facility, a local media report states that commercial production is likely only in late 2011 and not mid-2011 as was widely expected […]
Adapting to a new environment
By Malini Hariharan The blog has been regularly highlighting the changes to the Middle East petrochemical environment where feedstock issues have been clouding prospects for new cracker projects and also affecting operations at existing plants. “We are trying to figure out at what price to offer gas or naphtha to ensure a project is viable […]
Map Ta Phut issue drags on
By Malini Hariharan The Thai government is doing all it can to quickly resolve the Map Ta Phut crisis but full operations at PTT Chem’s new cracker is likely only in early 2011. Feedstock ethane for the 1m tonnes/year cracker will be supplied from PTT’s No6 gas separation plant commissioning of which has been held […]
Jump to page: