Americas
TransCanada wins final permit to build Gulf leg of Keystone XL pipeline
With the extension, the company says Gulf Coast refiners can access cheaper domestic production and avoid paying a premium to foreign producers, thereby reducing costs.
Gasoline profits decline for European refiners amid weak demand - analysts
Massimo Vacca, head of investor relations at Italy's Saras, said the recent rise in crude prices and in gasoline stocks had contributed to the squeeze on refiners' profits. Profits on gasoline in Northwest Europe have nearly halved to $10.73/ton from $19.23/ton, the lowest level in over two months.
Smithfield CEO calls for US to cut ethanol mandate
In addition to a temporary waiver of the mandate, Congress should pass a bill that would lower the federal Renewable Fuels Standard when US corn supplies fall below a certain threshold, Smithfield CEO C. Larry Pope wrote. A waiver would ease requirements that refiners blend ethanol with gasoline.
Methanex approves Chile-to-US plant relocation
The Louisiana methanol plant is targeted to be operational by the end of 2014. The expected cost of the project, including all owners' and pre-start up costs, is about $550 million, according to the company.
Air Products to raise LNG heat exchanger capacity with new Florida plant
The new 300,000 square foot LNG manufacturing facility, which will employ approximately 250 employees in a four year ramp-up period, is to be complete and begin operations in late 2013. Air Products says the location's access to port services will facilitate global shipping of the equipment.
Ecuador picks Odebrecht to prepare refinery site
Odebrecht will prepare the construction site for the Refineria del Pacifico, a $13 billion project run by the state oil companies of Venezuela and Ecuador. The refinery, located in the coastal province of Manabi, is scheduled to go on line in 2015 and to reach its complete capacity of 300,000 bpd in 2016.
Bakken crude reaches Louisiana refiners by barge
Kirby Corp. appears to be the first barge operator to use America's famed Mississippi River as a highway for oil from the land-locked Bakken, an oil-rich area in North Dakota. The barges take a week to travel down the Mississippi River to bring the oil to the Baton Rouge, La. area.
US safety board says lapses led to BP oil spill
The CSB said a "robust system of process safety indicators" may have revealed problems that led to the disaster, such as discordant safety controls between BP and Transocean.
US chemical output falls for second straight month
Individual components measured by the index were mixed. Declines in production of plastic resins, fertilizers, adhesives, organic chemicals and pharmaceuticals were offset by gains in the output of inorganic chemicals, industrial gases, consumer products, pesticides, coatings and synthetic rubber.
Offshore drillers focus on wrong safety data, says US chem safety board
Offshore oil and gas drillers put too much emphasis on items such as individual worker injuries while neglecting better indicators of danger, such as the number of near-misses a drilling rig experiences or whether safety equipment are maintained on schedule, according to the CSB's preliminary findings.
- Envision Energy powers world's first green marine ammonia bunkering 7/25
- New catalyst breakthrough could make clean ammonia easier to produce 7/25
- U.S. Gulf refiners seek Middle East, S. American oil to offset Venezuela, Mexico losses 7/25
- CEO of Russia-backed Indian refiner Nayara resigns after EU sanctions 7/25
- PetroChina makes FID for new northeast refinery complex 7/25
- Valero Energy beats Q2 profit estimates as refining margins improve 7/24
