Biofuels
Murphy Oil to spin off US downstream business
Murphy Oil on Tuesday said it expects to complete the spinoff of Murphy USA in 2013. Murphy USA’s business will consist of retail marketing of petroleum products, a chain of retail gasoline stations, seven product distribution terminals and two ethanol production facilities in North Dakota and Texas.
HP Innovations: Innovations
Invensys introduces new technology offeringsSoftware and technology provider Invensys Operations Management recently released a program to help clients modernize and improve the performance of aging c..
HP Construction: North America
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. has a contract from Methanex Corp. to provide engineering, procurement and construction services for a methanol production facility in Louisiana. Officials estimate the c..
HP Construction: Europe
Clariant has inaugurated what is said to be Germany’s biggest pilot plant for producing climate-friendly cellulose ethanol from agricultural waste. Located in Straubing, Bavaria, and supported by..
Eni to convert Venice refinery to biofuels plant
The Italian firm plans to start biofuels production in January 2014 and complete the conversion in the first half of 2015, citing a crisis hitting the European refining sector.
Valero restarts US ethanol plants as margins swell
Valero idled operations in Nebraska and Indiana in June, citing unprofitable returns. Each plant has the capacity to produce 120 million gal/year of ethanol. “Ethanol margins improved to the point where it became feasible to operate the plants again,” said Bill Day, Valero spokesman.
EU plans to limit use of food-based biofuels
The European Union's climate-change commissioner Connie Hedegaard and energy commissioner Guenther Oettinger said Monday they wanted to cap the share of energy in the transportation sector from food crop-based biofuels - such as rapeseed or palm oil - at current levels.
US raises mandate for alternative diesel fuel usage
Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board, said the decision "will allow biodiesel plants across the country to invest and expand" and "sends a strong signal that the US is standing firm behind its commitment to strengthen energy security and break dependence on petroleum."
Texas biofuels group Terrabon files for bankruptcy
The company has the licenses on technologies from Texas A&M University System, where they were developed and where it was formed to bring the products to market. However, it couldn't obtain the additional financing necessary to finish developing a commercial plant.
Increase FCC processing flexibility by improved catalyst recycling methods
The dynamic global refining market emphasizes the need for greater operating flexibility in the fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit.

- BHP awards charter contracts for two ammonia dual-fueled vessels 7/3
- TOYO develops MRF-Z Neo—A compact reactor optimized for small-scale green methanol production 7/3
- China's Shandong raises fuel oil import tax rebates for some refineries 7/3
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- Digital Feature: Flare system design—The importance of periodic evaluation of existing facilities 7/2
- Valmet to deliver Valmet DNA DCS to a bio-based process plant in Portugal 7/2