Refining
People
Linde Engineering North America Inc. has appointed Jason Cooper as the company’s President and CEO.
Industry Metrics
European refinery margins weakened due to slower gasoline export opportunities, despite the colder weather.
Business Trends: Anticipated market and pricing impacts from new marine fuel regulations
In October 2016, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) announced that it will implement a new regulation that calls for the sulfur content in marine fuels to be reduced from 3.5% to 0.5%. The new regulation will go into effect in January 2020. This action by the IMO will have a profound impact on the maritime and refining industries worldwide, as well as on the environment. This month’s Business Trends section provides an overview on the anticipated impacts of the IMO’s decision on petroleum product markets.
Industry Perspectives: Global desulfurization capacity to skyrocket over the long term
According to OPEC’s World Oil Outlook 2016, desulfurization capacity additions represent the largest capacity increases among all process units to 2040. This trend is due to increased regulations on the amount of sulfur allowed in transportation fuels.
Global: Is India ready for the BS-6 changeover?
India is the seventh-largest country in the world by land mass. Urbanization is taking place at a rapid pace: According to the country’s 2011 census, more than 377 MM Indians live in nearly 8,000 towns and cities. This count represents more than 31% of the country’s total population.
Commercialization of pyrolysis oil in existing refineries—Part 2
In Part 1 of this article, economic incentives were estimated for relaxing the requirement that biocrude entering the refinery infrastructure be oxygen (O2)-free. It was concluded that an accurate estimate of these incentives is not possible without a significant amount of additional data. Part 2 examines key issues that must be addressed and the associated data needed for this constraint to be relaxed.
Refining: Europe’s refineries: Walking dead or happy valley?
Unloved and increasingly unneeded, Europe’s oil refining sector has been under duress for an astonishing four decades.
Automation Strategies: Next-gen automation services support operational excellence and reduce project cost
Major suppliers are expanding their automation-related service capabilities from project and engineering services through services for operations and maintenance. This is happening partly in response to overall automation market conditions, but largely in response to evolving user challenges and requirements.
Reliability: The risks of deferred compressor maintenance
At a recent conference attended by failure investigation professionals in San Antonio, Texas, a participant spoke about an explosion and fire event on a multistage horizontally opposed compressor in oxygen (O2) service. He had scant data, but he knew the machine did not have cylinder lubrication.
Editorial Comment: The future of refining lies in clean fuels
Each year, <sub>Hydrocarbon Processing</sub> devotes an issue to the topic of clean fuels—and rightly so. As the world continues to welcome more vehicles on the road, and as emerging economies invest in civil, industrial and energy projects, global fuels demand is forecast to increase through the end of the decade.
- AFPM response to U.S. EPA actions on RFS small refinery waiver backlog 8/25
- Indonesia urges EU to remove biodiesel import curbs after WTO ruling 8/25
- Canada's Alberta eyes investment in Japan's refining to boost oil exports 8/25
- U.S. EPA approves biofuel waivers for small refiners, stirring concerns over demand 8/25
- Update: Russian oil supplies to Slovakia may resume as soon as today 8/25
- Liquid Sun launches eSAF production pilot with ABB, Finnair, Fortum and Finavia 8/25
