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Americas

ConocoPhillips finishes Illinois refinery expansion

ConocoPhillips said the expansion project at its joint-venture Wood River refinery in Roxana, Illinois, has been completed following the successful start of a new coker unit. The Wood River Refinery is jointly owned by ConocoPhillips and Cenovus Energy and is operated by ConocoPhillips.

Sasol to launch feasibility study on possible ethane cracker in Louisiana

The board of directors for Sasol has approved a feasibility study on a possible ethane cracker and ethylene derivatives complex in Lake Charles, Louisiana, the company said on Tuesday. Capacity would be between 1 million and 1.4 million tpy of ethylene.

ConocoPhillips looking to sell Alliance refinery in Louisiana - report

ConocoPhillips is seeking buyers for its Alliance refinery in Belle Chasse, La., Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing two people familiar with the company's plans. The refinery has 247,000 bpd of capacity, making it the 20th largest in the US, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Flint Hills acquires idled Nebraska biodiesel plant

Flint Hills Resources is acquiring an idled biodiesel plant in Beatrice, Neb., through a bankruptcy sale. The Beatrice plant was built in 2008 but was never in service. The plant is designed to produce 50 million gal/year of biodiesel.

Topsøe to supply equipment for new Petrobras refinery in Brazil

Topsoe has signed an agreement with Brazilian oil major Petrobras to supply critical equipment and materials for two SNOX plants. The SNOX plants will clean the off gases from three boilers in the refinery that supplies electricity and steam for internal use.

Developing nations seen making better efforts on climate change - official

Developing countries are making more effort to combat climate change and reduce carbon emissions than the developing world and that imbalance is threatening the future of the Kyoto Protocol, Venezuela's climate change representative said Tuesday.

Jacobs to design sulfuric acid coolers for El Dorado

Jacobs said that its Canada-based Chemetics unit in Pickering, Ontario, has been awarded a design and fabrication contract by El Dorado Chemical Co. for three proprietary designed sulfuric acid coolers to be installed in the company's acid plant in El Dorado, Ark. The scope involves the design and fabrication of drying, interpass and final anodically protected sulfuric acid coolers.

US says nations must adhere to CO2 pact

The US said Monday that any future emission reduction accord must equally apply to industrialized countries and the major emerging economies such as China. The US, which isn't a member of the Kyoto Protocol, said it takes climate change seriously but any accord has to have equal application to the US and major emerging economies in order to be passed.

Dow, Saudi Aramco finalize Sadara chemical JV; senior officials named

Dow Chemical and Saudi Aramco on Monday announced the official formation of Sadara Chemical Co. (Sadara), a joint venture between the two companies. First production units are expected to come on line in the second half of 2015. All units are expected to be up and running in 2016.

GTL base oil shipments from Shell Qatar venture begin reaching Americas

Shell Lubricants says its first shipment of gas-to-liquid (GTL) base oil has reached the Port of Houston. The high-quality product, the first from the Qatar-based Pearl GTL plant to reach the Americas, will be stored at a hub in Houston and routed to Shell Lubricants' GTL-enabled blending facilities throughout the US, the company said.