Asia/Pacific
Taiwan's Formosa petchem plans to run Mailiao refinery near full capacity
SINGAPORE (Reuters) — Taiwan’s Formosa Petrochemical Corp plans to run its 540 Mbpd Mailiao refinery at near full capacity in January and February before cutting runs in March due to scheduled maintenance, its spokesman said on Thursday.
Taiwan releases man on bail in suspected North Korean oil transfer
TAIPEI (Reuters) — A court in Taiwan has released on bail a man prosecutors allege to have made false declarations in the case of a Hong Kong-flagged tanker suspected of transferring oil to North Korea in violation of international sanctions.
Oil hits new two-and-a-half year highs as higher output looms
SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) — Oil prices rose on Wednesday to new two-and-a-half year highs as robust output in the United States and Russia balanced tensions from a sixth day of unrest in OPEC member Iran.
Curacao nixes refinery operation deal with China firm
(Reuters) — The government of Curacao has scrapped a preliminary agreement with China’s Guangdong Zhenrong Energy (GZE) to operate the island's aging Isla refinery, saying the company misrepresented itself and was unable to take on such a large endeavor.
S.Korea Dec exports climb for 14th month, wrap up record 2017
SEOUL (Reuters) — Soaring global demand for memory chips and petrochemicals helped South Korea's exports surge 8.9% in December, lifting its 2017 shipments to the highest on record in value terms.
Oil trades near strongest levels since mid-2015 on Iranian unrest
SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) — Oil prices posted their strongest opening to a year since 2014 on Tuesday, with crude rising to mid-2015 highs amid large anti-government rallies in Iran and ongoing supply cuts led by OPEC and Russia.
S.Korea seizes 2nd ship suspected of providing oil to N.Korea
SEOUL (Reuters) — South Korean authorities have seized a Panama-flagged vessel suspected of transferring oil products to North Korea in violation of international sanctions, a customs official said on Sunday.
Editorial Comment: Biofuels—A viable fuel source for the future?
This issue of <i>Hydrocarbon Processing</i> focuses on the use of alternative feedstocks and biofuels. The goal of utilizing these technologies is to produce fuels and products that lower total carbon output/emissions, which is a major focus in decarbonizing economies around the world.
Global Project Data
<i>Hydrocarbon Processing’s</i> Construction Boxscore Database is tracking more than 330 active gas processing/LNG projects around the world.
Business Trends: The future of LNG—Part 1
Over the past several years, new gas processing/LNG capacity has surged in nearly every region. Growth on both the supply and demand sides has resulted in the announcement of billions of dollars of capital investment across the world. Millions of tons of new LNG import and export capacity have commenced operations, with hundreds of millions of tons still under development.

- AVTL to develop ammonia terminal in Pipavav, India 6/20
- Chevron seeks buyers for 50% stake in Singapore refinery 6/20
- Asian refiners seek more Mideast oil after spot premiums jump on Israel-Iran conflict 6/20
- Mexican authorities discover clandestine mini-refinery in crackdown of illegal hydrocarbon trade 6/20
- Italy's Eni eyes new unit to manage oil refineries 6/20
- Inatech's Techoil implemented by Flint Hills Resources for a modern, integrated future 6/20