Crude oil
HP Industry Metrics
Mid-January saw the continued decline of monthly average Brent crude oil prices, which fell $17/bbl from November to a monthly average of $62/bbl. The continual price decrease reflects US tight oil pr..
Chemicals group Huntsman sees better business from lower oil prices
"In an environment where oil prices are sustainably low, Huntsman will emphatically be a beneficiary over the long term," the CEO said. "Many of our raw materials are derived from the oil refining process."
Maximize LPG recovery from fuel gas using a dividing wall column
Refiners are challenged to recover LPG from mixed fuel gas streams due to the difficulty of separating the lighter components from bulk gas. To maintain profitability, it is essential to direct all of the crude oil components to the optimum disposition. This practice is becoming more significant due to increasing LPG demand in some countries and the supply of lighter crudes in countries such as the US.
Shale gas drives new opportunities for US downstream
This shift to lighter feeds for the SC will reduce the future availability of other petrochemical feedstocks—in particular, propylene.
HP Editorial Comment: Alternative energy?
Alternative energy is a point-of-reference term. Natural gas is an alternative energy resource for transportation fuels. As more natural gas resources are developed, natural gas is displacing coal as ..
HP Industry Perspectives: Keystone XL: It is time to move forward, Mr. President
In a media call, the American Petroleum Institute (API) president and CEO Jack Gerard emphasized that it is time for the Keystone XL pipeline to move forward, and he requested urgent action by Preside..
HP Industry Metrics
Recent declines in oil pricing and the associated volatility in future pricing has created a difficult forecasting environment. Other factors are causing deviations, especially with regard to the resp..
US petroleum demand surges to seven-year high
According to API’s November monthly statistics report, total US petroleum deliveries increased 1.9% from November 2013 to average 19.9 MMbpd, the highest level for the month in seven years.
Replan: Modernizing Brazil’s largest crude oil refinery
The project included installing two hydrodesulfurization (HDS) units for the cracked naphtha produced by two catalytic cracking units, a coker naphtha hydrotreating (HDT) unit, and a catalytic reforming unit.
HP Viewpoint: US shale revolution set to spill over into downstream
The US shale boom is rapidly changing from an upstream story to a broader energy evolution with increased margins migrating to midstream and, more particularly, to downstream. In downstream oil, disco..

- hte conducts research for JGC to advance decarbonization by identifying suitable catalysts for ammonia cracking 6/26
- TES and CPC Finland to develop 500-MW e-NG project in Finland 6/26
- Brazil's Petrobras to increase biofuels mix in domestic fuels 6/26
- Vietnam says its refineries not yet affected by Middle East tensions 6/26
- U.S. signals possible easing of ethane export rules to China 6/26
- Global energy CO2 emissions reached record high last year 6/26