Crude oil
US to overtake Saudi Arabia as top oil producer, says IEA
A shale oil boom means US production will pass that of Saudi Arabia by 2020, the IEA says, in a radical shift that could greatly transform energy supplies and geopolitics. The assessment is in stark contrast with last year, when the agency envisioned Russia and Saudi Arabia vying for the top position.
TransCanada expects Keystone XL approval after Obama re-election
Supporters of the project say it will create jobs, lower gasoline prices and spur US energy independence by greatly increasing the amount of available crude supply. However, the project has drawn the ire of the Sierra Club and other environmental groups, which are worried about safety.
US energy groups target Keystone approval, shale as Obama wins second term
Obama won the US election with 332 electoral votes, far exceeding the 270 required to win. Republican challenger Mitt Romney finished with 206. “Right off the bat, the president can approve the Keystone Pipeline and put thousands of Americans to work immediately," said the API's chief executive.
India's Gulf Oil to buy specialty chemicals company Houghton International
The acquisition will allow Gulf Oil, part of the diversified Hinduja Group, to expand its lubricants and chemicals business. Indian companies have been increasingly looking overseas for acquisitions because red tape, corruption and land acquisition issues often hurt plans to expand at home.
Fuel outages begin to ease in US Northeast
Eric DeGesero, executive vice president of the Fuel Merchants Association of New Jersey, said a key bottleneck remains the closure of some major fuel terminals - a problem that means that the remaining terminals that are open face greater demand than normal.
JX Nippon to permanently end crude processing at Japan's Muroran refinery
JX said it will keep oil tanks in the site and transport refined products from elsewhere to Muroran to ensure adequate supply. JX will also maintain some secondary units to produce petrochemical products - mainly toluene and xylene - to be used as feedstock for a paraxylene joint venture in South Korea.
Consider new technologies to raise diesel yield in bottom-of-barrel products
The debate continues over adding a new delayed coker vs. a residue hydrocracker upstream of an existing delayed coker.
Improve integration opportunities for aromatics units—Part 1
An aromatics complex is a combination of processing units that can be used to convert petroleum naphtha and pyrolysis gasoline (pygas) into the basic petrochemical intermediates: benzene, toluene and ..
HP Viewpoint: Age of turbulence: Charting the refining course toward a profitable future
High-performing enterprises draw on external expertise during all project phases, from scouting and front-end engineering and development through to operations.
HP Brief: Brief
Marathon Petroleum Corp. plans to purchase BP’s Texas City refinery and related assets Marathon Petroleum Corp. (MPC) has signed a definitive agreement to purchase BP’s 451,000-bpcd Texas Ci..

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