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Linde and Sinopec establish €145-million joint venture

The Linde Group (Munich, Germany; www.linde.com) and Sinopec, the biggest integrated refining and chemical company in China, announced that they have established a €145 million joint venture to supply vital industrial gases to local customers from key industries such as…

GTI to develop gasification demonstration plant in China

Earlier this month, Gas Technology Institute (GTI; Des Plaines, Ill.; www.gastechnology.org) and Yangquan Coal Industry Group signed an agreement to jointly develop an Industrial Demonstration Project for the R-GAS gasification process in China. The installation will be located at the…

Umicore to acquire Haldor Topsoe’s diesel and stationary catalyst businesses

Umicore N.V. (Brussels, Belgium; www.umicore.com) has reached an agreement to acquire the heavy-duty diesel and stationary catalyst businesses of Haldor Topsoe for an enterprise value of DKK 900 million (approx. EUR 120 million) plus an earn-out. Haldor Topsoe is a…

Chevron Phillips reaches mechanical completion of new Gulf Coast PE units

Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. LP (The Woodlands, Tex.; www.cpchem.com) announced that the two polyethylene (PE) units of its $6-billion petrochemical investment on the U.S. Gulf Coast successfully achieved the major milestone of mechanical completion. The PE units are now undergoing…

Celanese and Blackstone form JV for acetate tow

Celanese Corp. (Dallas, Tex.; www.celanese.com), a global technology and specialty materials company, and funds managed by Blackstone, one of the world’s leading investment firms, announced a definitive agreement to form a joint venture (JV) that will create a global acetate…

Current economic trends: April CEPCI

The preliminary value for the April CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI; the most recent available) rose compared to the previous month’s value, making it the seventh straight month of increasing values. The gain in the overall PCI was driven by…

Air Products and Linde join forces for East Coast Nitrogen venture

Air Products (Lehigh Valley, Pa.; www.airproducts.com) announced it has formed a new joint venture (JV) with Linde North America named East Coast Nitrogen (ECN) and will build a new 1,100 ton per day world-scale air separation unit (ASU) and industrial…

PPG completes €45-million manufacturing plant in Russia

PPG Industries, Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.; www.ppg.com) marked the opening of a €45-million  ($49 million) paint and coatings manufacturing facility and commercial operation in the Lipetsk region of Russia. The site will provide about 200 total positions and produce about 25…

Evonik and DSM select site in Nebraska for omega-3 production facility

Evonik (Essen, Germany; www.evonik.com) and Royal DSM (Heerlen, the Netherlands; www.dsm.com) will locate the commercial-scale production facility for their omega-3 fatty acids from natural marine algae for animal nutrition in Blair, Nebraska. DSM Nutritional Products and Evonik Nutrition & Care…

Trinseo to acquire Italian plastics company API

Trinseo (Berwyn, Pa.; www.trinseo.com) and API Applicazioni Plastiche Industriali S.p.A. (www.apiplastic.com) have signed a definitive agreement for Trinseo to acquire API. API’s key product areas include: soft-touch polymers including TPEs; thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs), EVA-based compounds, and two-component PU; as well…