Biotalys (Ghent, Belgium; www.biotalys.com) and 21st.BIO (Søborg, Denmark; 21st.bio), a leading Danish precision fermentation technology company, have entered into a strategic partnership to accelerate the production of Biotalys’ protein-based biocontrol solutions. This collaboration will leverage 21st.BIO’s proprietary fermentation platform to…
Econotherm (Bridgend, U.K.; www.econotherm.co.uk) has been awarded a contract exceeding €3 million for the supply of three fired heater air pre-heaters in a Rotterdam-based refinery. The project, which is being undertaken by the refiner as part of its overall greenhouse-gas…
A New Vision for Chemical Manufacturing In the fast-evolving chemical industry, leveraging AI and real-time data is the key to staying ahead. This whitepaper explains how the Smart Visual Factory approach is transforming production processes, increasing efficiency, and enabling smarter…
Technip Energies (Paris, France; www.ten.com) has been awarded two large [1] contracts by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL; Mumbai, India; www.bharatpetroleum.in) for key projects at its Bina refinery in Madhya Pradesh and Mumbai refinery in Maharashtra, India. The first contract…
Plant Watch Aster invests in expansion projects at Bukom petroleum refinery December 11, 2025 — Aster Chemicals and Energy Ltd. (Singapore; www.aster.com.sg) announced a significant investment program at its Bukom petroleum refining facility in Singapore. The project includes a $75-million…
Stirred tanks are common throughout the chemical process industries (CPI), used as batch reactors and continuous-flow reactors, as well as for physical processing of product formulations in which no chemical reaction is occurring. In all cases, fluid mixing — in…
A federal government shutdown in the U.S. from October 1 to November 12, 2025 disrupted the release of producer price index (PPI) data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), so the CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI) is behind schedule.…
Several 2025 year-end reports and data releases paint a nuanced picture of the global chemical process industries (CPI) as we head into 2026. The complex picture reflects the diversity of industry sectors comprising the CPI, and the wide range of…
UPM (Helsinki, Finland; www.upm.com), a global leader in sustainable material solutions, has achieved an important milestone in the startup of production of commercial, wood-based chemicals in its Leuna biorefinery in Germany. The refinery, which is the largest industrial-scale investment in…
Asahi Kasei (Tokyo, Japan; www.asahi-kasei.com) a diversified global manufacturer in the Healthcare, Homes, and Material sectors, announces its strategic divestiture of Daramic, a lead battery separator business, to Kingswood Capital Management, LP. The Daramic business transfer closed on December 1,…