Latest News: Business
ICA Fluor to build $1-billion petroleum-refining facility in Mexico
Fluor Corp. (Irving, Tex.; www.fluor.com) says that ICA Fluor, its industrial engineering and construction joint venture with Empresas ICA, S.A.B. de C.V. (www.ica.com.mx/ir), was authorized by Pemex Transformación Industrial (Pemex) to proceed with the engineering, procurement and construction (Phase…
Chemical equity prices off for 2015, ACC report says
The S&P Chemicals Index, a measure of equity prices for chemical companies, fell 4.0% in December and ended 2015 down 6.3% compared to the beginning of the year, according to the first Weekly Chemistry and Economic Report of 2016, from…
Technip awarded contract by Air Products for a H2 plant in Baytown
Technip (Paris, France; www.technip.com) was awarded a contract by Air Products (Lehigh Valley, Pa.; www.airproducts.com) to provide technology, engineering and procurement services for a grassroots hydrogen plant in Baytown, Texas. The 3.5 million standard cubic meters per day plant…
Axens to expand its sulfur abatement portfolio
Axens North America Inc. (Houston; www.axens.net) has entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement (APA) with Scutter Enterprises, L.L.C. (Chesterfield, Missouri) to purchase assets and technology related to sulfur removal products. Scutter was created in 2009 and specialized in solid…
PPG to increase precipitated silica production capacity at Lake Charles plant
PPG Industries, Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.; www.ppg.com) announced that it is increasing precipitated silica production capacity at its Lake Charles, La., manufacturing plant by more than 10,000 metric tons per year (m.t./yr) in response to growing demand. “PPG remains committed to…
Lanxess starts up expanded plastics-compounding line at North Carolina facility
Lanxess AG (Cologne, Germany; www.lanxess.com) has started up a second production line for high-performance plastics compounding at its facility in Gastonia, North Carolina, as planned. The new line represents an investment of about $15 million and doubles the site’s production…
Endress+Hauser announces changes to executive board
The Endress+Hauser Group (Reinach, Switzerland; www.endress.com) is making personnel changes to its Executive Board. Gerhard Jost, a member of the Executive Board, retired at the end of 2015. Manfred Jagiella has joined the Group’s top management panel. On June 1,…
Hoerbiger acquires Newson Gale
Effective January 4, 2016 Hoerbiger Group (Zug, Switzerland; www.hoerbiger.com) acquired Newson Gale (Nottingham, U.K.; www.newson-gale.com). The privately owned business, of which the majority of shares has been held by the founder Ernest Kochmann and his family while a minority…
CB&I awarded contract for polypropylene unit in Heibei, China
CB&I (The Woodlands, Tex.; www.cbi.com) announced that it has been awarded a contract by Hebei Haiwei Group for the license and basic engineering design of a polypropylene unit to be built in Jingxian, Hebei Province, China. The unit will use…
BP to sell Alabama petrochemicals complex to Indorama
BP plc (London; www.bp.com) has agreed to sell its petrochemical complex in Decatur, Ala., to Indorama Ventures Public Co., as part of a previously announced effort to refocus its global petrochemicals business for improved profitability and long-term growth. The divestment…