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Asia/Pacific

Sinopec, SK to build new formaldehyde, butanediol plants in Southwest China

The BDO plant will have a capacity of 200,000 tpy, according to the report. The project will also include plants for acetylene and formaldehyde. Located in the Changshou Economic-Technological Development Area, the project is expected to be completed by the end of 2015.

Chevron invests in Australian shale gas assets

The deal for up to 60% of Beach's interests in two blocks in central Australia's Cooper Basin cements Chevron's status as one of the biggest investors in natural gas down under. It is already leading development of the Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG projects in Western Australia state.

China mandates environmental insurance program for chemical factories

China's Ministry of Environmental Protection said its pilot insurance plan is now mandatory for mining and smelting producers, lead-acid battery manufacturers, leather goods producers and chemical factories. Petrochemical companies are "encouraged to be insured," the ministry said in a statement.

Air Products to build air separation units for China coal gasification facility

At Lu'An's Changzhi City facility, the coal-to-liquids project will produce mainly diesel fuel and derivatives. Air Products' ASU trains will include design enhancements to minimize operating costs through energy efficiency. It is the second-largest ASU onsite order ever awarded to the company for a single project.

ONGC mulls Mangalore LNG terminal in India with Bharat Petroleum, Mitsui

The company didn't say how much the proposed LNG terminal would cost, but said a typical terminal which can handle 5 million tpy of LNG usually takes around $1 billion to build. ONGC believes getting into the LNG terminal business is a right fit since the company is involved in natural gas production.

Australian coal-seam gas ban puts projects at risk

Coal-seam-gas drilling will be banned within 2 kilometers of residential areas in Australia's most populous state, the conservative Liberal government said, adding that bans would also apply to land containing vineyards and horse studs. The moves may constrain the activities of energy companies.

Sinopec wins environmental approvals in China to expand Hainan refinery

Sinopec will expand the capacity of its Hainan refinery to 13 million metric tpy of crude oil, or about 261,000 bpd from the current 8 million tons, or 160,000 bpd, the ministry said in a statement Sunday on its website. The company will also build a new ethylene unit with an annual capacity of 1 million tons.

Foster Wheeler signs technology pact with Shell for global downstream work

Under this agreement, Shell may request Foster Wheeler to provide support in basic engineering packages for the following technologies: distillation, hydrocracking, hydrotreating, thermal conversion, ethylene oxide, pyrolysis gas, fluid catalytic cracking and CANSOLV sulfur dioxide scrubbing.

IEA lowers forecast for global oil demand growth, warns of China slowdown

In its closely-watched monthly report on the oil market, the watchdog agency cut its oil demand growth forecasts for the coming year by a marginal 90,000 bpd, but warned that recent signs of recovery in the global oil demand could be the result of one-off factors, rather than sustained improvement.

Japan's five biggest refiners to cut capacity by 20%

Domestic demand for such fuels as gasoline and diesel is now estimated at around 3.4 million bpd. The overall refining capacity in Japan is expected to drop from the pre-regulation 4.8 million bbl to 3.7 million bbl, tightening the supply-demand balance and improving earnings at oil companies.