The Catalyst Review (July 2016) - 2

COMMERCIAL NEWS
India Outlines Plans for
$30-Billion RefineryPetchem JV...

Brexit Could Add to Complexity of Chemical
Regulations...

The decision by the British electorate to leave the European Union raises a number of
questions and poses some implications from the perspective of chemical regulations
Indian Oil has provided further
and policy. "Most chemical regulatory legislation in the UK and other member states
information about a 2-trillion Indian
is derived from the European Union," says Dave Gordon, environmental partner,
rupees ($29.7 billion) refinery and
chemicals industry group at law firm Squire Patton Boggs (London). The European
petrochemical joint-venture project
planned among the country's top refiners Union has implemented a number of regulations related to chemicals, including the
Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH); the
in the state of Maharashtra on the west
Classification, Labelling, and Packaging (CLP) Regulation; and the Biocidal Products
coast of the country. Indian Oil is joined
by Bharat Petroleum Corp. and Hindustan Regulation. These regulations are directly applicable, without the need for national
implementation legislation, with national law only having to deal with enforcement
Petroleum Corp. in the two-phased
and penalties, according to Gordon. Once the United Kingdom is no longer a part of
project, assisted by Engineers India Ltd.
the European Union, a large number of directly applicable EU laws - such as REACH According to Sanjiv Singh, director/
would cease to have effect in the United Kingdom, and it would be necessary to replace
refineries at Indian Oil, the 60-million
metric tons per year (MMt/y) refinery and or duplicate these laws in UK domestic law, Gordon says. "Given the huge list of laws
petrochemical complex will be built in two that would need to be reviewed, it is highly unlikely that new legal regimes would be
finalized prior to the exit taking effect," Gordon says. "It seems more likely that these
phases. The first phase requiring Rs1.2laws would be gradually reviewed and that some sort of interim legislation would
1.5 trillion, will include a refinery with
throughput of 40 MMt/y, together with an need to be put in place." The deadline for the third and final round of REACH is 31
aromatics complex, a naphtha cracker, and May 2018, by which time it seems unlikely that Brexit would have taken place. REACH
a polymers complex. This phase is targeted would thus still apply to the United Kingdom, and British chemical companies would
still have to comply with the deadline and the registration requirements. And in any
to be onstream within 5-6 years from the
case British companies exporting chemicals to the European Union must comply with
date of the land acquisition. The refinery
will be split into three separate units, each REACH and the other EU chemical legislation. On the other hand, when a substance is
imported into the European Union from the United Kingdom, post-Brexit, the importing
with a 20-MMt/y throughput. Crude oil is
expected to be sourced from the Mideast, entity would be treated as an importer under REACH. "That could trigger registration
requirements for EU entities that had previously been downstream users, and that
Africa, and South America. Source: IHS
would not have previously been expecting to register [chemicals themselves]," says
Chemical Week, 7/4/2016.
Gordon. In addition, should the British decided to continue to apply REACH post-Brexit,
it is not clear whether British companies would have access to the European Chemicals
Siluria Closes $45-Million Agency (ECHA; Helsinki) or its REACH-related databases, according to Gordon. Non-EU
countries exporting chemicals into the United Kingdom after Brexit would no longer
Funding Round...
have to comply with REACH, but would have to comply with whatever UK domestic
Gas-to-chemicals firm Siluria Technologies
legislation that was implemented to replace REACH. That would then add complexity to
Inc. (San Francisco, CA) says it has closed
managing exports to Europe, Gordon says. Source: IHS Chemical Week, 7/11/2016.
a series-E funding round, raising $45
million with investments from both
Mitsubishi Chemical and Mitsui Zosen Team Up on
new and existing investors. The round
Membranes for Ethanol Production...
was led by Alujain Corp. (Riyadh, Saudi
Arabia) subsidiary National Petrochemical Japanese companies Mitsui Zosen Machinery & Service Inc and Mitsubishi Chemical
Industrial Co., a major producer of
Corp have formed a partnership to produce and sell zeolite membranes. Under the
propylene and polypropylene (PP) in
agreement Mitsubishi will purchase Mitsui Zosen's entire output of zeolite membranes
Saudi Arabia. Other investors include
and hold the sole sales rights in the US and other global markets. The companies will
Air Liquide SA and Maire Tecnimont
also offer ethanol producers a dehydration system that combines their technologies
SpA. Siluria has developed a process for
- Mitsui Zosen's A-type zeolite membranes and Mitsubishi's CHA-type zeolite
producing ethylene directly from methane membranes. The duo says the new system will allow ethanol makers to reduce energy
and further processes for converting
costs and to increase production by up to 15% compared to the process currently
that ethylene into gasoline, diesel, and
used in many ethanol plants. The firms see strong market fundamentals for the tiejet fuel. The company's technologies are
up as they say bioethanol is now widely used as fuel, especially in the US and Brazil.
generating interest because of market
They note that the US currently has more than 210 bioethanol plants in operation
and price volatility in the energy and
and many will need zeolite bed refurbishment in the next several years. In addition,
petrochemical industries, says Siluria
regulators' push towards more energy efficient production creates the need for energy
cofounder and interim CEO Erik Scher.
efficient technologies such as the partners' new system. Source: SeeNews Renewables,
Source: IHS Chemical Week, 7/13/2016.
7/14/2016.
2

The Catalyst Review

July 2016

The Catalyst Review (July 2016)

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