The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released an animation detailing the events leading up to the October 26, 2019, hydrogen sulfide release at the Aghorn Operating waterflood station in Odessa, Texas.

As the United States faces this year's hurricane season, it is critical that the chemical industry understands and prepares for the potential safety hazards posed by extreme weather events.

Effective pipeline integrity management has been problematic for a large number of pipelines that were not designed for in-line inspection. Quest Integrity understands the complexities involved with this challenging segment and offers a...

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released a video demonstrating the agency's positive safety impact in 2016. The video was posted just days after President Trump proposed his "America First" budget plan, which calls for the elimination of...

Reuters Events have partnered with Wood to release the Downstream Industry Outlook: 2022 & Beyond report looking at key challenges & opportunities impacting future industry growth including more exclusive insight.

Bankrupt Texas petrochemical producer TPC Group on Thursday announced a $30 million settlement with junior creditors, including people with injury and property damage claims related to a 2019 fire explosion and fire at a Port Neches, Texas, refinery.

CF Industries is investing $200 million to build a CO2 dehydration and compression unit at its Donaldsonville, Louisiana, facility to enable captured CO2 to be transported and stored.

Indian Oil Corp plans maintenance at its 300,000 bpd Panipat refinery in northern India, which includes a shutdown of a naphtha hydrocracker for about 80 days and half of its crude processing for about a month, sources said.

BASF, SABIC and Linde are building the world’s first demonstration plant for large-scale electrically heated steam cracker furnaces, which could potentially reduce CO2 emissions by at least 90% compared to technologies commonly used today.

Reliance Industries Ltd, operator of the world's biggest refining complex, will invest 750 billion rupees ($9.38 billion) over 5 years to expand its oil to chemical business, its chairman Mukesh D Ambani said.

Our proprietary furnace tube inspection system, FTIS is an ultrasonic inspection technology capable of rapid, automated fired heater coil inspection in refinery fired heaters. The data captured by our furnace tube inspection system is...

LyondellBasell Industries is considering a "very large investment" at the site of its Houston refinery after it permanently stops refining crude oil by the end of 2023, Chief Executive Peter Vanacker said in a conference call on Friday.

Chevron Phillips used the safety flare system at its Cedar Bayou chemical plant in Baytown, Texas, following a power outage, a company spokesperson said.

Pinnacle has released its Economics of Reliability report for the refining industry, highlighting the importance of reliability as refiners face pressure to expand capacity to meet increased demand for petroleum products

API and AFPM respond to the Biden Administration's unfounded claims that U.S. refiners aren’t doing their part to bring fuel to the market and lower energy costs for consumers.

As energy costs and geopolitical instability around the world continue to rise, API is calling on policymakers to confront the global mismatch between energy demand and available supply by supporting greater U.S. production and infrastructure.

LOTIS utilizes laser profilometry to conduct internal steam reformer tube inspections. The data captured by LOTIS is exceptionally powerful when combined with our LifeQuest™ remaining life assessment capabilities, providing an integrated...

Chevron Phillips Chemical recently announced plans to expand its polyalphaolefins (PAO) business with the construction of a new unit in Beringen, Belgium. Upon completion, PAO production capacity at the facility will be doubled.

Mitsui & Co., Ltd. one of the leading ammonia marketers in the world, and CF Industries Holdings, Inc., the world’s largest producer of ammonia, plan to jointly develop a greenfield ammonia production facility in the United States.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) recently announced it will be acquiring a 25% stake in Borealis AG, one of Europe’s leading petrochemical companies.

Chemical maker LyondellBasell Industries will permanently close its Houston crude oil refinery by the end of 2023, the company said on Thursday.

Neste Corporation has completed the previously announced agreement to sell its existing base oils business to Chevron Global Energy Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Chevron Corporation.

InVista is a lightweight, hand-held ultrasonic in-line inspection tool (intelligent pig) capable of detecting pipeline wall loss and corrosion in unpiggable or difficult-to-inspect pipelines. The pipeline geometry inspection data captured by the...

PetroChina has started a 33.9 billion yuan ($5.33 billion) program to expand the petrochemical capacity at a subsidiary plant in northeast China and cut refined fuel production, according to a company post and state media report.

South Korean authorities have ordered a production halt at one of petrochemical company Yeochun NCC's (YNCC) three naphtha crackers after a blast killed four people and injured four.

Exxon said it is further streamlining its business structure by combining chemical and downstream companies and centralizing technology and engineering, and other support services, to better support customers, enhance performance, and grow value.

ExxonMobil and SABIC recently announced the successful startup of Gulf Coast Growth Ventures world-scale manufacturing facility in San Patricio County, Texas.

Mexican state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos on Thursday signed a long-term crude supply contract with Royal Dutch Shell Plc as part of its acquisition of the Deer Park refinery in Texas.

AET is a powerful, non-intrusive inspection technique to verify the structural integrity of pressure vessels, spheres, high-temperature reactors and piping, coke drums, above-ground storage tanks, cryogenic storage tanks, and more.

Becht is pleased to introduce Becht Industrial Group to its trusted clients. Becht Industrial Group (BIG) was formed in 2021 as a mechanical contractor specializing in turnarounds, major maintenance activities, and other schedule-driven projects.

Exxon Mobil Corp said on Monday its Baytown, Texas, refinery continued to operate at reduced rates following a fire on Dec. 23, and the unit involved remained shut down.

After a year and a half of Covid-related demand destruction, an onslaught of hurricanes, and a deadly freeze on the Gulf Coast, the U.S. refining market seems to be turning the corner.

Chevron Phillips Chemical has announced plans to build a new propylene unit at the company’s Cedar Bayou facility in Baytown, Texas. Site construction will commence in January 2022 and at its peak support 350-plus new construction jobs.

Vopak Moda Houston, LLC recently announced that its marine terminal in the Port of Houston is fully operational.

Auto-refrigeration can impose low temperatures onto process vessels and piping causing them to be at risk of brittle fracture, the sudden break-before leak phenomena that can result in catastrophic rupture of the equipment.

ExxonMobil Chemical Company has acquired California-based Materia, Inc., a technology company that has pioneered the development of a Nobel prize-winning technology for manufacturing a new class of materials.

INEOS FPS has announced plans to deploy innovative Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven optimization technology at its Kinneil Terminal in Grangemouth that will deliver further carbon emissions reductions from its operations.

Royal Dutch Shell has halved its crude processing capacity at its Singapore hub and reduced fuel exports, executives said on Tuesday, as the major transits from fossil fuels to cut emissions and meet global low-carbon energy needs.

Borealis and ADNOC have signed a strategic partnership that confirms an USD 6.2 billion investment agreement to build the fourth Borouge facility – Borouge 4 – at the polyolefin manufacturing complex in Ruwais, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

ExxonMobil has made a final investment decision to proceed with a multi-billion dollar chemical complex in the Dayawan Petrochemical Industrial Park in Huizhou, Guangdong Province in China.

FFS assessment techniques are applicable to a wide range of damage types: LTA's, cracks, creep damage, dents, and more. These are very powerful analytical tools that often allow operators to not only keep the plant running, but to keep it running...

ExxonMobil plans to expand carbon capture and storage (CCS) at its LaBarge, Wyoming facility by up to 1 million metric tons of CO2.

Japan's Mitsubishi Corp says it will invest 2 trillion yen ($17.54 billion) by 2030 in alternative energies such as renewables and hydrogen to drive its decarbonization efforts and cut emissions.

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards and Air Products CEO Seifi Ghasemi recently announced a $4.5 billion clean energy complex to be built in Louisiana that will make the state a leader in the U.S. clean energy transition.

LyondellBasell plans to make upgrades to equipment and perform compliance measures at six of its U.S. chemical sites in order to reduce air pollution.

Essar Oil recently announced plans to build two blue hydrogen production hubs at its Stanlow Manufacturing Complex in Ellesmere Port for around $1 Billion.

It’s a scary thought to think that with all the new advancements in technology, some facilities still rely on traditional inspection contractors that perform out of date procedures. You rely on technology to keep your home and identity safe, so...

A chemical plant unit will lead the restart of Royal Dutch Shell's (RDSa.L) Norco, Louisiana, refinery and chemical plant complex in mid-October following repairs from Hurricane Ida, said sources familiar with plant operations.

weavix™ launches industry’s first Internet of Workers (IoW) platform, focusing on the needs of frontline workers who have traditionally been neglected by technological innovation.

An explosion at around 11:00 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 27th at Westlake Chemical's Lake Charles Petrochemical Complex left six people injured.

Sasol recently announced its updated strategy that commits it to be at net zero emissions by 2050. This is in line with Sasol’s commitment to accelerate its transition to a low carbon world in support of the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) recently stated that its petrochemical joint venture with ExxonMobil near Corpus Christi, Texas, has begun commissioning activities ahead of its expected fourth-quarter start-up.

How long does it take for you to receive reports after an inspection has been completed? A week? A month? Does the data come from multiple sources with no way of knowing if it has been manipulated? Traditional inspection contractors do not have...

LyondellBasell has announced it is weighing strategic options for its Gulf Coast-based Refining Segment, including a potential sale.

Following Hurricane Ida, analysts said it could take 2-3 weeks to restart producing platforms and fully resume output at Louisiana refineries. Restoring power, critical to refineries, also could take weeks, utilities officials said.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released an animation detailing the events leading up to the October 26, 2019, hydrogen sulfide release at the Aghorn Operating waterflood station in Odessa, Texas. The release fatally injured...

BASF and SINOPEC plan to expand production of propionic acid, propionic aldehyde, ethyleneamines, ethanolamines and purified ethylene oxide, and build a new tert-butyl acrylate plant at their Nanjing petrochemical complex in China.

A contractor sued LyondellBasell Industries in May, alleging lax safety measures led to a workplace accident at the same plant that leaked chemicals this week, killing two contractors and injuring 30 workers.

Integrating a new digital technology that combines data-driven insights and data storage with innovative mobility can provide a new level of connected intelligence. Digitalization can improve workflow, increase worker productivity and allow better...

ExxonMobil and SABIC have reached mechanical completion of a monoethylene glycol unit and two polyethylene units at their Gulf Coast Growth Ventures project near Corpus Christi, Texas.

Two people were killed and several others injured following a leak of acetic acid at a LyondellBasell chemical plant in La Porte, Texas, on Tuesday night, the company said.

Methanex Corporation will resume construction on its third methanol plant in Geismar, Louisiana after deferring the project more than a year ago due to the uncertain global economy amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Oil slumped $5 a barrel on Monday, closing out its worst day since March, after an OPEC+ agreement to boost output stoked fears of a surplus just as rising COVID-19 infections once again threaten demand.

Linde recently started up its newest liquid hydrogen plant in La Porte, Texas, reinforcing the company's robust supply network of plants in the United States.

Equity Engineering Practices® (EEPs) are a collection of design and maintenance focused corporate standards that include >850 engineering standards, and >300 piping classes. Enhance your mechanical integrity programs, improve equipment...

Iraq has selected China's state-run CNCEC to build a new 300,000 bpd oil refinery and petrochemical plant at the port of Fao on the Gulf.

To meet increasing demand for refining catalysts, Haldor Topsoe recently announced it will build a 15,000 ton per year hydroprocessing catalyst plant at the company’s existing Bayport production site in Pasadena, Texas.

INEOS and Petroineos have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Acorn CCS Project to work together to develop Scotland’s first carbon capture and storage system.

U.S. fossil fuel consumption in 2020 fell by 9% to its lowest levels in nearly 30 years.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company recently announced that Reliance Industries Ltd. has signed an agreement to join a new world-scale chlor-alkali, ethylene dichloride, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) production facility at TA’ZIZ in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi.

Training options to meet your needs. E²G contracts with API to deliver training programs for FFS, Risk–Based Inspection, Damage Mechanisms, and Pressure Relieving Systems. ETI and Customized Training offers specialized courses based on industry...

Although Shell has divested or idled its other crude refineries in the States, the company plans to keep its Norco, Louisiana Refinery due to its importance in the supply chain for Shell's nearby chemical plants.

ExxonMobil Chemical Company has signed an agreement with Celanese for the sale of its global Santoprene business for $1.15 billion, subject to working capital and other adjustments.

Russia's second-largest oil producer Lukoil plans to invest $3 billion in production of petrochemicals within the next 6 years.

Dow recently announced plans to build an integrated MDI distillation and prepolymers facility at its world-scale manufacturing site in Freeport, Texas.

CP Chem recently broke ground on a new world-scale 1-hexene unit in Old Ocean, Texas. Construction on the project will start in Q3 of 2021 and is expected to involve 600 construction jobs and more than 50 full-time positions once operational.

What do you need: CONSULTING - Subject matter experts, consultants, or team of highly skilled engineers to help solve my problem. SOFTWARE - My team requires software, products, or resources that will solve the problem. TRAINING - I require...

An explosion on an oxygen pipeline in a petrochemical plant in Assaluyeh on Iran's Gulf coast killed one worker, Iranian state media reported on Wednesday, adding that the ensuing fire had been extinguished.

The US Chemical Safety Board has released its final investigation report into the October 26, 2019 hydrogen sulfide (H2S) release that fatally injured two people at the Aghorn Operating, Inc. waterflood station in Odessa, Texas.

Chevron Corp’s first-quarter profit fell 29% from the same period a year ago as gains from oil and gas prices were undercut by weaker refining margins, production losses and the impact of an asset sale that benefited results last year.

Formosa Petrochemical Corp restarted its No. 1 naphtha cracker at the company's Mailiao Refinery after a technical problem shut the unit last week.

Exxon Mobil on Monday floated a proposal for a public-private carbon storage project that would collect planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions from U.S. petrochemical plants and bury them in deep under the Gulf of Mexico.

In today's chemical and refining industries, sustained long term reliability of facilities is critical to profitability and competitiveness. In fact, history shows that differences in operating expenses between best-in-class refineries, and poor...

Oxy Low Carbon Ventures has partnered with bio-engineering startup Cemvita Factory to construct and operate a pilot plant that will use human-made carbon dioxide, instead of hydrocarbon-sourced feedstocks, to produce bio-ethylene

Inter Pipeline announced it will receive CAD $408 million (USD $323 million) under the Alberta Petrochemicals Incentive Program in support of the continued development of its Heartland Petrochemical Complex.

RusGazDobycha, a business partner of Russian gas giant Gazprom, plans to start building a chemical plant later this month as part of a massive gas processing cluster on the shores of the Baltic Sea.

BASF, SABIC and Linde have signed a joint agreement to develop and demonstrate solutions for electrically heated steam cracker furnaces. The partners have already jointly worked on concepts to use renewable electricity instead of the fossil fuel gas.

Based on today’s policy settings, global oil demand is set to rise every year through 2026, IEA report says, but stronger policies and behavior changes could bring a peak in demand soon.

Are you truly prepared for your next Turnaround? Effective work processes are required to successfully plan, manage, review and supervise plant turnarounds. Inspection planning and work scope selection are critical aspects of any turnaround...

San Jacinto College reveals its new LyondellBasell Glass Distillation Lab, a scaled model distillation plant designed to be a hands-on training tool for the next generation of operators.

Methanex Corporation has announced that it expects its Titan methanol facility in Trinidad (875,000 annual operating capacity) will remain idled indefinitely.

Data collected and tabulated by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) show that global chemicals production rose 1.9% in November, up from 1.7% in October and extending the recovery that began in June.

INEOS, one of the world’s largest manufacturing companies, has completed the purchase of the global Aromatics and Acetyls businesses from BP for a consideration of $5 billion.

Howard Energy Partners (HEP) recently announced that it has executed an agreement with a subsidiary of MPLX LP to purchase the Javelina Facility (Javelina) located in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Inspectioneering and API have teamed up to create the Mechanical Integrity Professional Initiative. The goal of this project is to raise the benchmark on industry knowledge and develop the next generation of SMEs. We believe that equipping MI...

Three naphtha crackers in South Korea, one of Asia’s largest petrochemical centers, are to resume operations in December and January after months of maintenance and outages, company officials said on Tuesday.

A fire at Norway’s Tjeldbergodden industrial facility on Wednesday triggered an evacuation of staff and the shutdown of Europe’s largest methanol plant and a gas processing terminal.

LyondellBasell and Sasol recently announced the closing of their Louisiana-based Integrated Polyethylene Joint Venture (JV) transaction following required regulatory and shareholder approvals.

China is on track to eclipse the U.S. as the world's top refining power, a position it has held since the mid-19th century, following a series of major refinery closures in the states.

Sasol Ltd said on Tuesday it had agreed to sell its 50% interest in a high-density polyethylene (HDPE) manufacturing plant in Texas, to INEOS Gemini HDPE Holding Co for $404 million.

Becht’s industry-leading Corrosion and Metallurgical experts are here to help with significant owner-operator experience covering the refining, petrochemical and chemical industries. This expertise is leveraged to help our clients become more...

A U.S. subsidiary of state-owned Thai oil and gas company PTT PCL said it is working to “move forward” a proposed petrochemical plant in Ohio that will turn ethane into plastics and provide a regional economic boost.

On November 27, a major loss of containment occurred at TPC Group's Port Neches, Texas facility. The CSB has released factual update containing background information and a preliminary incident timeline.

LyondellBasell to acquire 50% of Sasol’s 1.5 MM ton ethane cracker, 0.9 MM ton low and linear-low density polyethylene plants, and associated infrastructure in Louisiana for a total consideration of $2 Billion.

Yokogawa recently revealed the results of a global end-user survey on the outlook for industrial autonomy, which shows that 64% of respondents from companies in process industries are anticipating fully autonomous operations by 2030.

Taiwan’s Formosa Petrochemical Corp has shut a residue desulphuriser (RDS) unit at its 540,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) Mailiao refinery after it was hit by a fire early on Wednesday, three sources close to the matter said.

TEAM’s integrated touch point corrosion program manages all aspects of the integrity process from screening for damage to permanent repair assuring integrity – every time. TEAM’s unique turn-key approach to touch point corrosion integrity...

Inspectioneering, LLC has launched a specialized recruiting and staffing firm offering workforce solutions to help companies find and secure the top Mechanical Integrity and Reliability talent needed to successfully operate their business.

API is currently seeking presentations abstracts for the 2021 Inspection and Mechanical Integrity Summit, scheduled for June 7-10, 2021 in San Antonio, TX. The deadline to submit your abstract for consideration is September 15, 2020.

BP has agreed to sell its global petrochemicals business (aromatics and acetyls) to INEOS for a total consideration of $5 billion, subject to customary adjustments.

As the United States faces this year's hurricane season, it is critical that the chemical industry understands and prepares for the potential safety hazards posed by extreme weather events.

Wall Street is betting on a strong recovery from the coronavirus pandemic by pouring money into shares of U.S. oil refiners, even though demand for gasoline, jet fuel and diesel remains well below seasonal lows.

TEAM provides full inline, onsite and, shop valve repair services and maintenance programs for virtually all valve types, brands, sizes, materials, pressures, and operating conditions, including actuators and operators. Our valve repair solution is...

The International Pressure Equipment Integrity Association (IPEIA) is looking for presenters for its 25th Annual Conference taking place March 1 - 5, 2021 in Banff, Alberta. The deadline for abstract submission is September 12th, 2020.

China is reviving a $20 billion petrochemical project in eastern Shandong province as part of efforts to dial up infrastructure spending to support an economy struggling with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic

TPC Group is accused of three willful violations and faces $514,692 in fines from OSHA after the agency concluded its investigation into the November 27, 2019 plant explosion in Port Neches, Texas.

China’s Sinopec Corp is expected to start commercial operations at its oil refining and petrochemical complex in Zhanjiang at the end of July, a company spokesperson said on Thursday.

A chemical gas leak at the plant in southern India on Thursday killed at least 9 people, and emergency services rushed more than 300 to hospital and evacuated hundreds more from nearby areas.

TEAM believes that quality inspections are the key to reliability. Our inspection crews are made up of specialty trained, experienced technicians who adhere to the highest quality standards. Our API 653 inspectors deliver thorough, reliable...

Thai oil refiner and petrochemical producer IRPC Pcl has delayed a USD $1 billion petrochemical investment and cut run rates by 20% as demand for petroleum and petrochemical products falls amid the coronavirus outbreak

Dr. Lemos worked for the NTSB and the FAA, where she served in accident investigation and policy development roles. As an academic, she studied decision-making in complex environments and taught on accident investigation and safety management.

PBF Energy Inc. has completed, and received the $530 million consideration for, the sale of five steam methane reformer (SMR) hydrogen production plants to Air Products.

The global oil refining industry is facing a reckoning from falling fuel demand that is the deepest and fastest ever.

LyondellBasell has informed the engineering and construction contractors it will slow construction of its world-scale propylene oxide (PO) and tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) plant in Channelview, TX.

Statistical techniques are meant to complement the work of SMEs and can provide deeper insights into the inspection data collected as part of a reliability program. Pinnacle has combined traditional methods, expertise, and Machine Learning to...

Taiwan’s Formosa Petrochemical Corp plans to operate its refinery at a reduced rate after completing maintenance at some units later this month amid weak margins, its company spokesman said on Monday.

AFPM has cancelled its Annual Meeting slated to take place March 22-24 in Austin, Texas, as well as the International Petrochemical Conference scheduled for March 29-31 in New Orleans, due to concerns about the spread of COVID-19.

INEOS is enacting a series of ‘social distancing’ measures in order to protect its employees who play a vital role in the production of essential products

LyondellBasell, one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world, today announced it has signed definitive agreements to expand in China through a 50:50 joint venture with the Liaoning Bora Enterprise Group (Bora).

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, a global chemical company, has commenced the commercial operations of its olefins gas cracker at Indorama Ventures Olefins plant in Westlake, Louisiana, the USA on 31st January 2020.

Pinnacle's data-driven reliability framework ensures the right data is fueling the right intelligence, helping you make confident, strategic decisions.

The CSB has approved a final rule on accidental release reporting that requires prompt reports from owners-operators of facilities that accidentally release a regulated substance resulting in a death, serious injury or substantial property damage.

South African petrochemicals group Sasol said on Friday it expects lower first-half headline earnings per share (HEPS) and also cut earnings outlook from its Lake Charles Chemicals Project following a fire mishap at one of its unit this month.

U.S. refineries and petrochemical plants are cutting back on insurance because several years of severe accidents have driven up the cost of coverage, industry and insurance sources said.

Fourteen U.S. states and Washington D.C. sued the Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday to fight what they called the Trump administration’s effort to gut rules meant to improve safety at chemical plants and reduce the threat of accidents.

A fire broke out on Tuesday at the Zhuhai Changlian Petrochemical plant in southern China. No casualties were reported and the cause of the fire is still being investigated.

Download Pinnacle's Economics of Reliability Report - Refining to see how reliability is affecting profitability.

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. recently announced that its isobutane dehydrogenation (“iBDH”) plant in the Mont Belvieu, Texas area recently began service, with volumes expected to continue ramping up during the next two weeks.

On Monday at approximately 1:15 p.m. local time, an explosion and fire rocked a low-density polyethylene (LDPE) unit at Sasol's Lake Charles Chemical Project.

Becht Engineering's Dimensional Technology Services division announces that it has agreed to acquire Texas Gulf Coast Engineers (TGCE). For more than 20 years, TGCE has been a leader in advanced dimensional control services.

Sinochem Group is expected to start up a new crude processing unit and a petrochemical complex in southeastern China around mid-2020, marking the state firm’s first foray into making petrochemicals.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released its annual list of the 10 most frequently cited safety and health violations. In 2019 Fall Protection, Hazard Communication, and Scaffolding once again..

Traditional pressure vessel inspections often require taking assets out of service. However, MISTRAS’ Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) programs provide data as good or better than internal inspections, while assets remain in service. NII is...

Sasol recently announced that the Ethane Cracker at the company's Lake Charles Chemicals Project (LCCP) is increasing production rates following the successful replacement of the acetylene reactor catalyst.

A March fire at a petrochemical terminal that spread a blanket of black smoke across Houston began when part of a manifold, which includes a pump and motor, on one storage tank broke, according to a report by local and federal agencies.

German chemical giant BASF has begun construction of its $10-billion integrated petrochemicals project in China's southern province of Guangdong, the company said in a statement on Saturday.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) said on Wednesday a fuel leak, possibly due to open valves and a running pump, set off the massive blaze at the ITC petrochemical storage facility along the Houston Ship Channel in March.

Flames engulfed two ethanol holding tanks on Tuesday at a NuStar Energy petrochemical storage facility near San Francisco, prompting health authorities to urge residents of two adjacent towns to remain indoors for much of the day.

Traditional, paper-based inspection processes can prevent plants from being as effective as they can be. By digitalizing your mechanical integrity process and data with MISTRAS Digital®, plants have realized up to 75% gains in IDMS data entry and...

China’s privately owned Bora Enterprise Group has started construction of a $2.5 billion petrochemicals plant in northeast China as it looks to finalize a planned joint venture with LyondellBasell Industries

LyondellBasell and Enterprise Products Partners have executed long-term contracts that support construction of Enterprise’s second propane dehydrogenation (“PDH”) plant near Mont Belvieu, Texas.

To better serve its customers in Louisiana, Air Liquide will invest more than $270 million in two new large Air Separation Units and infrastructure assets connected to its Mississippi River Pipeline.

INEOS Enterprises has announced the completion of the acquisition of the entire composites business from Ashland Global Holdings Inc., which includes 19 sites across Europe, North and South America, Asia, and the Middle East.

The CSB has issued a new safety digest on the value of worker participation to prevent chemical incidents. The digest notes that lack of worker participation was a factor in several major incidents investigated by the CSB.

Antea delivers highly flexible risk-based asset integrity software with 3D Digital Twin integration to optimize maintenance, reduce risk, and improve mechanical integrity for oil and gas, power generation, and chemical plants and facilities....

Motiva Enterprises LLC and an affiliate of Flint Hills Resources have announced they have signed an agreement for Motiva to acquire a 100% ownership interest in Flint Hills Resources Port Arthur, LLC.

President Donald Trump told workers on Tuesday at a $6 billion petrochemicals plant being built in western Pennsylvania that more big U.S. energy projects were coming as his administration rolls back environmental regulations.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc will begin restarting units at its Norco, Louisiana chemical and refining facilities this week following overhauls.

West Coast Olefins has secured a 300-acre site in British Columbia in preparation for the construction of a $5.6 billion petrochemical project, which will include a world-scale ethylene plant and polyethylene facility.

ExxonMobil has completed an expansion project at its Beaumont, Texas polyethylene plant, increasing plant production capacity by 65% and bringing site capacity to nearly 1.7 million tons per year.

Pro-Surve recently invested in the latest portable Higher Order Modes Clusters (HOMC) Guided Wave Testing tool, a new concept for the inspection of inaccessible regions using short-range guided waves. Inspection is carried out from the accessible...

Kuwait Petroleum Corporation is re-configuring its Al-Zour Refinery to increase the plant's output capacity of fuels and petrochemicals. When completed, it will be the largest integrated refinery and petrochemicals plant ever constructed in Kuwait

Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the company said on Monday, its second such filing in less than two years, after a fire last month prompted it to close the largest refinery on the U.S. East Coast.

A unit at Royal Dutch Shell’s Pulau Bukom refinery and petrochemical complex experienced an operational upset on Sunday, a company spokeswoman told Reuters on Monday.

OMV, the international, integrated oil and gas company headquartered in Vienna, has made the decision to invest EUR 64 mn in the construction of an ISO C4 plant. The construction of the new plant will begin in summer 2019 at the Burghausen Refinery.

INEOS Phenol has announced it will build a world scale, state of the art cumene unit in Marl, Germany, to be completed in 2021.

Tri-Lateral Phased Array is a novel robotic phased array ultrasonic testing technique for the on-stream inspection of fixed equipment in wet hydrogen sulfide (H2S) service. TriLat identifies and quantifies wet H2S damage in the base metal of...

Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LLC and Qatar Petroleum have announced they have signed an agreement to jointly pursue development of a new petrochemical plant in the Gulf Coast region of the United States.

Air Liquide plans to invest nearly $140 million USD to build a new world-scale Air Separation Unit in Bay City, Texas, and add nearly eight miles of pipeline to its Gulf Coast Pipeline System

INEOS Oxide today confirms its new 1.2 billion lb Ethylene Oxide (EO) unit and associated downstream Ethylene Oxide Derivatives (EOD) is to be built at INEOS’ Chocolate Bayou manufacturing works south of Houston on the Gulf of Mexico coast.

Chevron Phillips Chemical Company and Qatar Petroleum (QP) recently signed an agreement to pursue the development, construction and operation of a petrochemicals complex in Qatar to produce ethylene and high-density polyethylene (HDPE).

Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, a joint venture between Chevron Corp and Phillips 66, has offered to acquire Nova Chemicals Corp for more than $15 billion including debt, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

The OmniScan™ X3 64 phased array and TFM flaw detector is equipped with enhanced phased capabilities and even faster TFM. The rugged and portable instrument features powerful 64-element probes with a 128-aperture TFM.

ExxonMobil and SABIC have decided to proceed with the construction of a chemical facility and a 1.8 million metric ton ethane steam cracker in San Patricio County, Texas.

ExxonMobil today said that it has completed an expansion at its Singapore refinery to upgrade its production of EHC™ Group II base stocks.

According to a new research report by Global Market Insights, the global non-destructive testing (NDT) services market is set to grow from its current market value of more than $3 billion to over $4.5 billion by 2025.

INEOS will invest $2 billion in building its first ever manufacturing plants in Saudi Arabia, in what is believed to be one of the largest UK investments ever in the Kingdom.

United Rentals' charity sporting clays tournament raises $20,000 for local veterans organization Fisher House.

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Today, Gov. John Bel Edwards and Shell Chemicals VP for Gulf Coast Manufacturing Rhoman Hardy announced the company will advance feasibility plans for a potential $1.2 billion manufacturing expansion at its Shell Geismar facility in Louisiana.

ExxonMobil will proceed with a $2 billion investment to expand its Baytown chemical plant, which will create around 2,000 jobs during construction and contribute to the approximate 15 percent return the company expects from its chemical investments.

API has released the 2nd Edition of RP 755, the only refining and petrochemical industry guideline to improve worker safety by addressing fatigue as a risk factor.

WorleyParsons has officially completed its US$3.2 billion acquisition of Jacobs ECR, and adopted ‘Worley’ as its new brand.

The CSB has called on the EPA to review its existing Hydrofluoric Acid study to determine the effectiveness of existing regulations, as well as the viability of utilizing inherently safer alkylation technologies in petroleum refineries.

India’s Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd plans to shut a 60,000 barrels per day (bpd) crude unit and some secondary units for maintenance from mid-April for about a month, a company source said.

Taiwan’s Formosa Petrochemical Corp will raise the throughput at its crude oil refinery from the second-half of April after finishing maintenance at a crude unit, a company spokesman said on Tuesday.

The world’s largest oil producer Saudi Aramco has agreed to buy a 70 percent stake in Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) from the kingdom’s wealth fund for $69.1 billion in one of the biggest chemical industry deals ever.

Firefighters on Wednesday extinguished a fire at a Mitsui & Co petrochemical storage site outside Houston that has been billowing acrid smoke for days, the company said.

Becht has experienced outstanding growth and continues to solidify its position as a premier provider of multi-discipline Central Engineering services and serving in the owners’ role for Maintenance, Projects and Turnarounds.

Bayport Polymers LLC (Baystar™) held its official groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a new 625,000 metric ton-per-year Borstar® polyethylene unit at its production site in Pasadena, Texas, with an anticipated start-up in 2021.

ExxonMobil recently announced that it will fund the construction of a new polypropylene production unit in Baton Rouge that will expand production capacity along the Gulf Coast by up to 450,000 tons per year.

PinnacleART has strategically partnered with Solomon Associates to build comprehensive asset assessments for facilities in the energy and chemical industries.

INEOS Chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe has written an open letter to the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, expressing his concerns about Europe’s chemicals industry.

Saudi Aramco with its partner Total recently announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Daelim, a South Korean petrochemical company, to build a new 80,000 tons state-of-the-art Polyisobutylene (PIB) plant in Jubail.

ExxonMobil recently reached a final investment decision and started construction on a new unit at its Beaumont, Texas refinery that will increase crude refining capacity by more than 65 percent, or 250,000 barrels per day.

Wind Point Partners to acquire and merge Clock Spring Company, Inc. and Neptune Research, LLC, two leading providers of high-performance repair products for global critical infrastructure. The combined business will be named ClockSpring|NRI.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released its annual list of the 10 most frequently cited safety and health violations. In 2017 Fall Protection, Hazard Communication, and Scaffolding once again...

At NACE International’s CORROSION 2019 Conference (Nashville, Tennessee; March 23-28) attendees will get an in-depth look at the latest technologies, research, and equipment that are driving industry innovation.

Today, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB), as part of its investigation into the May 2017 Didion Mill explosion, issued “Call to Action: Combustible Dust” to gather comments on the management and control of combustible dust from companies,...

Petrochemicals – components derived from oil and gas that are used in all sorts of daily products such as plastics, fertilisers, packaging, clothing, digital devices, medical equipment, detergents and tyres – are becoming the largest drivers of...

Chairperson Vanessa Allen Sutherland announced today that she will be stepping down and resigning from the position of Chair and Board Member of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board next month.

Over the next two years, EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) projects growth in U.S. consumption of ethane in the petrochemical industry will exceed increases in consumption of all other petroleum and liquid products—such as motor gasoline,...

Last October, we saw the State of California implement its “PSM for Refineries” standard and now the State of Washington’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) appears to be following suit, releasing draft language to adopt a...

Last November in Dallas, TX, Inspectioneering and PinnacleART hosted a select group of leading industry experts in mechanical integrity for an informal discussion of some of the key challenges facing the industry today. The main theme for this...

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released a new 11-minute safety video and final report describing the events leading up to the October 21, 2016 toxic chemical release at the MGPI Processing plant in Atchison, Kansas. The video, titled...

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released its annual list of the 10 most frequently cited safety and health violations. In 2017 Fall Protection, Hazard Communication, and Scaffolding once again...

PinnacleART is now an official Implementation Service Provider (ISP) for the aspenONE® Asset Performance Management (APM) software suite from Aspen Technology, Inc. PinnacleART will utilize aspenONE APM solutions to measure, optimize and maximize...

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) today issued a Safety Alert urging oil and chemical facilities to take special precautions when restarting in the wake of shutdowns due to Hurricane Harvey.

The DOJ, EPA, and TCEQ have announced an agreement with Vopak Terminal Deer Park Inc. and Vopak Logistics Services USA, Inc., to improve air quality in the Houston area by strengthening air pollution controls and compliance with federal and state...

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released a video demonstrating the agency's positive safety impact in 2016. The video was posted just days after President Trump proposed his "America First" budget plan, which calls for the elimination of...

ExxonMobil's "Growing the Gulf" expansion program, consists of 11 major chemical, refining, lubricant and liquefied natural gas projects at proposed new and existing facilities along the Texas and Louisiana coasts.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) today released its 2017–2021 Strategic Plan, including an updated mission and vision statement, which will guide the activities and objectives of the CSB.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released its final report into the June 13, 2013, explosion and fire at the Williams Olefins Plant in Geismar, Louisiana, concluding that process safety management program deficiencies during the 12 years...

Pinnacle Advanced Reliability Technologies (PinnacleART) has been recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest growing private companies in the United States. This list represents 5000 of the most successful companies within the American...

Pinnacle Advanced Reliability Technologies (PinnacleART) has been recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest growing private companies in the United States. This list represents 5000 of the most successful companies within the American...

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has formally announced that “Preventive Maintenance” has been included as a “Most Wanted Safety Improvement,” stating that inadequate mechanical integrity programs, delayed or deferred preventive...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to revise its Risk Management Program (RMP) regulations to improve chemical process safety, assist local emergency authorities in planning for and responding to accidents, and improve...

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has recently voted unanimously to update the status of fifteen safety recommendations resulting from nine accident investigations, including...

Today the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) formally announced that to “Modernize U.S. Process Safety Management Regulations” is the Board’s newest Most Wanted Safety Improvement, concluding that implementation of key federal and state CSB...