(Bloomberg/gCaptian) - The world’s largest container shipping line has called for a $150-a-ton carbon tax on shipping fuel that would drive up the costs for an industry that delivers 80% of world trade. A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S says such a levy would help bridge the price gap between fossil fuels that vessels consume today and greener alternatives that are currently much more expensive. Fuel costs would effectively almost double if the measure were imposed today because of how carbon dioxide emissions are counted.

(Lesprom) - Andritz has received an order to supply a sulfuric acid plant for Klabin’s Ortigueira mill in Brazil. The plant will be the first of its kind worldwide and is designed to produce 150 tons of commercial-grade (>98%) sulfuric acid per day from concentrated odorous gases and elemental sulfur. It will serve Klabin’s Puma I and Puma II pulp lines at Ortigueira once completed and make Klabin’s Ortigueira site completely self-sufficient in sulfuric acid.

(Physics World) - Researchers in the US have created a new solid-state lithium-metal battery that can charge and discharge over a record-breaking number of cycles at a high current density. The proof-of-concept device, which is fundamentally different to existing liquid electrolyte lithium-ion batteries, could extend the lifespan of electric vehicle batteries to 10-15 years, similar to that of petrol and diesel cars.

(Yahoo Finance/Bloomberg) - Add sulfuric acid to the list of challenges facing copper miners as the world clamors for more of the wiring metal. The compound, used to extract copper from ore, is getting harder to come by. A slowdown in oil refining during the pandemic has resulted in less availability of sulfur, a key input for the acid. At the same time, more acid made in Asia is being used locally as industries there rebound. At least one copper mine in top-producer Chile has already been impacted and spot prices have surged.

(Railway Age) - Picture a customer who receives a hefty invoice from an auto repair shop with several additional charges and no details regarding the nature of these fees. The customer is left facing the question of whether to dispute the bill, and if so, how. Such has been the experience of U.S. rail shippers in recent decades when receiving invoices from the railroads for demurrage charges, which are applied by railroads for costs incurred when shipments are held up beyond a reasonable time.

(Science Mag)- In an unwelcome twist, a global effort to curb pollution from the heavy fuel oil burned by most big ships appears to be encouraging water pollution instead. A 2020 regulation aimed at cutting sulfur emissions from ship exhaust is prompting many owners to install scrubbing systems that capture pollutants in water and then dump some or all of the waste into the sea.

(Washington.edu) - The air in the United States and Western Europe is much cleaner than even a decade ago. Low-sulfur oil standards and regulations on power plants have successfully cut sulfate concentrations in the air, reducing the fine particulate matter that harms human health and cleaning up the environmental hazard of acid rain.

(Patch) - ST. CROIX, USVI -- Limetree Bay refinery has agreed to resume sulfur dioxide monitoring. This decision from the executive management comes days after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that Limetree Bay was in violation of the Clean Air Act.

(Hellenic Shipping News) - Lower bunker fuel prices in China following tax changes last year that have underpinned a ramp-up in production are drawing demand away from the key regional bunkering hub of Singapore and other ports across the region, according to market sources. "Prices are so low [in China] there is no reason not to go to China now," a Singapore-based bunker trader said.

(Finance.Yahoo) - For a look at how dramatically U.S. oil consumption is roaring back, consider this: Bennie Baucham, a trucker for four decades, hasn’t been this busy in years.
Baucham is making three round trips a night with containers from the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports to warehouses in Southern California’s Inland Empire, up from two a night during more normal times. The drive is an hour each way. He’s got to fill the tank on his 65-foot-long 18-wheeler every other day for all the shoes, clothing and electronics he’s moving.

(Ajot) - The Engen oil refinery in South Africa, the country’s oldest, will be converted into a terminal capable of importing cleaner fuels after suffering annual losses for much of the past decade.
It would be too costly to refit the plant in Durban, which opened in 1954, to meet evolving emissions regulations, Engen Chief Executive Officer Yusa Hassan said in an interview. The move will be closely watched by companies including Glencore Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc, which own stakes in other processors in the country that have experienced accidents or are under review.

(Oil Price) - The coronavirus pandemic has shortened Europe’s energy transition. What was initially perceived as a gradual movement towards fewer emissions and greener generation has now become an unprecedently ambitious endeavour – by the time Europe recovers from the COVID-triggered slump, its fuel demand will have already dropped to the point where some downstream assets are no longer needed. This process of refinery backsliding that ultimately leads to the closure of less-efficient assets, be it due to lower refining complexity, geographic remoteness or other institutional factors, has already started. In this article we will look at those refineries that have announced their shutting down in the upcoming years or are on the brink of doing so, providing an explanation as to what exactly has worn it away.

(Business Insider) - The farming industry will become more important than ever before in the next few decades.
The UN projects that the world's population will reach 9.7 billion by 2050, causing global agricultural production to rise 69% between 2010 and 2050. To meet this demand, farmers and agricultural companies are turning to the Internet of Things for analytics and greater production capabilities.

(Hellenic Shipping News) - The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has said it is determined to ensure availability of marine fuels that comply with the regulation by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) limiting the sulphur in the fuel oil used on board ships to 0.50 per cent m/m (mass by mass).

(Crop Life) - Predicting the future is rarely a safe activity. Look no further than last year. Anyone’s prognostications for 2020 were ripped to shreds by the appearance of COVID-19. That said, here is a prediction for the rest of 2021 and beyond: The industry will see continued interest in and the growth of biostimulants.

(Down to Earth) - The sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions from a volcanic eruption in the Caribbean reached India April 16, 2021 sparking fear of increased pollution levels in the northern parts of the country and acid rain. Sulphur dioxide reacts with water to form sulphuric acid which can come down with rainfall.

“Sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions from La Soufriere volcano eruption in the Caribbean have reached all the way to India,” tweeted the World Meteorological Organisation on April 16.

(Access Online Library Wiley) - Decreased atmospheric inputs of sulfur (S) to cropland and increasing removal with harvested crops necessitates a closer look at sulfur fertility management using the 4Rs. Considering the soil organic matter, percent sand, crop status, and sulfur fertilizer solubility are critical to meeting crop nutrition needs for optimal production.

(news.ca.uky.edu) - Sulfur found in biofuel feedstock could pose serious problems to the industry, because it causes pollution, is toxic to the catalyst and corrosive to biorefinery equipment. A national group of scientists and industry partners led by researchers at the University of Kentucky is studying ways to reduce sulfur levels in pine byproducts used to produce biofuels.

(Bloomberg) -- Koch Industries Inc., the second-largest closely held firm in the US, is changing its name after nearly six decades, along with its corporate structure.

(MSN) - Exxon Mobil aims to become a leading producer of lithium for electric vehicle batteries through a drilling operation the oil giant is launching in Arkansas, the company announced Monday.

Tessenderlo Kerley, Inc. held a celebratory groundbreaking to mark the commencement of construction on a new liquid fertilizer facility in Defiance, Ohio. The new 50,000-square-foot production facility will occupy 50 acres and is set to become operational in 2024. The facility will service the Eastern Great Lakes Region through its distribution partners and will include terminal loadouts for rail cars and tanker trucks.

(Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) said on Thursday it will buy lithium from ioneer Ltd's (INR.AX) Rhyolite Ridge mining project in Nevada and use the metal to build electric vehicle batteries in the United States.

(The Daily Scoop) - "The closing of this acquisition marks Koch's first substantial investment on the African continent," said Brad Razook, Executive VP of Koch Industries and CEO, Resources. "We are excited to add another nutrient to the KAES portfolio in collaboration with a world-class partner."

(The Wall Street Journal) - Political uncertainty is clouding prospects for new drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, but Shell PLC—the Gulf’s biggest producer—is still investing billions of dollars in its waters to pump oil for years to come.

(Elko Daily) - Alot has been happening with the Rhyolite Ridge lithium/boron project in recent months.
“On March 31, U.S. President Joe Biden announced plans to invoke the Defense Production Act to provide hundreds of millions in new subsidies for the mining of minerals critical for the wind, solar and electric vehicles industries.

(MSN) - Penflex Corporation recently became the newest member of The Sulphur Institute (TSI), an international, non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for the safe use of sulfur.