(Inform.kz) - NUR-SULTAN. KAZINFORM - Prospects for the implementation of the project in the chemical industry were discussed during the visit of Turkish investors to Kazakhstan, organized by «NC «KAZAKH INVEST» JSC. During the working trip, the founder of the Turkish company «BRIMSTONE Sulphur Provider Company» Efe Munip Nurdogdu held a meeting with the Chairman of the Board of «NC «KAZAKH INVEST» JSC Meirzhan Yusupov, Kazinform has learnt from KAZAKH INVEST’s press service.

(TTNews) - The Surface Transportation Board is taking public comments until June 28 on the proposed multibillion dollar merger of Class I freight rail companies Canadian National and Kansas City Southern. The STB also said the railroads will have until July 6 to respond to those public comments. As part of the review process, Canadian National and Kansas City Southern are asking the STB to approve what’s called a plain vanilla trust.

(This Day Live) - Oil refineries in Africa will require approximately $15.7 billion to upgrade the existing 36 facilities to produce petroleum products that will conform with the planned level of sulphur content, the African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA) has said.                         

(Mining) - Vale said in a securities filing on Tuesday it will suspend operations at its Sudbury, Canada nickel mine, after its proposal for a five-year contract was rejected by the United Steelworkers union. United Steelworkers Local 6500, which represents 2,600 workers at the mine, said in a statement that 70% of those who voted were opposed to the Vale offer and wanted the union — whose bargaining committee had recommended the preliminary deal — to return to the bargaining table.

(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).

(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.

(Agri Business Global) - Koch Ag & Energy Solutions (Koch) and OCP have signed an agreement under which a Koch affiliate will acquire a 50% interest in Jorf Fertilizers Company III (JFC III) from OCP, the world's largest phosphate mining and leading global fertilizer group. When closed, the transaction will establish a 50/50 joint venture.

(Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) on Tuesday reported a fourth-quarter profit of $8.87 billion, its largest in seven years, as the top U.S. oil producer benefited from strong energy prices.

(Reuters) - Shell (SHEL.L) again boosted its dividend and share repurchases on Thursday after fourth quarter profits hit their highest in eight years, fuelled by higher oil and gas prices and strong gas trading performance.

(The Daily Scoop) - Citing three key factors in today's fertilizer markets, The Mosaic Company says it recognizes fertilizer prices have increased dramatically in the past several months.

(Oil & Gas Journal) - Phillips 66 has decided to move forward with a plan to transform its 255,000-b/d Alliance refinery on the Mississippi River in Belle Chasse, Plaquemines Parish, La., into a terminal that it will continue to operate as part of its midstream portfolio.

(Reuters) - A consortium consisting of Qatar Energy and ExxonMobil (XOM.N) has signed an agreement with Cyprus for energy exploration and production sharing in Block 5 in the southeast of the island, Qatari News Agency said on Friday.

(Reuters) - Australian lithium supplier ioneer Ltd (INR.AX) said on Thursday it had secured $70 million in funds from South Africa's Sibanye Stillwater (SSWJ.J)through a share placement to begin construction work at one of its mines in the United States.