President Donald Trump is expected Thursday to talk about US energy and its potential for jobs and "energy dominance."
Evonik will spend $200 million to add an omega-3 fatty acids site at an existing facility in Blair, Neb. The project is being done in cooperation with Royal DSM, with an expected operational date of 2019.
A cash infusion from being sold or listed could help growth at Akzo Nobel's specialty chemicals arm, said executive Thierry Vanlancker. The spinoff is part of the company's efforts to stave off buyout interest.
The effects of the shale boom include petrochemicals growth and a US advantage against competitors, "namely Middle Eastern petrostates who in years past had looked to petrochemicals as an important industry to help them diversify away from simply pumping and exporting crude oil and natural gas," according to this article.
The availability of low-cost feedstocks in the US has led to $185 billion worth of new chemical projects capable of adding $294 billion to the US economy and up to 462,000 jobs by 2025, according to the American Chemistry Council. Global plastics demand is key to this boom, with chemical projects constituting half of all US manufacturing capital investment in 2016.
The Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention and Office of Research and Development have made improvements in how they'll work together to test and assess chemicals, according to the EPA inspector general. The chemical safety office, however, is "at risk of not effectively incorporating products in a way that could more rapidly improve how the EPA assesses chemical risks to human health and the environment," the report said.
The primary goal of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act was to improve public health and safety, and the Environmental Protection Agency is working to be better at reviewing chemicals, not simply finishing reviews as quickly as possible, writes Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M.
When Louisiana competes to attract chemical manufacturing investment, the state realizes economic benefits including but not limited to a higher tax base, writes Greg Bowser, president of the Louisiana Chemical Association and Louisiana Chemical Industry Alliance. "The real value comes with the creation of high-paying jobs that will span several generations, sustaining the economy in a community for years to come," he argues.
Projects from Royal Dutch Shell, PTT Global and other companies are creating new, good-paying jobs in parts of Ohio and elsewhere whose economies have struggled since steel's decline, writes Erin Mundahl.
Akzo Nobel recently held a chemistry competition where 10 winning startups were picked to get support for commercializing their breakthroughs. Three US companies have received joint development agreements from Akzo Nobel.