Chexpress - September 6, 2011

North America

Lawsuit

Halliburton has filed suit against BP for “negligent misrepresentation, business disparagement and defamation” over its actions leading up to and after the United States’ worst oil spill. Halliburton is also amending its claims against BP Plc in ongoing multi-district litigation in New Orleans so that it includes fraud. Halliburton says BP provided it with inaccurate information about the location of oil and gas before Halliburton performed cement work on the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico on the day of the spill. It also says BP omitted information in later public statements, filings and investigations.

Refinery Purchase

Valero Energy Corp. has acquired Murphy Oil Corp.’s refinery in Meraux, Louisiana for about $625 million. The deal includes $325 million for the refinery and related assets and $300 million for the refinery’s current inventory. Murphy Oil said the sale is part of a plan to exit the refining business. The refinery has a capacity of 135,000 barrels/day, a Mississippi River dock, pipelines to Collins, Mississippi, and is located about 40 miles from Valero’s refinery in Norco, Louisiana. The deal also includes a product terminal, a 20 percent interest in the Collins Product Pipeline and a 3.2 percent interest in the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port.

Three Workers Killed

Authorities won’t be able to positively identify the three workers killed in an oilfield explosion in eastern Wyoming until autopsies are performed on them. The blast occurred at an oil production site on a private ranch about 40 miles northeast of Casper and sparked a 10-acre fire before it was brought under control. The blast came as the men worked on a fuel line supplying a heater treatment facility that separates oil from water as the substances are pumped from the ground. The workers were employed by contractors that Samson Resources Co. had hired to bring an oil well back into production at the site. The well wasn’t involved in the explosion or the fire.

World

Expansion

Solutia Inc. bought more equipment and other manufacturing assets for $3.4 million from Aimcore Technology Co. Ltd. to continue expanding its film manufacturing operation in Taiwan. Solutia said the expansion will help meet demand for the region’s fast-growing mobile electronics and smart window markets. The company’s Flexvue film components are used in touch screens, solar applications, smart windows and e-readers.

Offshore Wind Farm

Marubeni Corporation has entered into an agreement with Dong Energy in which Marubeni will acquire a 49.9 percent stake in Dong Energy’s 172 megawatt Gunfleet Sands offshore wind farm. Marubeni will pay Dong Energy a cash consideration of approximately GBP 200 million for the stake. Completion of the transaction is expected to take place sometime during the fourth quarter of 2011. The wind farm is in the Thames Estuary off the Essex coast and produces green power corresponding to an annual power consumption of some 125,000 British households.

Acquisition

Eastman Chemical Co. has purchased Scandiflex do Brasil S.A. INdustrias Quimicas of Maua, Sao Paulo, which makes plasticizers. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Eastman said the acquisition will help its business in Latin America.

New Plant

SK Global Chemical Co. is to begin construction of a $2.4 billion petrochemical plant on Singapore’s Jurong Island. The new facility is intended to serve SK’s production base in Southeast Asia as well as China’s booming market for refined petrochemical products. The new plant will produce 4 million tons of petrochemicals/year, with 2.6 million tons of output consisting of refined oil products including civilian Jet A-1 aircraft jet fuel and liquefied petroleum gas, with the remaining production of 1.4 million tons including chemicals such as paraxylene and benzene. The facility is scheduled to come online in late 2014.