Special reports

The cold snap that affected much of the central part of the US in mid-February disrupted energy systems, particularly in and around Texas, US.

The Prax Group has completed a supply arrangement to purchase crude oil and refinery feedstocks from Trafigura for all of its requirements for the Prax Lindsey oil refinery, UK.

The American Petroleum Institute's President and CEO, Mike Sommers, has commented on the US Senate’s vote to confirm Secretary Granholm to lead the US Department of Energy.

IHS Markit currently estimates more than 5.2 million bpd of Gulf Coast refining capacity and 730 000 bpd in PADD 2 has been impacted by the winter weather.

The US Energy Information Administration expects the US – a net exporter of petroleum in 2020 – to return to being a net petroleum importer on an annual basis in both 2021 and 2022.

Keith Warren, Servomex, UK, outlines how marine vapour recovery challenges can be solved through effective gas analysis.

M. Theodore Gresh, Flexware Inc., USA, explores the factors that go into implementing an effective condition monitoring maintenance programme.

The two companies have signed a Strategic Collaboration Agreement focused on supporting carbon management in downstream businesses.

Asad Tahir, Emerson, USA, offers an analysis of the advances in analyser technology which have improved natural gas composition and sulfur content evaluation.

Ryan Lerud and Hans Buytaert, Guided Wave, Inc., explain how NIR spectroscopy can be used to optimise individual product streams and assess product purity.

Buckeye Partners LP has announced that it has made an equity investment in OneH2 Inc., a provider of hydrogen fuel supply and logistics solutions.

Bernat Sala, Tecam Group, Spain, explains how Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems can help companies fulfil their social and legal environmental obligations.

It is a time of change for the downstream sector. Alan D’Ambrogio, ABB Energy Industries, USA, explains why digitalisation will be central to companies adapting to this change.

Hari Gopu, Alto Project Services, looks at the major changes occurring in the oil and gas sector, and suggests ways to continue capturing value.

The IEA has revised down its forecast for global oil demand by 0.6 million bpd for 1Q21 and 0.3 million bpd for 2021 as a whole.