Summary
Meeting customer requirements for the INEOS Nitriles business has a positive history dating back to the commercialization of acrylonitrile by SOHIO in 1960. This increase in acetonitrile production should only enhance their image as a preferred supplier, which would acrylonitrile.
Analysis
INEOS Nitriles is the world’s largest supplier of both acrylonitrile and acetonitrile. As the article states, as the world’s largest acrylonitrile producer, their facilities supply approximately 40% of the world’s acetonitrile needs. It is important to realize that acetonitrile is a by-product from the manufacture of acrylonitrile, as is, hydrogen cyanide. Thus production trends for acetonitrile in general follow those of acrylonitrile. It is typically assumed that acetonitrile production occurs at a rate between 1 and 3% of acrylonitrile production.
Acrylonitrile is produced via a reaction called the ammoxidation of propylene – raw materials include propylene, oxygen and ammonia. The process was invented in 1957 and commercialized in 1960 by SOHIO. In 1987, BP acquired SOHIO and formed BP America and in 1998 British Petroleum acquired Amoco Corporation forming BP Amoco PLC. Finally in December 2005, BP completed the sale of its Innovene petrochemicals business to INEOS. The sale included the Nitriles Business Unit. So INEOS Nitriles has a rich history and a positive image already.
While working with the Nitriles Business Unit of BP, meeting customer requirements including security of supply were always a major concern for our group – that included R&D, manufacturing, marketing and sales.
Subtle process changes which often can be implemented with little or no capital can shift by-product formation to enhance the production of acetonitrile. They claim that the manufacturing facility can produce 50% more acetonitrile by adjusting reaction conditions; these changes could occur in the actual reactor or in the backend of the process which is usually referred to as recovery and purification. Nonetheless, a 50% increase in acetonitrile production really translates into a by-product formation changing from 1 to 3% to a by-product formation up to 5%.
It would seem that meeting customer requirements for acetonitrile production with a downturn in acrylonitrile production is simply consistent with the operating and corporate philosophy I saw while part of BP. So this change should help maintain INEOS’s image as a market leader.
This author consults with leading institutions through GLG
Analyses are solely the work of the authors and have not been edited or endorsed by GLG.
