MOL has converted one of its production units into a sanitiser production plant in Hungary. The plant is operating around the clock and the company has already shipped the first volumes to hospitals, waste management companies, public utilities, etc.

Clariant has signed a global licensing agreement with RTI International granting them exclusive rights of supply for their solid sorbent material which is used in warm gas desulfurization (WDP).

The mega package is part of a turnaround strategy to reduce India’s dependence on China; states Prashant Khadayate, Pharma Analyst, Global Data. Three API manufacturing parks will also be set up in different parts of the country to enhance production.

French bioprocess specialist Global Bioenergies has successfully converted renewable resources into an oil-like liquid fuel. The conversion via isobutene results in a light, oil-like liquid with qualities that are comparable to fossil oils.

Is it the end of the oil era? A vision for the decarbonisation of the chemical industry — Chemistry could become almost neutral to climate by 2050, as recent studies show. The price would be, however, enormous: Up to a tenfold of the current investment volume per year had to be pumped into alternative raw materials and process development. Is the dream of green chemicals over before it even began? How realistic is the decoupling of fossil raw materials overall? And what could be done now?

Testing of the potential covid-19 vaccine – mrna-1273 developed by the National Institutes of Health and biotechnology firm Moderna has started in the USA. If the research proves successful, the company will be able to mass produce the cure only after 12 to 18 months.

Cost-minimized production of large-volume personal care products by means of specific process developments — Many present-day personal care products are currently sold as private label at supermarkets and discount stores. The customer requirement for low-pricing also includes the demand for a high quality product. Thus, the producers of such products — often contract manufacturers — require a cost reduction and at the same time a high product quality.

With an aim to expand Huntsman Corporation’s Specialty Chemicals business, the company has acquired the North American firm CVC Thermoset Specialties for 300 million dollars. The transaction is expected to close this year.

With an aim to protect patients detected with Covid-19 from all over the world, Pfizer and Biontech have entered into a letter of intent to create a potential vaccine for Coronavirus. Under the terms of the agreement, BNT162 – Biontech’s Covid-19 mrna vaccine programme will be fast-tracked and will enter clinical testing towards the end of April 2020.

Inovyn will undertake a major investment in a new membrane cellroom for the production of chlorine and caustic soda at Cologne (Germany). Initial design and feasibility studies are under way, with project completion expected in 2021.