Maintenance halt for Konkola copper smelter

Saudi Aramco is reportedly considering the sale of a stake in its sulphur business as the state-controlled energy group expands a wider drive to unlock cash from infrastructure assets and support Saudi Arabia’s investment-heavy economic transformation. The potential transaction, known internally as Project Yellowstone, could raise as much as $7 billion and would cover assets linked to sulphur storage and export terminals.

Metso has been awarded an order to supply key cellhouse process equipment for a zinc smelter expansion project in South Asia. The value of the order was undisclosed, as was the name of the customer, which is one of the leading zinc producers globally.

Elessent Clean Technologies has entered a strategic alliance with Indiabased Thermal Systems Private Limited to supply steaming equipment for MECS® sulphuric acid plants in North and South America. The deal links MECS® sulphuric acid process design with Thermal Systems’ boiler, superheater and economiser fabrication, giving operators a single route to specify and source new heatrecovery equipment rather than managing separate engineering and OEM contracts.

As described in a recent publication2 , Shell Pernis in the Netherlands is an example of how a complex European refinery can approach decarbonisation in stages rather than through a single step change. The refinery sits in one of Europe’s most industrialised and infrastructure-rich locations, which matters because refinery decarbonisation depends heavily on access to power, hydrogen, and CO2 transport infrastructure. Pernis is a relevant example for blue hydrogen, carbon capture, and broader utility-system transformation, illustrating the main options available to a mature refinery seeking deep emissions reductions without abandoning its core industrial role.