The competitive issues, particularly for the industry in the ever changing economic environment, will drive the refining and petrochemical industry to look at integration as a necessity rather than an option. The demand growth of petrochemical feedstock has outpaced the demand growth of transportation fuels. These trends are driving the overall shift and emphasis of the hydrocarbon industry from a fuels/energy base to that of petrochemicals and derivatives production. The traditional boundaries that have previously existed between refining and petrochemical facilities are no longer relevant. More importantly, maintaining these boundaries deprives investors/owners of the flexibility to realize the full economic potential of their capital investment as this cannot be achieved without proper integration in the design and operation of these facilities. The majority of new facilities are being planned and implemented with the optimum extent of integration to monetize and maximize the synergies.
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