Dow and the Petrochemical Industries Company of Kuwait.(Movers & shakers)(DowChemical Co.)(appointment of James Fitterling)(Brie Dow and the Petrochemical Industries Company of Kuwait have appointed James Fitterling as ceo of their joint $11bn project, K-Dow Petrochemicals. Fitterling has held a number of key management . . .

Eastman Chemical.(Movers & shakers) Eastman Chemical has announced the retirement of Richard Lorraine, senior vice president and chief financial officer, effective 1 September and Gregory 0 Nelson, vice president, polymers business . . .

Bayer MaterialScience.(Business digest)(Brief article) [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Caption: The German Embassy in Beijing, China, has been showcased for the Olympics with an art installation called 'inform' by Chinese artist Li Jiwei. The installation . . .

US specialised polymer producer PolyOne has signed a license for a series of bio-based plasticiser technologies.(Projects & Tech US specialised polymer producer PolyOne has signed a license for a series of bio-based plasticiser technologies owned by independent RED organisation . . .

Sabic affiliate, Arabian Industrial Fibres (Ibn Rushd) has selected LyondellBasell's Spheripol technology for a 525 000 t/year p Sabic affiliate, Arabian Industrial Fibres (Ibn Rushd) has selected LyondellBasell's Spheripol technology for a 525 000 t/year polyproylene plant to be built in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, for completion . . .

Evonik.(Projects & Technology)(Brief article) Evonik is closing its cyanoacetic acid and ester production facility in Mobile, Alabama, US, in Q4 2008 and exiting the market due to overcapacities and competition from . . .

Novo Nordisk.(Projects & Technology) Danish diabetes specialist Novo Nordisk is to open a research centre in Seattle, Washington, US, by 2010 for the development of oncology and inflamatory . . .

Germany's chemical concern Evonik and solar power specialist SolarWorld have opened an 850 t/year silicon plant in Rheinfelden.( Germany's chemical concern Evonik and solar power specialist SolarWorld have opened an 850 t/year silicon plant in Rheinfelden, Baden, as part of their joint venture Joint Solar . . .

Bayer Schering Pharma has taken over the full development and commercialisation rights for the preclinical kinase inhibitor anti Bayer Schering Pharma has taken over the full development and commercialisation rights for the preclinical kinase inhibitor anti-cancer programme of privately held Swiss pharma concern . . .

BASF.(Projects & Technology)(Brief article) BASF is building a world-scale facility for its bio-degradable Trilon M methylglycinediacetic acid chelating agent at its Ludwigshafen headquarters, Germany. On its completion in 2010, BASF will . . .

Ehrfeld Mikrotechnik BTS (EMB), a subsidiary of Bayer Technology Services, has signed a production and marketing agreement with Ehrfeld Mikrotechnik BTS (EMB), a subsidiary of Bayer Technology Services, has signed a production and marketing agreement with Xytel, a provider of modular and skid-mounted pilot plants, to . . .

BASF Coatings.(Projects & Technology)(Brief article) German automotive coatings specialist BASF Coatings has formally begun operations at its new 6000 t/year production site in Pavlovskij Posad, east of Moscow, Russia. The facility can be expanded to . . .

Oxiteno.(Projects & Technology) In Brazil, the largest ethylene oxide producer in Latin America Oxiteno has started up an oleochemical unit at its Camacari site in Bahia . . .

University of Sheffield.(Projects & Technology)(Brief article) Researchers at the University of Sheffield, UK, have identified a bacteria, called Nostoc, which could be used to produce hydrogen fuel (Bioinformatics, 2008, 24, 8, 1078). Nostoc fixes nitrogen, . . .

PetroChina Sichuan Petrochemical has selected Dow's Unipol polypropylene technology for a 450 000 t/year facility that will form PetroChina Sichuan Petrochemical has selected Dow's Unipol polypropylene technology for a 450 000 t/year facility that will form part of the company's B00 000 t/year ethylene complex in . . .

Lonza Engineering.(Projects & Technology) Swiss life sciences company Lonza has formed a new engineering, facility design and maintenance services business unit, Lonza Engineering, in . . .

Richter Gedeon.(Projects & Technology)(Brief article) Hungarian pharma concern Richter Gedeon is building a $103.7m biotech facility in Debrecen in eastern Hungary, with a scheduled date of 2014 for full production, according to Budapest Business . . .

Dow Technology Licensing, an affiliate of Dow Italia, and the UK's Davy Process Technology have signed a cooperation agreement f Dow Technology Licensing, an affiliate of Dow Italia, and the UK's Davy Process Technology have signed a cooperation agreement for the engineering, RED, marketing and sales of Dow's PTA . . .

Pfizer.(Business digest)(Brief article) US pharma major Pfizer has been unable to find a buyer for its Little Island plant in Cork, Ireland, with the result that 180 jobs are to be lost at the plant. Pfizer has the same problem with its . . .

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has proposed the formation of a 'multi-state' fertiliser company with private involvement at a Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has proposed the formation of a 'multi-state' fertiliser company with private involvement at a recent meeting with Argentinian businessmen, according to . . .