LyondellBasell Industries said Friday it is raising its quarterly dividend by 5% to $1.05 a share. The new dividend will be payable June 17 to shareholders of record as of June 10. The company said shareholders at its annual meeting voted to approve a share buyback of up to 10% of its outstanding shares in the next 18 months.
Separately, the plastics and chemicals company said its Chief Financial Officer Thomas Aebischer is planning to retire at year-end. The company will be conducting a search for his replacement in the next few months. Shares were not yet active premarket, but have fallen 7% in 2019 to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 11%.
By Ciara Linnane
Source: MarketWatch
France has launched an offshore green hydrogen production platform at the country’s Port of Saint-Nazaire this week, along with its first offshore wind farm. The hydrogen plant, which its operators say is the world’s first facility of its type, coincides with the launch of another “first of its kind” facility in Sweden dedicated to storing hydrogen in an underground lined rock cavern (LRC).
The project sets up the Hydrogen Valley in Rome, the first industrial-scale technological hub for the development of the national supply chain for the production, transport, storage and use of hydrogen for the decarbonization of industrial processes and for sustainable mobility.
At first glance, hydrogen seems to be the perfect solution to our energy needs. It doesn’t produce any carbon dioxide when used. It can store energy for long periods of time. It doesn’t leave behind hazardous waste materials, like nuclear does. And it doesn’t require large swathes of land to be flooded, like hydroelectricity. Seems too good to be true. So…what’s the catch?
