Multiple Texas refineries operated by Motiva, Valero, Total, ExxonMobil, and Citgo have announced plant shutdowns due to a rare deep freeze.

Setting the scene:

Texas is home to 31 refineries and is responsible for producing about 4.6 million barrels of oil per day. To process that oil you need a supply of electricity, water, and natural gas—none of which are guaranteed when pipelines are freezing across the state. Raw materials aside, these plants need their employees (who can't safely drive to work) and ship channels to deliver their products (which are also being shut down).

What this means:

Shocked supply means the price of fossil fuels will rise as a result. The weather has "sent oil prices to near 13-month highs, while front-month gas futures jumped to an over three-month high.". Taking price out the picture, prolonged cold temperatures (it should stay below freezing until Friday) could lead to damaged equipment and fuel shortages on the East Coast (which gets 3/5 of its fuels from the Gulf Coast).

Read more here on Reuters.

California-based hydrogen start up, C-Zero, has announced a successful Series A funding round of $11.5 million.

A little context:

C-Zero is working on a technology we've seen before—the pyrolysis of natural gas as a means to produce hydrogen and carbon black. The process is referred to colloquially as "turquoise hydrogen" which is the industry's way of saying it's partially blue hydrogen and partially green hydrogen (here's a helpful chart. All of this hydrogen talk comes as hard-to-electrify industries (such as steel and concrete) look to reduce carbon emissions by swapping natural gas with hydrogen.

Why C-Zero is special:

The start up's big bet is that its technology will be more economical than strapping carbon capture onto a steam methane reformer. The company is reportedly stripping hydrogen molecules from methane with a molten-nickel-based catalyst in a continuous flow process that has no associated emissions (aside from what's required to produce all of that heat). We'll have to see if the $11.5 million can help C-Zero make its technology commercially available.

Read the press release here.

German chemical company, Lanxess, has announced the acquisition of US-based specialty chemical company, Emerald Kalama Chemical, for $1.1 billion.

What are they buying?

Emerald Kalama is one of the world's largest producers of benzoic acid and its derivatives including benzaldehyde, benzyl alcohol, and sodium benzoate. Those chemicals are primarily used as "preservatives for food, household and cosmetic applications, flavors and fragrances as well as products for animal nutrition". Lanxess made the acquisition to "strengthen our Consumer Protection segment" and create synergies with its existing customers in the "food industry and animal health sector".

Zooming out:

We last saw Lanxess when it acquired disinfectant producer last month. The company reportedly has another $2.5 billion sitting around for more acquisitions and is monitoring a list of other potential purchases. Lanxess has found itself in a position where it can buy companies when many companies are struggling financially—there isn't a better time to bolt-on some capacity.

Read the press release here.