Royal Dutch Shell and Dow Chemical lost a court appeal

(Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell and Dow Chemical lost a court appeal on Wednesday against a fine levied by EU regulators five years ago for taking part in a cartel, but the court cut a fine imposed on Italy's Eni. The General Court, Europe's second-highest, also annulled penalties levied against Czech petrochemicals group Unipetrol and Polish company Trade-Stomil.

"With regard to Unipetrol, its subsidiary Kaucuk and Trade-Stomil, the Court considers that the evidence admitted by the Commission is not sufficient for a finding that those companies participated in unlawful agreements," the court found.

For Eni and its Polimeri Europa subsidiary, the court cut the joint fine to EUR 181.50 mln from 272.25 mln, saying a change in corporate structure and control had undermined the European Commission's argument that the companies had repeated an infringement.

But the Court upheld the EUR 160.88 mln fine on the Royal Dutch Shell group. And while it annulled part of the Commission's ruling against Dow, it did not reduce the fine of EUR 64.58 mln.

The European Commission had levied a total fine of EUR 519 mln against the five companies in 2006 for fixing prices and sharing customers for certain types of synthetic rubber used to make tyres, shoe soles and golf balls between 1996 to 2002.

MRC

(Plastemart) -- Coca-Cola South Africa has announced the opening of its new Valpre plant and the introduction of PlantBottle packaging to Africa. The new state-of-the-art facility will fill Valpre Spring Water in Heidelberg, southeast of Johannesburg. Selected for its close proximity to markets and distribution sites in the Guateng Region and a similar source water profile as Valpre's, the new plant will help Coca-Cola South Africa meet the needs of the increasing demand for bottled water in the country.

The new Valpre plant is undergoing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification -- an internationally recognized program that is the accepted benchmark for design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. The design of facility maximizes recycled materials and makes optimal use of water and solar energy. It has a "zero to landfill" target.

The Company launched Coca-Cola's innovative PlantBottle packaging. This packaging has revolutionized the beverage industry as the first-ever recyclable PET plastic beverage bottle made from up to 30% plant that is 100% recyclable. This is the 10th market to launch the bottle in the world and the first in Africa. PlantBottle packaging has a lighter footprint on the environment due to its reduced dependence on nonrenewables such as petroleum.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Over the six months, Russian producers made about 450 KT of HDPE which was 8% more compared to the same period last year, according to MRC analysts. In June, Russian producers HDPE increased output to 79.35 KT.

This year Russian producers work almost at 100% capacities utilization, excluding Gazprom neftehim Salavat. Also there are no technical problems that could affect production parameters.

Despite positive production parameters this year, low demand for HDPE is observed in the domestic market. By mid-year considerable stocks of polyethylene had accumulated in stores of producers as well as trade companies.

Nevertheless, Russian producers don't hurry to increase exports, instead, they reduce it. Over the six months, HDPE exports form Russia reached 38 KT while last year this parameter made about 70 KT.

A serious period for the Russian market of HDPE will be September-October. For these two months shutdowns are planned by all PE producers. The first to suspend HDPE capacities for 30 days from September 7, will be Kazanorgsyntez. In early October, Stavrolen production complex will be suspended for 45 days. Also in early October, but only for 10 days Nizhnekamskneftehim will stop PE production. And in mid-October for three weeks Gazprom neftehim Salavat will suspend production.

MRC analysts don't exclude that planned shutdowns of Russian HDPE producers will result in deficit of some grades.

MRC

(BASF) -- BASF is launching the high-performance product hydroxypropyl carbamate acrylate (HPCA), a crosslinking acrylate monomer. The new specialty monomer shortens the processing time for the manufacture of carbamate based polymers. Compared with currently existing processes, HPCA enables crosslinkable carbamate units to be incorporated into the polymer in just one step. The usual two-step procedure is no longer necessary. In addition to the shorter manufacturing process, HPCA also offers positive features for applications.


HPCA has already proven itself in clearcoat systems for the automotive industry. One-component coatings with HPCA achieve a comparable performance level to two-component coatings, for example with regard to weather and scratch resistance. In contrast to two-component coatings, one-component coatings are easier to use in applications and are more cost efficient.


BASF researchers have successfully manufactured the specific chemical structure of HPCA on a commercial scale with the help of white biotechnology. In the biocatalytic procedure, the specialty monomer is synthesized by applying an enzyme. From HPCA the carbamate-based polyacrylate can be produced then in one step. BASF has used this procedure in industrial production for the first time.

MRC

(Arabian Oil and Gas) -- ConocoPhillips has announced that it will be spinning off its refining and marketing arm into a new business, two weeks after Marathon Oil split itself up in the same way in order to increase returns for investors, according to a Bloomberg report.

ConocoPhillips will divide into two stand-alone, publicly traded operations. The division is expected to be completed in the first half of 2012, the Houston-based company said in a statement. Marathon Petroleum, Marathon's former refining business, debuted on the New York Stock Exchange this month. Marathon rose as much as 11% on the day the split was announced, reports Bloomberg.

ConocoPhillips is the second-largest U.S. oil refiner with capacity of 2 million barrels per day, according to its website. It owns 12 U.S. refineries, and has a two-refinery joint venture with Alberta-based oil producer Cenovus Corp. The plants account for about 10 percent of U.S. refining capacity, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

MRC