Dow Chemical loses elastomers patent lawsuit against LG Chem

(cen.acs) -- Dow Chemical has lost the patent lawsuit it filed in 2009 in Seoul, South Korea, against LG Chem. Dow claimed that the Korean firm had violated its intellectual property rights on metallocene catalyst technology for producing ethylene-based elastomers.

Dow is preparing to appeal the court's ruling that its claim has no legal basis. "Dow believes that the district court's decision is improper," a company statement says. Prior to this judgment, the statement adds, "Dow's patents were held valid by the Intellectual Property Tribunal of the Korean Intellectual Property Office."


LG Chem counters that it developed the technology on its own in 1999. The Korean firm opened a 90,000-metric-ton-per-year plant making use of the process in 2008.

Chemical companies have fought several legal battles over metallocene catalyst technology in recent years. Although the market for resins made with the catalysts is not yet huge, it is growing quickly, according to Juay Piu Nah, a polyolefins industry consultant at IHS Chemical in Singapore. "If you can hold on to your technology, you can be a player in the long run," he says.


MRC

Belarus to raise oil export duties on 1 March

(news.belta) -- On 1 March 2012 Belarus raises export duties on oil and oil products. The relevant decision is envisaged in government resolution No.184 of 27 February 2012, from the press service of the Belarusian government.

On 1 March the oil export duty will go up from USD393.7 to USD411.2 per tonne. Starting from 1 March the uniform rate of export duty on light and dark oil products (apart from petrol), which since 1 October has been unified at the level of 66% of the duties on oil, will be USD271.4 per tonne as against USD259.8 in February 2012. The same duty is imposed on benzene, toluene, xylenes. The coefficient of 0.9 is applied to the export duties on commodity and directly distilled petrol. Thus they will equal USD370.1 per tonne as against USD354.3 in February. Duty on propane, butane, ethylene, propylene, butylene and butadiene, other liquefied gases is set at USD157.3 instead of USD181.7.

The resolution amended Resolution No.1932 of the Council of Ministers of 31 December 2010 ⌠On setting export duties on crude oil and some oil products and on abolishing some resolutions of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus. The document was adopted in accordance with Decree No. 716 of 31 December 2010 ⌠On the rates of export customs duties.

Starting from 1 October 2011 Belarus, following Russia, has been calculating export duties on oil and oil products using the formula ⌠60/66. The formula is applied to the products exported outside the customs territory of the Customs Union. The formula implies that the rates of export duty on light and dark oil products have been harmonized and are calculated using the coefficient 0.66 (66%) of the oil duty. The duty on petrol is calculated using the coefficient 0.90 (90%).



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Russia may discount heavy crude oil export duty

(bloomberg) -- Russia, the world's largest oil producer, may lower the export duty for heavy crude to 10 percent of the standard rate as it seeks to stimulate production.

A government commission headed by Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin approved the Energy Ministry proposal, which would extend the discount for heavy, or viscous, oils for 10 years from July 1.

The lower duty would save companies $100 million a year at current production levels of heavy crude and could provide as much as USD1.3 billion in annual tax savings if output of that grade increases according to Energy Ministry forecasts.

Heavier crude grades yield less lucrative products such as gasoline and diesel compared with lighter blends and typically contain more sulfur.
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Russian Rusnano launches production of polymers

(plastemart) -- A company, backed by Rusnano, the Russian state-owned nanotechnology corporation, has launched the production of polymer nanocomposites using nanosilicates for applications including packaging, cable insulation and steel pipeline coating.

TheEUR 48 mln (USD64.4 mln) project will produce both nanosilicates and polymer nanocomposites. Metaclay of Karachev in Russia's Bryansk region plans to raise annual plant capacity from 14,860 tons to 50,000 tons by 2014.

Rusnano (formerly Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies) is a joint-stock company created and owned by the government of Russia and aimed at commercializing developments in nanotechnology. Rusnano's task is to create by 2015 a nano-industry in the country that will make marketable products worth 900 billion roubles (USD29 billion).
One hundred percent of the shares in RUSNANO have become the property of the government.

MRC

Higher monomer contracts lend support to PP, PVC, PE prices in Italy

(plastemart) -- The year 2012 has so far seen strong conditions in Europe's upstream markets which continue to apply upward cost pressure on Italy's polymer markets regardless of the ongoing slowness in end product businesses.

After crude oil prices on the NYMEX moved close to the USD110/bbl at the end of last week, spot monomer prices for ethylene and propylene gained strength. This is the first time that oil prices reached this threshold since May 3, 2011.

These conditions, along with the production issues at European cracker operators, have led the March propylene and ethylene contracts to settle with large price hikes for the third month in a row. The March contracts for ethylene and propylene werefully settled in Europe this week, posting monthly increases of EUR90/ton for propylene and EUR86/ton for ethylene, with the total hike amount since the start of this year reaching EUR200/ton and EUR225/ton.


Although downstream PP, PVC and PE producers are yet to officially reveal their initial March offers to Italy, buy and sell ideas clearly indicate a renewed upward rally for March, in line with players' expectations.

MRC