Sibur to shut down outdated chlorine production facility in Dzerzhinsk

(sibur) -- In line with a decision made earlier, the company has announced gradual shutdown of its chlorine production at the former Kaprolaktam factory, which is now integrated into Sibur-Neftekhim, a subsidiary of Sibur.

The equipment at the production lines is worn-out and outdated, and has no more resource for accident-free and economically feasible operation; and replacing it with new equipment would be economically unfeasible.

The company will fully comply with its obligations under the employment law on allowances to the personnel and offer them employment options at the Sibur facilities in the Nizhny Novgorod Region and other regions of Russia.

The Company will meet its obligations under the existing contracts for the sale of goods and services in full.
Sibur is a co-founder of the RusVinyl plant currently under construction in Kstovo. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which used to be the key product of the shutdown lines, will be made by the new plant employing a cutting-edge and environmentally-friendly technology of Solvay, Belgium.

MRC

Rally in China’s PP market loses steam, cost pressure remains

(plastemart) -- The PP market in China jumped up in early July, finding support from the bullish upstream developments, as per ChemOrbis. This cost-push rally was important as it ended a two month downward trend in the region, and reintroduced a firm sentiment. However, even in those days, many players were skeptical about the sustainability of the upward trend in the face of sluggish demand.

The last two weeks have proved that the rally lacked support from the demand side as the rising trend has lost steam. In China’s import market, some major producers have revealed their PP offers for August shipments with price increases pointing to their limited allocations and higher upstream costs.

However, the sentiment on the distributors’ and traders’ side is not as firm as it is amongst global producers since demand is not satisfying. Discounts that surfaced this week in the domestic market have also shaken traders’ firm stance, causing them to lose confidence about the outlook.

In the domestic market, disappointing sales have forced some Chinese producers to yield to price discounts this week. “Buyers have stepped out of the market and adopted a wait and watch attitude out of hopes of finding lower offers in the days ahead,” a producer source commented. Some distributors remarked, “Taking the recently higher crude oil and futures prices into account, we have held our offers steady. However, buying interest is very thin.”
MRC

HDPE production in Russia decreased by a quarter in H1

MOSCOW (MRC) – In H1 2012, the total production of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) in Russia amounted to about 343,000 tonnes, nearly a quarter less year on year, according to MRC analysts.
Russian producers in June increased the output of HDPE to 59,000 tonnes, while in May this figure was about 43,000 tonnes. Stavrolen still stands idle. Moreover, Nizhnekamskneftekhim switched to the production of linear polyethylene, which resulted in the reduction of HDPE production in May.

Russia's largest producer of polyethylene Kazanorgsintez last month actually kept production of high-density polyethylene (taking into account the calendar factor) at the level of May.

Nizhnekamskneftekhim in early June had to continue production of LLDPE, the total volume of PE production amounted to about 16,000 tonnes. Gazprom neftekhim Salavat in June increased production of HDPE more than three times. In May, due to the technical problems the production of HDPE has been reduced to 1,300 tonnes.

In general, in H1 2012, the total output of HDPE by Russian producers made about 343,000 tonnes, down 24% year on year. The main reason for the decline was the stoppage of Stavrolen, but the plant intends to resume production of polyethylene in early September.

mrplast.com

PP production in Russia dropped by 6%

MOSCOW (MRC) – The total PP production volume in Russia made about 322,000 tonnes year-to-date, down 6% year-on-year, report MRC analysts.

Russian makers produced 59,000 tonnes of PP in June, down 3% from May.

Nizhnekamskneftekhim and Stavrolen managed to increase their output last month while the other makers reduced their production volumes. The further decline in PP output is expected due to the unscheduled shutdowns (Tomskneftekhim) and scheduled outages for maintenance (Ufaorgsintez and Stavrolen).

There were slight changes in PP production in June. Propylene copolymer production was reduced in favor of PP-homo, particularly, raffia, on upcoming July outages for maintenance (Ufaorgsintez and Stavrolen).

In general, in the first half of the year the total PP output of Russian makers made about 322,000 tonnes, down 6% year-on-year. Almost all Russian makers have improved their production performance this year. The only exception is Stavrolen, which resumed its PP production only in mid-March due to December breakdown in 2011.

MRC

Grace and Braskem to produce green chemicals

(mfrtech) -- W. R. Grace & Co. has signed a multi-year agreement with Braskem to develop process technologies and catalyst solutions to produce green chemicals. The agreement is intended to advance the commercialization of a process to convert renewably sourced feedstocks into value-added products.

"This collaboration demonstrates our commitment to become a leading supplier of catalysts to the renewable chemicals industry."

The use of renewable feedstocks is a growing trend in the global chemical industry. The technology under development in the Grace-Braskem collaboration is based on carbon sources from renewable agricultural processes that contribute to lower carbon emissions than traditional feedstocks.

"We are pleased to have the opportunity to work in cooperation with the world leader in green plastics," said George Young, Vice President of New Business Development at Grace. "This collaboration demonstrates our commitment to become a leading supplier of catalysts to the renewable chemicals industry."

Braskem is a global leading producer of biopolymers and has announced plans to expand production of sugar-based bio-polyolefins. "We continue to innovate to meet market needs for more sustainable solutions," said Edmundo Aires, Vice President of Corporate Innovation and Technology at Braskem. "We're convinced this partnership will enable us to do this better."

Braskem is the leading thermoplastics resin producer in the Americas, with a goal of becoming the world leader in sustainable chemistry by 2020.

Grace is a global supplier of innovative catalyst technologies with a leading position in the petroleum refining and polyolefin market segments.
MRC