The year-to-date EPS output in Russia exceeded 50,000 tonnes

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russian makers have increased EPS production since the beginning of the year and reached the production level of 51,400 tonnes of the material, report MRC analysts.
In August, 2012, EPS output in Russia reached its historical maximum exceeding 9,000 tonnes of the material.

In August, SIBUR-Khimprom officially announced a launch of the second EPS production line at Perm with the production capacity of 50,000 tpa. As a result, the total capacity of Perm facility rose to 100,000 tonnes of EPS per year. According to market participants, preparations for the launch of the second line were conducted in phases, starting from Q2 2012. This allowed to increase the capacity of the plant gradually from 4,200 tonnes of EPS monthly in early 2012 to almost 8,400 tonnes in September 2012.

As a result, the year-to-date EPS output at Perm increased to 6,900 tonnes of the material, which is equivalent to 80% of the potential capacity utilization.
Also, the increased production was influenced by Plastik (Uzlovaya), which reached its planned indices of 750 tonnes in September. In July, 2012, the production was reduced to 280 tonnes.

In September, Angarsk Polymers plant shut its EPS production for maintenance. It is expected that the outage will last one or two months.

MRC

(uop) -- China’s Jiutai Energy (Zhungeer) Co. Ltd. has licensed Honeywell’s UOP methanol-to-olefins (MTO) technology to convert methanol from coal into key plastics building blocks, announced Honeywell company.

Honeywell’s UOP/Hydro MTO process converts methanol from gasified coal or natural gas to produce high yields of ethylene and propylene, building block materials used in the production of films, packaging, plastics and other petrochemicals. The breakthrough technology allows producers in countries such as China to tap abundant coal resources, rather than more expensive petroleum, to produce petrochemicals.

Jiutai will produce 600,000 tpa of ethylene and propylene at its facility in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia Province, China. In addition to technology licensing, Honeywell’s UOP will provide basic engineering, catalysts, adsorbents, specialty equipment, technical services and training for the project, which is expected to start up in 2014.
MRC

(plastemart) -- Exxon Mobil Corporation has announced an agreement that will significantly increase its production acreage in the prolific Bakken oil shale region in the U.S., states of North Dakota and Montana.

ExxonMobil and its subsidiary, XTO Energy, signed an exchange agreement with Denbury Onshore, LLC, a subsidiary of Denbury Resources Inc., to acquire 100% of Denbury’s Bakken shale assets, which consist of approximately 196,000 net acres in North Dakota and Montana, with expected production in the second half of 2012 of more than 15,000 oil equivalent barrels per day. As MRC informed earlier, Exxon Mobil along with a couple of other petrochemical giants has recently unveiled their plans of expansion of their petrochemical facilities.

The agreement increases ExxonMobil’s holdings in the Bakken region by about 50% to nearly 600,000 acres, giving the company a significant presence in one of the major U.S. growth areas for onshore oil production.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3 percent of the world's oil and about 2 percent of the world's energy.
MRC

(China daily) -- Hengli Petrochemical Industrial Park, which mainly produces purified terephthalic acid (PTA), began operations on Wednesday in Dalian, Northeast China's Liaoning province.

With a total investment of 26 billion yuan (USD4.12 billion), the project is expected to make an annual revenue of 200 billion yuan by 2015, according to Chen Jianhua, president of Jiangsu-based Hengli Group, one of the world's biggest weaving companies.

Chen said they have made great efforts to make the project environmentally friendly, using the advanced technology of US-based Invista, one of the world's largest integrated producers of polymers and fibers.

Li Wancai, mayor of Dalian, said the new PTA project has great significance for the extension of Dalian's petrochemical production chain and the structural adjustment of the industry.

The petrochemical park covers a planning area of 110 square kilometers. By 2030, it is expected to accommodate 40 million-tonne class oil refining, 7 million-tonne PTA and other petrochemical products, such as ethylene, propylene, PX, rubber, polyester and polyurethane.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- MRC news digest as of 24.09.12.

1. Nefnekhimia to shut PP production for maintenance.

Moscow oil refinery will shut its production for a tow-month turnaround starting from September 21. The polypropylene (PP) complex will be shut along with oil refining, report MRC analysts. Preventive maintenance at Neftekhimia will be shorter and will also start since September 21 and last around 25 days.

2. Asian PET prices are rising on an increase of the feedstocks cost.

Asian PET prices keep growing steadily on higher costs of the local producers caused by a rise in PTA and MEG prices. By the end of the week export quotations of the Korean and Chinese PET had increased by USD20-40/tonne, report MRC analysts. Despite the decline in consumer activity from makers of soft drinks and water, Asian producers of bottle PET granulate keep raising prices for their production. Local makers claim that production costs have increased significantly while the margin of the plants has slashed. The continuous growth of prices do not allow decrease PET price offers below the current price-level. Only last month, the spot price of PTA at Chinese ports rose by USD68-70/tonne. Last week price-offers of Korean PET makers grew by USD30-40/tonne. Chinese PET has grown in price by USD20-30/tonne. According to Asian PET producers, price offers for the material in the spot market in September will keep rising since local facilities will try to recover their margins.

3. Xinjiang Zhongtai launches new PVC production.

Chinese company Xinjiang Zhongtai began a trial run of the third plant for suspension PVC production with the capacity of 900,000 tonnes per year. The Chinese maker is planning to reach the rated capacity by the end of the year, report MRC analysts. According to company representatives, the test run of the first line of the new plant with the capacity of 450,000 tonnes took place on September 16. The company is going to fully reach the industrial volumes of PVC production by the end of September. The launch of the second line of the plant is scheduled for November. The third plant of Xinjiang Zhongtai in Fukang has a total capacity of 900,000 tonnes of PVC and its production will be aimed at meeting the requirements of the domestic market.

4. Etilen-Polietilen plans to resume LDPE production from September 25.

Azerbaijani PE producer Etilen-polietilen once again postponed the resumption of production after a scheduled outage for maintenance. The plant is going to resume LDPE production starting from September 25, report MRC analysts. On September 4, an unpleasant incident occurred at the plant. KAMAZ, the tank of which holds 20 cubic meters of gas, exploded at E-12 section while ethylene was injecting in the storage. There were no injuries, nor was there a fire or serious damage.

5. Russian PET prices have remained stable by mid-September.

Starting from August, Russian producers’ PET price-offers have remained unchanged despite a major rise in PTA and PET granulate prices in the Asian markets, report MRC analysts. In September, Russian producers preferred to keep their PET prices at the level of Rb60,000-61,000/tonne, CPT Moscow, including VAT. Despite the stability of prices in the Russian domestic market, price offers of Asian bottle PET have increased by USD50-80/tonne since September 17 and made USD1,500-1,540/tonne, DAP Moscow.

6. PVC prices keep rising in the foreign markets.

Prices keep growing in the foreign markets. Chinese makers announced a further increase in export prices on the back of a major rise of enquiries for PVC from Russian traders. Chinese PVC makers’ export prices have risen on average by USD30/tonne since early September. Suppliers of North-American PVC are going to get an increase in prices for October shipments by USD40-60/tonne on the limited export quotas and high demand in the main export markets. European makers have refrained from commentaries regarding the October price-level for the time being. September volumes were contracted on average at EUR840-870/tonne, FCA, which makes European PVC uncompetitive in the Russian market on the back of strengthening of euro exchange rate against the dollar and Russian rouble.

7. Russian PET output grew by 8% in August.

In August, PET production in Russian rose by 2,800 tonnes from July, up 8%, report MRC analysts. The total August production volumes of PET in Russia made 36,400 tonnes. Despite the increase compared to July levels, the year-on-year August indices of PET production decreased by 5,000 tonnes. The unscheduled outage at Bashkir plant Polief and partial capacity utilization at Kaliningrad plant Alco-Naphtha was the cause of insufficient production of the material last month. A significant increase in Russian PET production is not expected in September.

8. PVC production in Russia slashed by 15% in August.

In August, Russian makers reduced PVC output by 15% from July to 40,700 tonnes. The year-to-date total PVC production in Russia made about 410,000 tonnes, report MRC analysts. Russian producers expectedly slashed PVC production in August on scheduled outages at SayanskKhimPlast and Kaustik (Sterlitamak) - two major producers. Kaustik (Sterlitamak), the second largest PVC producer in the Russian Federation, has shut its suspension PVC production for a two-week turnaround from July 17. The PVC production had been resumed by August 4. In August, the production volume made about 15,400 tonnes. The only producer of emulsion PVC in Russia - Khimprom (Volgograd) manufactured in August slightly more than 2,900 tonnes of the resin. In general, over the past eight months the total PVC production by Russian producers made about 410,000 tonnes, up 11% year-on-year. The production volume of suspension PVC grew by 11% and made about 395’000 tonnes.

9. PP production in Russian rose by 19% in August.

In August, Russian makers increased the PP output to 62,000 tonnes, up 19% from July. The growth of production volumes was due to the increase of capacity utilization of Russian producers, report MRC analysts. Stavrolen, Ufaorgsintez and Tomskneftekhim increased PP production volumes in August. In general, in January-August, the total PP production in Russia made slightly more than 436,000 tonnes, down 4% year-on-year. In September, decline in production is expected at four plants: Neftekhimia (a scheduled 25-days’ maintenance from September 21), Nizhnekamskneftekhim (a scheduled weekly maintenance), Stavrolen (temporary absence of PP), Tomskneftekhim (a scheduled 4-days’ maintenance).

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