Sekisui Chemical and Lubrizol to create CPVC JV in Thailand

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sekisui Chemical and Lubrizol will initialise a joint venture (JV) company in Thailand, in order to produce chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC), which is used as a raw material in pipes for supplying hot water, industry and sprinklers, said Chemicals-technology.

"The proposed plant will attract an investment of USD50m and will have a manufacturing capcity of 30,000mtpa."
The move follows the decision of both companies to set up new overseas production bases to strengthen their CPVC production capacity.

Set up in the latter half of 2013, the JV facility is expected to help both companies to meet expanding demand in Asia and global customer needs.

The proposed plant will attract an investment of USD50m and will have a manufacturing capcity of 30,000 metric tonnes per annum (mtpa). The facility, which is expected to be upgraded to 60,000mtpa by the end of 2016, is scheduled to commence production by the end of 2014.

Sekisui Chemical will hold a 51% stake in the proposed JV company, while wholly-owned subsidiary of Lubrizol, Lubrizol Advanced Materials, will have 49%. Lubrizol Advanced Materials president Eric Schnur said this is a significant step in expanding Lubrizol's CPVC business.

"And with the construction of this new manufacturing facility, we are better positioned to support their future business growth," Schnur added.

Sekisui Chemical and Lubrizol to create CPVC JV in Thailand

As MRC wrote earlier Lubrizol plans to spend USD125 million to build a Texas plant to supply resins and other materials to polyvinyl chlorine producers. The company said it expects the PVC market to grow in the coming years, especially in India and other developing countries. It added that the plant in Deer Park, near Houston, is the first step to a wider expansion in PVC.

Headquartered in Wickliffe, Ohio, United States, Lubrizol Corporation is a specialty chemical company that produces and supplies technologies.

Sekisui Specialty Chemicals is an industry leader in research and development of polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) products.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- C3 Petrochemicals plans to build a propane dehydrogenation (PDH) plant near Alvin, Texas, to produce polymer-grade propylene (PGP) and chemical-grade propylene (CGP), according to an air quality permit application that the company filed this month with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), said Plastemart.

Should the permit be approved, construction of the PDH plant will begin in January 2014, with start-up scheduled for Q4 2015, according to the permit application.

The PDH unit will use propane as its feedstock, the permit said. The produced PGP and CGP will be distributed to customers via pipeline.The unit will dehydrogenate the propane feedstock in two parallel reaction trains, the permit said. As part of the PDH process, ethane, ethylene and methane also will be produced. No information on production capacity of the petrochemicals was listed in the permit. The plant will be built on the grounds of Ascend Performance Materials’ Chocolate Bayou Chemical Manufacturing Complex.

Ascend Performance Materials is a global leader in the production of Nylon 6,6. We have a long history in the manufacture of Nylon 6,6. On June 1, 2009, SK Capital Partners, a private investment firm, purchased Solutia’s Integrated Nylon business and established Ascend Performance Materials Operations LLC. SK Capital Partners has assembled a strong executive team with deep industry roots, and a commitment to the Nylon 6,6 market.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Belgian-based Solvay is considering divesting its assets in the Argentine petrochemical producer Indupa, as part of a major restructuring and portfolio optimisation at Solvay, said Chemicals-technology.

The company owns a 69.9% interest in Indupa, while the rest is traded on the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange.
Indupa, with a manufacturing capacity of more than 500,000mtpa of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), runs facilities at Santo Andre, Brazil, and Bahia Blanca, Argentina.

Vertically integrated, the Santo Andre and Bahia Blanca facilities account for 60% and 40% of PVC production respectively.

Solvay's CEO Jean-Pierre Clamadieu was reported by Chemical Week as saying that the nylon and PVC businesses are the most challenged in the company's portfolio and the PVC business in Europe is in need of consolidation and rebalancing, as it is suffering from overcapacity.

According to the sources, the chemical company Mexichem could be interested in purchasing the Latin American PVC business.

As MRC wrote earlier, Solvay announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire a controlling interest in Sunshield Chemicals, an Indian company specializing in surfactants. This acquisition will enable Solvay's Novecare business to accelerate growth plans in India for the home and personal care, agrochemicals, coatings and industrial applications markets.

Indupa, which generated sales of EUR545m in 2011, had recurring earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of EUR45m.

Solvay, with a market share 27%, is the second largest PVC manufacturer in Europe, after Kerling with 29% of the market.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SIBUR has begun the construction of unit for separating methanol from propane fraction at Tobolsk-Neftekhim, according to the company's press release.

The new unit is the next step in SIBUR’s ongoing achievement to lower the content of methanol in the propane fraction, this time in a range not exceeding 50 parts per million. The new propane gas purification unit will have a projected capacity of up to 2.1 million tonnes per year. The project is based on SIBUR’s highly efficient proprietary simultaneous propane stream separation and dehydration technology.

In early 2011, Tobolsk-Neftekhim launched a new purification unit lowering methanol content to a level of less than 0.1%. In January 2012 another project was completed, lowering methanol content to a summer percentage of 0.015% and winter percentage of 0.035%.

The project documentation was developed by SIBUR’s engineering centre NIPIgazpererabotka and was approved by the Government Expert Review Board (Glavgosexpertiza). The construction site has been prepared and orders for long-lead equipment have been placed. The construction works have entered the preparation stage and are scheduled for completion in 2014.

As MRC reported earlier, Tobolsk-Polymer, located in the industrial zone of Tobolsk, in Tobolsk-Neftekhim, had scheduled the start-up of production of its first lots of polypropylene (PP) for April 2013. The main volume of construction and installation work has been completed, which allows the company to move to the pre-commissioning.

Besides, along with the implementation of major investment projects in Tobolsk, Sibur started construction works for installation of the main pipelines to transport a broad fraction of light hydrocarbons (NGL) from Purovsky ZPK to Tobolsk-Neftekhim.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - Ukraine's imports of polystyrene (PS) in January 2013 decreased by 37% from December 2012 and made 3,241 tonnes, according to MRC DataScope.

PS deliveries in January 2013 were up by 11% compared to the imports in January 2012. In January 2013 Russia's imports of polystyrene and styrene plastics made 12,221 tonnes.
The largest share in imports showed general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) - 912 tonnes, or 28% from the total imports of polystyrene. Nizhnekamskneftekhim and Styrolution divided the imports volumes equally.

The second place in the supplies took styrene-butadiene copolymer (SBS), deliveries of which amounted to 660 tonnes of material (20% of total imports). All the deliveries of the copolymer used in the production of films, were made by "Ukrplastic."

Imports of expandable polystyrene (EPS) decreased to 660 tons of material, compared to 813 tonnes in December 2012, where 580 tonnes of material were provided by SIBUR-Khimprom (Alfapor).

Imports of high-impact polystyrene (HIPS) dropped almost 2.5 times compared to the previous month and made only 485 tonnes. Decline in Russia's exports in the second half of 2012 and early 2013 affected significantly the imports of HIPS to Ukraine.



MRC