Output of products from polymers in Russia rose by 13% in Q1, 2013

MOSCOW (MRC) -- In the first quarter, Russian converters of polymers increased production of finished products by 12,8% year-on-year, according to MRC analysts.

The sector of sheets production accounted for the largest production volume, while, by contrast, the output of bottles, flasks and similar articles from polymers slumped by 14,8% to 3.13 billion items. However, the output of these products in March rose by nearly a quarter from February and reached the level of 1.24 billion items.

The production of plates, non-porous sheets in March fell to 13,500 tonnes, while in February this index made 17,900 tonnes. In January-March, 2013, the total output of plates, non-porous sheets by Russian plants made about 51,000 tonnes, up 30% year-on-year.

In the construction sector, plastic windows and window sills accounted for the largest increase in production volumes. According to Rosstat, last month the output of these products amounted to 1.6 million square metres, up 22% from February. Overall, in January-March this year, the production volume of plastic windows and window sills made 3.9 million square meters, an increase of 21% year-on-year.

In March 2013, the output of doors and their polymer boxes reached 60,400 square metres, an increase of 26% from February. However, in January-March 2013, the total production volume of doors and polymer boxes grew by only 3,3% year-on-year.

The production of plastic pipes and fittings in March rose to 47,200 tonnes, up 12% from February. Over the first three months of 2013, the total output of plastic pipes and fittings went up to 127,000 tonnes, up 6,4% year-on-year.

Last month, the output of plates, polymer non-porous and non-reinforced films made about 70,900 tonnes, an increase of 9% compared to February. In January-March 2013, the total production volume of these products amounted to 183,000 tonnes, up 7,1% year-on-year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Fluor has been awarded a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract by South African Petroleum Refineries (SAPREF) for its Clean Fuels 2 project in Durban, South Africa, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing with reference to officials.

The undisclosed contract value was booked in the first quarter of 2013.

This new contract will be the first to be executed in Africa under Shell’s enterprise framework agreement with Fluor that encompasses engineering and project management services throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

The project will enable a substantial upgrade of the SAPREF refinery, thereby improving the quality of transportation fuels by reducing levels of sulfur, benzene and aromatics and meeting enhanced legislative requirements.

The agreement allows for the potential of an engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) contract to be signed at a later date.

As MRC wrote previously, Royal Dutch Shell had recently announced it plans to sell its only oil refinery in Australia, as the local industry struggles to compete with low-cost operators in Asia.

SAPREF is a joint venture between Shell SA Refining and BP Southern Africa. It is the largest crude oil refinery in the region, representing 35% of South Africa’s refining capacity.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sahara Petrochemicals Co. posted net earnings of SAR 125 million for Q1-13, soaring198 % y/y from SAR 42 million and 95% q/q from SAR 64 million, said Sahara.

Net profit for the first quarter of year 2013 reached an amount of SAR 125 million, compared with SAR 42 million for the same period in the previous year with an increase of 198%, and compared with SAR 64 million for previous quarter, with a an increase of 95 %.

Gross profit for the first quarter amounted to SAR 77 million compared with a gross loss of SAR (37.44) for the same period in the previous year.

The operational profit for the first quarter amounted to SAR 42 million compared with an operational loss of SAR (57.72) million for the same quarter of the previous year.

Earnings per share for the first three months of 2013 reached SAR 0.29 compared with SAR 0.10 for the same period in the previous year.

Increase of the net profit during this quarter compared with the same period of the previous year is mainly attributed to the improvement of the performance of Al Wahas plant in addition to the improvement of the results of the other companys affiliates due to the increase of sales prices, relative decrease of the feedstock prices and relative stability of production rates.

Increase of the net profit during this quarter compared with the previous quarter is mainly attributed to the improvement of the performance of Al Wahas plant in addition to the improvement of the results of the other companys affiliates due to the increase of sales prices, relative decrease of the feedstock prices and relative stability of production rates.

Increase of gross profits attained in the first quarter of 2013 is mainly attributed to the improvement of the performance of Al Waha Petrochemicals Company, an affiliate of Sahara , after completing the periodic maintenance of the propylene plant which was executed in the mid of the last year which apparently was reflected in the increase of the produced quantities besides producing new grades of polypropylene with high financial returns, in addition to the increase of the sales prices there was relative decrease of the feedstock prices.

As MRC wrote earlier, Sahara Petrochemicals plans to start up four joint venture plants over the next two years, completing the company’s initial expansion programme in Jubail.

Sahara Petrochemicals performs participation and supervises foundation and establishing several limited liability companies in Al Jubail Industrial City with the participation of Saudi and foreign companies that have the modern skills and technologies; to produce and market its chemical and petrochemical products such as propylene, polypropylene, ethylene and polyethylene.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Gruppo Mossi & Ghisolfi began building the world’s first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant in northwestern Italy, the company said.

The first stone for the EUR110 million (USD159 million) factory was laid today, Tortona, Italy-based Mossi & Ghisolfi said on the Bio Crescentino website. The refinery will produce 40,000 to 45,000 tons of ethanol a year from about 10 times that weight of a bamboo-like grass called Arundo Donax, it said.

The Crescentino project is a step toward commercializing second-generation biofuels, which aren’t made from food crops, unlike conventional bio-ethanol. The plant, scheduled to open in 2012, will be 10 times the size of the largest trial facilities operating now, Novozymes A/S said in a statement.

The refinery "signals the dawn of a new green era," said Poul Ruben Andersen, marketing director of bioenergy at Bagsvaerd, Denmark-based Novozymes, which makes the enzymes needed to help create the fuel. "There is a cure for the world’s addiction to fossil fuels."

Novozymes said the volume of fuel produced will amount to about 13 million gallons (50 million liters) a year.
When Arundo Donax isn’t available, wheat stalks and rice husks will be used, Mossi & Ghisolfi said on the project’s website. A biomass electricity plant on the same site will burn waste material to generate about 10 megawatts of electricity, according to the company.

Novozymes Chief Executive Officer Steen Riisgaard said in February that the market for cellulosic ethanol is set to ramp up from 2013, with London-based BP Plc (BP/) and Abengoa SA (ABG) of Spain planning U.S. plants by then, and refineries are also possible in Brazil and China.

As MRC wrote earlier, M&G Group, announces it has signed a Licensee Agreement with Alpek, S.A.B. de C.V. (Alpek) for IntegRex PTA technology, said the producer in its statement. The technology will be used in the construction of M&G's previously announced 1,200,000 MT per annum PTA plant at Corpus Christi, Texas. M&G also announces, Alpek has purchased for a price of USD350,000,000, a multiyear sourcing agreement covering rights to 400,000 MT of PET (made with 336,000 MT of integrated PTA) per year.

M&G Group is a family owned chemical engineering and manufacturing group headquartered in Tortona, Italy. M&G Group operates in the PET resin industry in the Americas through its wholly-owned holding company, Mossi & Ghisolfi International S.A. (M&G International). M&G International is presently a leading producer of PET resin for packaging applications in the Americas, with a production capacity in 2012 of approximately 1.6 million tons per year. Thanks to its proprietary Easy-up PET Technology M&G International currently owns the world's largest single line PET plants in Altamira, Mexico (single line of 490,000 MT/year nominal capacity) and Suape, Brazil (single line of 650,000 MT/year nominal capacity).
MRC