Ukrainian SPVC imports grew by 74% in the first half of 2013

MOSCOW (MRC) - Imports of suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) to Ukraine increased by 74% in the first half of this year, according to MRC DataScope report.

Imports of SPVC to Ukraine in June on the back of seasonal factors rose by one-third compared with the May figure and totalled about 13,000 tonnes. The shutdown of Ukrainian producer Karpatneftekhim (group Lukoil) in the current year has led to an increase in imports of SPVC to 61,000 tonnes, up by 74% compared with 2012.

US producers producers accounted for the largest increase in SPVC supply, with more than 31,000 tonnes, which accounted for 53% of total Ukrainian SPVC imports. SPVC imports from Hungary and Poland in the first half of the year totalled 13,500 tonnes and 10,400 tonnes, accounting for 23% and 18% respectively of the total imports.

As MRC wrote before, Karpatneftekhim (group Lukoil) stopped its PVC production on 10 September 2012. The production capacity of the plant is 300,000 tonnes/year under the license of the German company Vinnolit. According to unofficial data, the decision on Karpatneftehim's restart must be taken in the coming days.
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Dow Chemical may sell businesses exposed to commodity swings

MOSCOW (MRC) - Dow Chemical Co will consider selling its paint, construction and chlorine businesses as it joins industry rivals in shedding units vulnerable to commodity price swings, said Reuters.

Dow, the largest U.S. chemical maker by sales, reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Thursday due to strong margins in its plastics business and higher sales of pesticides to farmers. Its shares rose 1.5 percent in morning trading.

Like competitor DuPont, the company is pushing hard into the agricultural sector, where sales have been booming on year-round demand for seeds and pesticides for the crops needed to feed an expanding global population. DuPont said on Tuesday that it planned to exit its titanium paint pigments business to focus on its agricultural unit, where higher sales helped to boost quarterly profit.

Dow Chemical has already divested non-core businesses worth about USD8 billion in revenue since 2009, and plans this year to close the previously announced sale of its polypropylene licensing and catalyst business and its plastics additives unit.

"One-third of our business is in low-cost commodity, cyclical-type business, where my competition is state-owned enterprises," Dow Chemical Chief Executive Andrew Liveris said. "My competition is racing to commoditize my products. That means I have to keep working them out of the portfolio and keep moving to areas of high-margin, high-technology."

On a post-earnings conference call with analysts, Liveris identified the company's Epoxy, or industrial paint, business as a candidate for divestment, as well its European building and construction and commodity chlorine derivatives units. "Here, we see the need for more dramatic interventions," he said. "These businesses are in the fix/take-action mode, which includes exploring all possibilities - including joint venturing or divesting them."

Dow Chemical spokeswoman Rebecca Bentley said the three businesses combined contributed USD6 billion in annual revenue.

We remind that a federal judge in Kansas City, Kansas, ordered Dow Chemical Co to pay USD1.2 billion in a price-fixing case involving chemicals used to make foam products in cars, furniture and packaging, according to court documents. Dow was one of several chemical company defendants named in a 2005 class action lawsuit alleging a conspiracy to fix urethane chemical prices, but it was the only defendant not to settle.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation. As of 2007, it is the second-largest chemical manufacturer in the world by revenue (after BASF) and as of February 2009, the third-largest chemical company in the world by market capitalization (after BASF and DuPont). Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber.
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BP spill compensation payouts leap in second-quarter

MOSCOW (MRC) - BP Plc's USD20 billion Gulf of Mexico oil spill compensation fund has almost run out after provision for costs so far leaped by USD1.4 billion in the second quarter, said Reuters.

The British oil company has just USD300 million left in the fund, and the deadline to file a business economic loss claim among Gulf coast businesses - which make up the bulk of claims -is not until April next year.

BP has said claims beyond what the fund can pay will be taken straight off future profits.

BP revealed the extra cost in its second quarter results, which missed forecasts due to the lagging effect of tax in Russia, where the price of Urals crude was weaker and due to the tax effects of a stronger dollar on a basket of currencies.

As MRC wrote previously, Rosneft acquired a 95% stake in TNK-BP, Russia's third-largest oil company, on March 21 from BP PLC (BP) and its partners.

Adjusted net profit coming in at USD2.712 billion compared with expectations of USD3.410 billion and USD3.6 billion a year ago.

Of the extra USD1.4 billion of spill costs - which come on top of a USD500 million cost in the first half - some USD900 million is for extra claims, while about USD500 million is for the administration costs of the claims administrator.

BP is locked in a legal battle over the compensation payouts with the administrator Patrick Juneau. It says Juneau is paying out "fictitious" claims due to a misinterpretation of the settlement.

BP also faces a resumption of its trial on civil charges in September. It increased its giant overall provision for the spill to USD42.4 billion from USD42.2 billion.
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Reliance and ONGC to team up

MOSCOW (MRC) -- State-run Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has signed a memorandum of understanding with fellow Indian company Reliance Industries which could see the pair share the latter's infrastructure on the country's east coast, reported Upstreamonline.

ONGC said the agreement would help minimise its capital expenditure as well as speed up the development of its deep-water fields which lie near Reliance's.

The two companies will now carry out a nine-month joint study to work out how they could share infrastructure, identify additional requirements and firm up commercial terms.

The companies intend to enter a formal agreement following the completion of the joint study.

We remind that, as MRC informed previously, Reliance Industries plans to expand capacity at its refineries in the western state of Gujarat. Earlier last year, Reliance unveiled an USD18 billion investment plan for India over the next five years.

Reliance Industries is one of the world's largest producers of polymers. The company's polymer production in 2010-11 (polypropylene, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride) made 4,094 kilo tonnes.
MRC

Lubrizol to introduce a flame-retardant thermoplastic polyurethane for medical applications

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Lubrizol Corp.'s LifeScience Polymers division has launched a flame-retardant thermoplastic polyurethane designed for medical applications, including wire and cable components, according to Plastemart.

The TPU is an expansion of a polymer the company introduced last year, AR-62, an extremely soft, non-plasticized material. This material can be extruded and injection molded, but also maintains a rubber feel.

To ensure it was suitable for medical applications, the TPU exhibits low smoke and toxicology. According to Ralf Hue-ther, global business manager of Lubrizol's LifeScience Polymers division, the TPU also is flame retardant with a limiting oxygen index of 30. That means it would have to be in an environment consisting of 30% oxygen for the flame to keep burning. The material contains no plasticizer, no solvents or any chemical reactions are involved in the process.

"So far we've seen potential applications for replacing materials like rubber," said Uwe Winzen, global marketing manager of Lubrizol's LifeScience Polymers division. "Now we're looking to go into applications that are a little harder. We're looking at more traditional products that wanted to have flame retardancy built into it but were not able to."

Winzen said because the material can be injection molded and extruded, it can be customized to different sizes and thickness depending on a customer's needs. Lubrizol can even mix and match hardness within the same product for customers who may want a soft shell on the inside of their products and a hard shell on the outside. Compounds can be molded together with 100% compatibility because each TPU has the same chemistry. This gives Lubrizol the ability to customize these materials to a variety of customer needs - including size, hardness and colour.

We remind that, as MRC informed previously, Lubrizol, an innovative specialty chemical company, is planning a four-year USD400 million global expansion of its chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) resin and compounding manufacturing sites. With continued strong global demand for the company's CPVC compounds, Lubrizol's expansion efforts will be divided into two phases.

The Lubrizol Corporation, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is an innovative specialty chemical company that apart from its production develops and supplies technologies to customers in the global transportation, industrial and consumer markets. Lubrizol's advanced polymer technology delivers exceptional performance for the plumbing, fire sprinkler, industrial and other building and construction related applications. Lubrizol is providing innovative solutions for its customers" high-performance application needs and remains committed to ongoing investment in its CPVC capabilities that support future growth.
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