Arkema announces a further increase for its EVA copolymers

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Following a EUR50/tonne price increase on August 1st 2013, Arkema, a France-based chemical manufacturer, has announced a further EUR50/tonne price increase effective early September for its entire Evatane range - high content Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) copolymers, according to the company's press release.

Both price increases, amounting to EUR100/tonne over the August and September period, have become necessary following two consecutive months of raw material cost increases, while EVA market prices have significantly eroded since the beginning of 2013.

Marketed under the trademark Evatane, Arkema's EVA products are functional polyolefins used in highly diverse industrial applications, including hotmelt, cable, multilayer packaging film, technical polymer modification, solar panel, petroleum additives, bitumen and inks.

As MRC wrote previously, Arkema has recently declared a project to divest its tin stabilizer business to PMC Group, a New Jersey-based performance plastics and chemicals manufacturer. This planned divestment of organometallic products includes Fascat catalysts, Thermolite tin stabilizers and fine chemicals. Therefore, Arkema strives to refocus its activities on expanding core specialty businesses.

Arkema is a leading European supplier of chlorochemicals and PVC. Kynar and Kynar Flex are registered trademarks of Arkema Inc. Moody's Investors Service has upgraded Arkema S.A.'s senior unsecured rating to Baa2 from Baa3. The outlook on the rating was changed to stable from positive.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Technology from Honeywell's UOP has been selected to produce key ingredients for fuels and synthetic rubber in China, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing with reference to officials' announcement.

China's Panjin Heyun New Material Co. will use UOP's C4 Oleflex process to produce isobutylene, a key ingredient for fuels and synthetic rubber. This is UOP's third C4 Oleflex license in China this year.

Panjin Heyun New Material Co. will also use UOP's Butamer process, which converts normal butane to isobutane, thereby maximizing the feedstock utilization to the Oleflex process.

Southeast Asia is the world's largest producer of rubber, and China is the largest consumer, accounting for 33% of the world's rubber consumption, according to a 2012 report. China's economy is expected to grow about 8% this year, further increasing the country's need for key materials.

"UOP technology is currently being used in China to produce about 5 million metric tons annually of key petrochemicals, and we look forward to working with Panjin to continue supporting the country's efforts," said Pete Piotrowski, senior vice president and general manager of Honeywell's UOP process technology and equipment business.

The new unit, which is expected to start up in 2014, will process approximately 400,000 tpy of isobutane feedstock at its facility in Liaoning Province, China. UOP will provide the engineering design, technology licensing, catalysts, adsorbents, equipment, staff training and technical service for the project.

As MRC informed previously, UOP LLC, a Honeywell company, has been recently selected to provide technology for the world's largest on-purpose propylene production facility, located on the U.S. Gulf Coast. Ascend Performance Materials Operations LLC will use Honeywell's UOP C(3) Oleflex process technology to convert propane to propylene, a key ingredient in the production of materials such as nylon, films and packaging. Petrochemical makers are installing additional propylene capacity to meet growing demand and to make up for the shortage of propylene production from traditional refining and petrochemical sources.

Besides, OOO Kirishinefteorgsintez selected Honeywell to supply its experion process knowledge system (PKS) and advanced alarm manager system at the company"s refinery in Kirishi, in the Leningrad region of Russia.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Xuzhou Haitian Petrochemical has restarted its polypropylene (PP) plant, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the plant restarted on September 18, 2013. It was shut on August 26, 2013 owing to shortage of propylene feedstock.

Located in Jiangsu province, China the plant has a production capacity of 200,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed previously, in October 2012, Xuzhou Haitian Petrochemical started commercial production at a new PP plant with the capacity of 200,000 tpa in Jiangsu Province.The new plant will produce PP chips for the production of yarns, copolymers and pipe grades.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Market players consider PVC supplies from USA limited as availability from the country is also expected to be curtailed by planned shutdowns at domestic producers, according to Plastemart.

Shintech has halted production at its PVC complex in Louisiana for three weeks in H2-September. OxyVinyls is also slated to undergo a shutdown at its 950,000 tpa PVC plant in Pasedana for 2-3 weeks in October.

The US is the largest import supplier of PVC for Turkey, Egypt and China.

As MRC wrote previously, scheduled and unscheduled maintenance works at the Russian plants as well as a serious decline in imports led to a shortage of PVC with a K value of 70. By early September, prices reached the level of Rb50,000/tonne, according ICIS-MRC Price Report. The deficit began to be felt in the second half of August. And by early September, the lack of the resin in the Russian market increased in anticipation of the shutdowns at Bashkir Soda Company (Sterlitamak) and KAUSTIK (Volgograd).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Foster Wheeler has signed a technical services agreement with OJSC Khabarovsk Oil Processing Refinery to provide construction management services for a hydroprocessing project at the refinery in Russia’s Far East, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The terms of the agreement were not disclosed, and bookings will be recorded as work is released by OJSC.

The objective of the project is to produce more higher-value, lighter products. The complex includes a hydrocracker, hydrotreater, hydrogen unit, amine regeneration unit, sour water stripper, sulfur recovery unit, vapor recovery unit, waste water treatment unit, ground flare, tank farm and pump houses.

"Foster Wheeler has been working at this refinery for ten years," said Umberto della Sala, chief operating officer of Foster Wheeler. "We executed the front-end engineering design for the entire hydroprocessing complex, basic design for the hydrogen production facility, design and supply of the steam reformers for the hydrogen plant, and have been providing on-going project management consultancy services as the project progressed into the engineering, procurement and construction phases."

As MRC reported earlier, Lanxess had awarded a subsidiary of Foster Wheeler's Global Engineering and Construction Group an engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCm) contract for a new ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber plant to be built in Jiangsu Province, China. Besides, Foster Wheeler was awarded a contract by Shell Global Solutions to develop the basic engineering package for a world-scale mono-ethylene glycol (MEG) facility at Ras Laffan, Qatar.

Foster Wheeler supplies the CFB scrubber technology globally through its five operating units located in North America, Europe and Asia which are supported by Foster Wheeler’s scrubber technology center, FW Graf Wulff, located in Friedrichsdorf, Germany.
MRC