In November the Russian LLDPE market may face possible problems

MOSCOW (MRC) -- In November the Russian converters may face lack of LLDPE, in particular, butane grades, according to MRC Price reports.

Butane LLDPE offer in the Russian market is gradually lowering. Some marketers assume that the converters will face lack of supply in the second half of November. The main reason is the absence of the Russian production as well as limited offer from outside suppliers.

The only Russian LLDPE producer - Nizhnekamskneftehim - finished production early October before maintenance. The next scheduled production is expected only in December. The second largest supplier of butane LLDPE to the Russian market - Shurtanskiy Mining & Chemical Combine - has also suspended production for maintenance this month. Renewal of shipment to the Russian market is expected not earlier than late November, marketers suppose.

As a temporary alternative it could be possible to use the European LLDPE. But high euro exchange rate against ruble makes its cost considerably high for small Russian producers. Also it should be taken into account that butane LLDPE offer in Europe is not that big.

During the last two months many Russian companies-importers faced definite problems during LLDPE imports. Quite often during customs clearance 10% tax is retained at almost zero rate, at the same time the importers have to prove that it is LLDPE that is shipped. All these circumstances seriously complicate the procedure of LLDPE supply to the Russian market and also have an impact on its final cost.

All these factors, according to the experts' opinion, may result in lack of LLDPE C4 offer in the Russian market by mid-November. PE offer is gradually decreasing, small volumes of Nizhnekamsk and Shurtan products are offered on the average for 57.000 - 57.500 RUB/t, including VAT, FCA.

For more detailed information, see Price Reports ⌠Polyethylene in Russia.

MRC

(BBC News) -- Cement used to seal the Macondo well may have contributed to the blowout that caused the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, US investigators have found.

Both BP, which owned the well, and Halliburton, the contractor responsible for the cement, were aware of tests showing it was unstable, they said. Halliburton has denied the claims, saying the tests were invalid as they were on a different kind of cement.

The 20 April blowout led to the worst environmental disaster in US history. Hundreds of miles of coast were polluted. The well was finally capped on 15 July, after an estimated 4.9m barrels of oil (171m gallons) had leaked into the sea, and fully sealed last month.

MRC

(Plastemart) -- The Saudi Ports Authority (SPA) has inked a contract under which it will rent Imdad Company a piece of land of 396,000 square meters inside the King Fahd Industrial Port (KFIP) in Yanbu to construct warehouses and giant tanks to store solid and liquid petrochemicals produced by SABIC.

Imdad is in charge of logistical services in the Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC). Under the agreement, Imdad company will set up warehouses and giant tanks to store the solid and liquid petrochemicals produced by SABIC until they are exported through the seaport by containers.

MRC

(Plastemart) -- Croatian petrochemical producer Dioki has submitted a bid before the October 22 deadline to buy the Ravenna and Porto Torres sites of Eni-owned Vinyls Italia.

Vinyls Italia, formerly belonging to UK-based Ineos, went into receivership in May 2009, forcing the closure of production facilities for PVC and other related products in Ravenna, Porto Maghera and Porto Torres, all in Italy.

The government's industrial development ministry has since tried to sell the three sites through international tenders. A previous attempt to sell the assets fell through in May this year when Qatari engineering company Ramco Trading and Contracting pulled out of the negotiations. As part of the tender and in order to help push through the sale, Vinyls Italia's parent company Eni said it would supply vital raw materials and cede necessary assets to ensure a restart of the plants.

Since Dioki has no PVC production capacity, the acquisition of the Italian sites would make strategic sense, giving it a vertically-integrated outlet.

MRC

(Plastics News) -- Brazilian petrochemicals and polymers group Braskem SA announced at K 2010 that it has successfully completed early conceptual work on production of polypropylene derived from sugar cane ethanol and has committed to move ahead with basic engineering studies for commercial scale production.

The company said the timeline is for this basic engineering work to be completed during 2011. Subject to final approval, it will then commence construction of a commercial scale plant with a minimum capacity of 30,000 metric tons a year of polypropylene homo and copolymer.

The company has earmarked $100 million for the project, which is expected to deliver first commercial resins to the market in 2013.

Braskem started to supply its first bio-based polyethylene products earlier this year. The resins are produced using ethylene manufactured from sugar cane ethanol at its new facility at Triunfo, in the Rio Grande de Sol region of Brazil.

The key attraction of the bio-based PP to major brand owners and FMCG companies will be its environmental footprint.

MRC