LyondellBasell swings to Q3 net income of $467m

(ICIS) -- LyondellBasell's net income surged to $467m during the third quarter, compared with a net loss of $651m in the same period of last year, on the back of increased demand for polyolefins and higher ethylene sales prices, the polyolefins producer said on Friday.

Sales came in at $10.3bn, up 20% from $8.61bn in the July-September period in 2009. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) soared 53% to $1.20bn.

"We achieved excellent results in the third quarter as most of our segments performed very well," said CEO Jim Gallogly.

In the US, LyondellBasell's olefins and polyolefins results improved significantly compared with the third quarter last year, as the average ethylene sales price increased and polyolefins results rose based on an improved sales mix favouring domestic sales.

In Europe, improved olefins and polyolefins margins accounted for the majority of the improved performance, the company said.

Volume growth in polypropylene (PP) and PP compounding, due in large part to increased demand from the automotive sector, also contributed to the improvement.

MRC

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