Brazil Odebrecht mulls new ethane cracker and PE com

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Brazil-based construction company Odebrecht plans to build an ethane cracker and three polyethylene (PE) plants as part of a new project in West Virginia,, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing with reference to the state's governor's statement.

The complex, named the Ascent - Appalachian Shale Cracker Enterprise, would include the ethane cracker, three polyethylene plants, and associated infrastructure for water treatment and energy co-generation.

A purchase option for the anticipated project site in Parkersburg, West Virginia, has already been secured, according to state officials.

"Although we realize much work remains to be done, this announcement of a potential project is tremendous news for our state and our region," said West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, who called it a "game changer" for his state.

The governor did not disclose a timeline or capacity details.

The feasibility of the project, according to the governor's office, will depend on several variables -- including the contracting of long-term ethane supply, financing, regulatory approvals, and appropriate governmental support.

Braskem would be responsible for petrochemical-related activities as well as the commercialization of the polyethylene after the investment is completed.

"As the United States’ leader in polypropylene production and with a significant footprint already in the region, we are excited about today’s announcement," said Fernando Musa, CEO of Braskem America. "Should Ascent materialize, we look forward to serving our clients in the polyethylene market."

The state of West Virginia is close in proximity to both the Marcellus and Utica shale plays, giving it easy access to natural gas-based feedstocks.

As MRC wrote previously, Styrolution, the global leader in styrenics, and Braskem, the largest producer of thermoplastic resins in America and a global leader in biopolymers, has recently announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to investigate the formation of a joint venture in Brazil. The proposed 100,000 tonne plant would supply specialty styrenics, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and styrene acrylonitrile (SAN) copolymers, to customers in Brazil and throughout South America.

Braskem is Brazilian main producer of polyethylene and polypropylene. In addition with ongoing plants located in both petrochemical complexes, in April 2008 Braskem opened a 300,000 metric ton polypropylene plant in the city of Paulinia (Sao Paulo).
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US approves Freeport LNG expansion

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The US Department of Energy (DOE) has given the green light for additional exports of liquefied natural gas by Freeport LNG in south Texas, said Upstreamonline.

The company received conditional approval to export 0.4 billion cubic feet per day to countries that do not have free trade agreements with the US. That will give Freeport, which was already cleared to export 1.4 Bcfpd, a total capacity of 1.8 Bcfpd at its facility at Quintana Island, Texas.

The DOE said the review was "extensive" and "careful" and considered economic, energy security and environmental factors as well as public comments for and against. The agency however "determined that additional volume of exports from the terminal at a rate of up to 0.4 Bcf/d for a period of 20 years was not inconsistent with the public interest."

The expansion to Freeport marks the fifth such approval for the DOE, which cleared the Cove Point terminal in Maryland in September. Nearly two dozen export proposals have awaited consideration by multiple regulatory agencies that must review them.

The DOE said it would continue to consider the projects on a case-by-case basis. Natural-gas exports remain controversial in the US, with opponents arguing that sales abroad will drive up domestic prices for manufacturing and consumers.

Supporters contend LNG exports will have minimal impact on pricing and conversely will provide companies an incentive to increase output in areas with stagnant production.

The first LNG project to gain approval, a Louisiana terminal by Cheniere Energy, is about halfway complete and is due to be operational by late 2015.

As MRC wrote before, officials at BASF’s Freeport, Texas, site announced that the site will soon begin construction of a new, 160,000 ton per year ammonium sulfate crystallizer system at its caprolactam plant. This is a joint project with American Plant Food Corporation, Galena, Texas, a customer of BASF.
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The European plastics industry moving on up again in 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Polymer demand growth in Europe for 2013 is expected to be static compared with 2012, according to Applied Market Information Ltd., said Plastemart.

AMI calculates that the market for thermoplastics in Europe is currently 36.5 mln tons, a volume that is still nearly 4 mln tons less than the peak it hit in 2007. Although during 2010 and into 2011 the industry made a modest recovery from the devastating effects of the global downturn of 2008 and 2009, by the last quarter of 2011 the recovery was beginning to run out of steam in the face of the looming eurozone crisis. Although the drop in demand over 2012 and 2013 has been far less severe than in 2008-2009 - polymer producers and processors alike have been more savvy about managing their inventories and have not got caught out as they did in 2008 - the decline in government spending, manufacturing and consumer confidence still resulted in an overall contraction of polymer demand of just over 1% in 2012.

Central Europe also continues to show positive growth, even if some of the smaller countries remain vulnerable to external shocks. Poland is the only country in Europe which has not technically gone into recession since 2007. Although polymer demand growth has weakened, it is still managing to show some positive trends for appliance manufacturing and consumer packaging, even though automotive production in 2012 contracted substantially.

PET bottles for the packaging of alcoholic beverages replacing glass bottles; barrier sheet and multilayer rigid and flexible constructions replacing glass and tin cans; plastic one piece closures replacing two-piece closures and metal tops. While markets are expected to return to growth next year, AMI acknowledges that the effects will be patchy and there will continue to be winners and losers across the European plastics industry. The countries of Southern Europe will continue to seeing shrinking demand as their economies structurally readjust, while Germany and northern European markets (Benelux, UK, Nordic markets) are considered to be more economically sound, which should help to drive growth at least in line with GDP. Central European countries are also still expected to show good growth, driven by ongoing investments in car production and electrical goods manufacturing although the success of their plastics industry will be dependent on growth continuing in the West.

However, volume growth will continue to be offset by trends in lightweighting and downgauging meaning that polymer demand growth is unlikely to advance beyond GDP growth rates. As a result it is likely to be 2020 or beyond before the industry see demand back at its 2007 level again.

As MRC wrote before, in Europe, toiletries and cosmetics sectors are the largest consumers of polymers when comes to non-beverage applications, which account for 60% of total caps and closure industry polymer demand in Europe.

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Honeywell to modernize petrochemical plants for Sinopec Maoming Company

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Honeywell was selected by the Sinopec Maoming Company for business management and automation technology that will rejuvenate and improve operational performance at aging petrochemical plants in Guangdong Province, China, said Plastemart.

Honeywell's Profit Suite R400 process optimization software will be deployed at two of Maoming Company's ethylene-cracking facilities, helping to improve plant performance by increasing energy efficiency, improving flexibility of its operations, and maximizing the plants' yield of high-value products. The plants have been in operation for more than 50 years and currently produce 1 million tons of petrochemicals a year.

"Although new petrochemical plants are being built, globally the petrochemical industry is a mature industry, with many plants having been in operation for decades," said Aldous Wong, vice president and general manager for Honeywell Process Solutions, China. "Honeywell's process optimization solutions can breathe new life into these aging plants, boosting profitability by increasing throughput and yields, improving product quality, and reducing costs."

"We want to establish this project as a benchmark for other similar facilities within the Sinopec Group," said He Lijian, deputy chief engineer, Sinopec Maoming Company. "Using this Honeywell solution, Maoming Company is expecting an increase in production that would improve our profitability by more than USD6 mln per year. Honeywell's experience in advanced process control and support capabilities for a number of industrial projects in China helped us to decide to choose them as one of our trusted vendors."

Profit Suite R400 is the most comprehensive release of Honeywell's Advanced Process Control (APC) and Optimization technology portfolio, with the ability to integrate with many different distributed control systems (DCS) by multiple manufacturers, as well as legacy systems.

As MRC wrote before, UOP LLC, a Honeywell company, announced the launch of a new membrane element that more efficiently removes contaminants from natural gas and reduces the amount of valuable methane and natural gas liquids (NGLs) lost during the contaminant removal process.
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Tosoh Guangzhou to shut PVC plant in China

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Tosoh Guangzhou is likely to shut its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant for maintenance turnaround, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the plant is likely to be shut on November 16, 2013. It is likely to remain off-stream for around 5 days.

The intended closure has been attributed to shortage of feedstock.

Located in Guangzhou, China, the plant has a production capacity of 220,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed earlier, Tosoh Corporation announced in September it will construct a plant to produce Rzeta, the company’s new emission-free reactive amine catalyst for polyurethane foams. The plant will be built on the grounds of the ethyleneamine production facilities at the Nanyo complex for an estimated investment of JPY 2 billion (about EUR 15.3 million). Construction of the Rzeta plant is expected to be completed by November 2014.

Tosoh is one of the largest chlor-alkali manufacturers in Asia. The company supplies the plastic resins and an array of the basic chemicals that support modern life. Tosoh's petrochemical operations supply ethylene, polymers, and polyethylene.
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