Polish companies plan to invest USD3.9 bln in petrochemical plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Poland's state-controlled companies Grupa Lotos SA and Grupa Azoty SA plan to build a 12 billion zloty (USD3.9 bln) petrochemical plant as part of the government's plan to strengthen national champions, as per 4-traders.

Seeking ways to give the economy a boost, the government has turned away from its pre-crisis declarations of continuing asset sales while keeping only a handful of companies it sees as strategic. It has adopted a more hands-on approach that focuses on strengthening the state companies it still has and using them to start new projects, mostly in heavy industries.

The two companies, Lotos and Azoty, signed a deal on Tuesday to conduct a feasibility study for a petrochemical plant to be located near Lotos' refinery with the chemical group Azoty the main customer.

The companies have up to PLN750 million tentatively available in financing from the government's investment vehicle, Polskie Inwestycje Rozwojowe.

Last year Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the government wants the corporate sector to increase its investment drive, making up for weak public investments in the face of public spending limits.

In order to make financing of such ventures easier, the government set up the PIR investment vehicle, which has only signed one financing deal--with the Lotos refinery.

As informed previously, the project will cost 5-6 billion zlotys (USD1.6-1.9 billion) and its construction is scheduled to begin in 2014 or 2015. The plant should be ready by 2018. The new plant would be adjacent to the Gdansk-based Lotos refinery and would use its products.

As MRC reported earlier, in November 2013, Grupa Lotos selected Axens to provide the technology license for a new Coker Naphtha Hydrotreater at its Gdansk refinery. This contract is part of the Gdansk refinery development and modernization program based on heavy residue coking technology.

Grupa LOTOS is one of the largest companies in Poland. It is an oil company operating both in Poland and abroad, whose business consists in the extraction and processing of crude oil, as well as wholesale and retail sale of high-quality petroleum products. Apart from Grupa LOTOS, which manages the refinery in Gdansk, the LOTOS Group currently comprises 15 other companies operating under the LOTOS name. One of them is based in Lithuania and another one in Norway.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Ineos has selected the location for a new ethane tank it plans to build at Grangemouth in Scotland, as per Reuters.

The site is set to be the first chemical plant in the country to receive shale gas from the United States.

The move will supplement declining North Sea supplies, which threatened to close the petrochemical site in October after a dispute with the Unite union.

Imports are expected to begin as early as 2016 after a GBR150 mln investment to an import terminal project.

As MRC informed earlier, in October 2012, Ineos announced it signed an agreement to secure ethane from the US that it will use as a feedstock to operate its steam crackers in Europe. It has agreed a long-term deal with Range Resources Corp. for the lifting of ethane from the Marcus Hook facility, located near Philadelphia, from 2015.

Ineos operates steam crackers in Grangemouth in the UK, Cologne in Germany, Lavera in France and Rafnes in Norway.

INEOS Group Limited is a privately owned multinational chemicals company consisting of 15 standalone business units, headquartered in Rolle, Switzerland and with its registered office in Lyndhurst, United Kingdom. It is the fourth largest chemicals company in the world measured by revenues (after BASF, Dow Chemical and LyondellBasell) and the largest privately owned company in the United Kingdom.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- INEOS ChlorVinyls has announced a price increase for suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) effective from 1 December 2013, reported the Switzerland-based producer at its site.

Prices of pipe grade suspension PVC delivered in bulk in Europe were raised to EUR1,145/tonne, while prices of pipe grade SPVC delivered in bulk in UK/Ireland rose to GBP1,025/tonne.

As MRC informed previously, Ineos already increased its SPVC prices in June, 2013, as follows: prices of pipe grade SPVC delivered in bulk in Europe was at EUR1,035/tonne; for pipe grade SPVC delivered in bulk in UK/Ireland - GBR935/tonne.

Earlier this year, Ineos and Solvay agreed to merge their chlorvinyls activities into a EUR 4.3 billion (USD5.6 billion) 50-50 joint venture. The combination would form a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) producer that will rank among the top three worldwide. The combined business would have around 5650 employees across nine countries and would pool each company's assets across the entire chlorvinyls chain. This includes PVC, which is the third most-used plastic in the world, caustic soda and chlorine derivatives.

INEOS ChlorVinyls is one of the major chlor-alkali producers in Europe, a global leader in chlorine derivatives and Europe's largest PVC manufacturer.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Higher propylene prices led to a proportional rise in polypropylene (PP) prices in Europe. European producers have announced an increase of EUR25-30/tonne for PP prices for the CIS countries, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

The December contract price of propylene in Europe was agreed by EUR30/tonne higher than in November. Consequently, European producers announced a virtually proportional price increase for PP to be shipped in December to the CIS markets.

Negotiations over December shipments of European PP began at the beginning of the week. Offers for homopolymer of propylene (homopolymer PP) were heard in the range of EUR1,180-1,240/tonne FCA. At the same time, some European producers can offer for export only homopolymer PP of raffia grade. Offers for block copolymers of propylene (PP-impact) started at EUR1,240/tonne FCA.

Some market participants said the current strengthening of the euro against the dollar and other national currencies, which started in the second half of November, had led to a further rise in European PP prices.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- India has lifted an anti-dumping duty imposed on polypropylene (PP) imported from Saudi Arabian suppliers, including Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC), the world’s biggest petrochemical maker, as per Bloomberg.

India imposed a 6.5% anti-dumping duty in November 2010 on PP imports from Saudi Arabia, Oman and Singapore because it said the shipments were valued at less than normal prices and would hurt domestic manufacturers.

Reliance Industries Ltd., controlled by Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, has a 70% share of the country’s polypropylene market, according to its website.

Saudi companies affected by the duty, including Advanced Petrochemicals Co. (APPC) and National Industrialization Co. (NIC), said at the time they would ask the World Trade Organization to pressure India to lift the tax. India and Saudi Arabia would be able to resolve the dispute without going to the WTO, India’s Trade Secretary Rahul Khullar said in December 2010.

Central Board of Excise and Customs Chairman S.K. Goel couldn’t immediately be reached on his office telephone for comment.

Total petrochemical exports from Saudi Arabia to India amount to USD200 million a year, Abdulrahman al-Zamil, a trade representative for Saudi petrochemical makers, said on 28 November, 2010.

The statement didn't mention the tax on polypropylene imports from Singapore and Oman. The duty was retroactive to July 30, 2009, and valid for five years from then.

As MRC reported previously, the Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue) Government of India vide its Notification No. 25/2013 -Customs dated 8th May 2013 had increased the customs duty on plastic polymers (except polycarbonate) from 5% to 7.5%.
MRC