Shell eyes sale of Australia downstream business

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Vitol Group, the world’s largest independent oil trader, is considering a bid for some of Royal Dutch Shell's Australian downstream operations, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Shell, Europe’s biggest oil company, is stepping up asset sales after spending a record USD45 billion on projects and acquisitions last year. Its earnings from refining and marketing dropped by almost half to USD892 million in the three months to September.

The Hague-based company’s Australian unit said in April it would sell the Geelong refinery to focus on larger plants, such as the Pulau Bukom refinery in Singapore. The Geelong facility, which processes about 120,000 bpd of oil, may be converted to a fuel import terminal if a sale isn’t completed, according to its website.

Shell also has a network of about 900 filling stations in Australia, two-thirds of which are operated by its retail partner Coles Group Ltd., owned by Wesfarmers Ltd. Spokesmen for Shell, Vitol, Macquarie and TPG declined to comment. Shell plans to sell about AD3 billion (USD2.7 billion) of Australian assets and is talking to parties including TPG and a group that includes Macquarie, the Australian Financial Review reported today, citing unidentified people.

Vitol agreed in 2011 to buy the bulk of Shell’s downstream business in 14 African countries, alongside Africa-focused private equity firm Helios Investment Partners, for about USD1 billion. The Swiss company owns and operates refineries in the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland and the Netherlands with a refining capacity of about 150,000 bpd, according to its website. It also has a storage terminal venture with facilities in 14 countries.

Australia’s Macquarie Capital agreed in August to buy 45% of Singapore’s Helios Terminal Corp. from Oiltanking for an undisclosed sum, the closely-held German company said Aug. 12. Oiltanking bought the terminal on Jurong Island, which comprises 18 storage tanks, from Chemoil Energy for USD285 million a year ago.

As MRC wrote before, Ukraine took its first major step away from dependency on Russian gas imports on Thursday when it signed a USD10 billion shale gas deal with Shell. The 50-year production sharing agreement, signed on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, marks the biggest contract yet to tap shale gas in Europe and the largest foreign investment in the former Soviet republic.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Dutch painting and chemicals company Akzo Nobel NV said Wednesday that trading into the fourth quarter of 2013 was in line with previous trends, and the economic environment continued to be challenging, said Marketwatch.

As previously indicated, AkzoNobel's full year 2013 operating income before incidental items is unlikely to exceed EUR908 million.

The Performance Improvement Program is on track to achieve its 2013 targets. Restructuring charges are expected to exceed EUR300 million, largely in line with prior indications for 2013. For 2014, we see continued opportunities to invest in additional efficiency gains and now anticipate charging at least EUR250 million in the year.

During the fourth quarter, the sale of the Building Adhesives business was successfully completed, which will result in an incidental profit of around EUR200 million. This is expected to be largely offset by additional incidental charges, including a non-cash write-down in Specialty Chemicals, among others.

Further details will be included in the 2013 results, which remain subject to final closing and audit review. The Q4 2013 results will be announced on 6th February 2014, and a Capital Markets Day will be held in London on March 11, 2014.

Trading into the fourth quarter of 2013 has continued to be in line with previous trends, and the economic environment continued to be challenging. As previously indicated, AkzoNobel’s full year 2013 operating income before incidental items is unlikely to exceed EUR908 million.

During the fourth quarter, the sale of the Building Adhesives business was successfully completed, which will result in an incidental profit of around EUR200 million. This is expected to be largely offset by additional incidental charges, including a non-cash write-down in Specialty Chemicals, among others.

As MRC wrote before, AkzoNobel completed the sale of its Primary Amides chemicals business to PMC Group effective December 31, 2013. Under the terms of the agreement, a manufacturing facility in Kyungju, South Korea, and all 37 employees will transfer to PMC Group with immediate effect, along with the erucamide, oleamide and other primary and secondary amides sold under the Armoslip trade names.

Akzo Nobel N.V., trading as AkzoNobel, is a Dutch multinational, active in the fields of decorative paints, performance coatings and specialty chemicals. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the company has activities in more than 80 countries, and employs approximately 55,000 people.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- PS Japan Corp, Japan is in plans to shut its PS plant for maintenance, according to Apic-online.

According to a Polymerupdate source in Japan, the company operates two PS lines at Chiba in Japan with production capacities of 200,000 mt/year and 45,000 mt/year, respectively.

The company is likely to undertake a maintenance turnaround at the smaller plant in March 2014. The shutdown is expected to remain period of around one month.

As MRC informed previously, Japanese petrochemical producer - Taiyo Vinyl Corp., a subsidiary of Tosoh Group, is in plans to shut its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant for maintenance in July 2014 for a period of about one month. Located at Osaka in Japan, the PVC plant has a production capacity of 170,000 mt/year.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Deceuninck North America, a leading designer and manufacturer of high-quality systems for windows, doors, and outdoor living, has recently added three PVC lineal lamination lines to its existing lamination capabilities to meet consumer demand for a wider variety of color customization options, reported 12News.

"The demand for lamination tripled in the past year," said Filip Geeraert, president and CEO of Deceuninck North America. "Deceuninck's addition of three new lamination lines reflects our commitment to meeting this demand for more customized color solutions that conform to design specifications and help businesses and homeowners give their space a signature look. This expansion allows us to continue to provide the high level of service that our customers expect."

PVC lamination involves the covering of PVC lineals with a high-performance laminate that adds wood grains and colors, enhancing the look and quality of window framing in commercial and residential buildings.

As MRC informed previously, in 2012, Deceuninck had secured EUR140 million (USD171 million) of financing from a syndicate of banks to cover the next five years. The new five year funds will replace credit facilities put in place in September 2009, consisting of a syndicated bank facility expiring in September 2013 and senior secured notes maturing in September 2014.

Deceuninck NV is a Belgian designer and producer of PVC systems for windows and doors, interior, roofline & cladding and terraces. The company extrudes PVC and the single base material Twinson. Founded in 1937, with its headquarters in Hooglede-Gits, the Deceuninck Group operates in more than 75 countries and has 35 subsidiaries across Europe, North America and Asia, including the United States, United Kingdom, Russia and Turkey.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- All 1,350 staff at the Ineos site in Grangemouth have signed up to the company’s revised pension plan as well as accepted its new terms and conditions, as per Ein News.

As part of the arrangements, it is confirmed that current salaries for the existing workforce will remain unchanged.

According to the company, the acceptance of these changes represents the next milestone in securing the GBP300m investment needed for the company to continue trading and build a new terminal to import Shale Gas from the USA.

Calum MacLean, Ineos Grangemouth (UK) chairman, said: "This is another important step in the rebirth of the Grangemouth site. With our costs coming under control, the shareholders are committed to making good on their promise of a ?300m investment, which will allow us to build a new terminal and use US shale gas as a new raw material for the petrochemicals site."

Ineos is also to more than double the number of apprentices and graduate recruits over the next three years, added MacLean.

As MRC wrote previously, in December 2013, Ineos unveilsed a plan that will transform the economics of the loss-making Grangemouth site, making it almost instantly profitable. Britain is to see its first deliveries of US shale-derived gas in 2016 when Ineos completes a GBP300m investment programme at its Grangemouth plant in Scotland.

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.
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