PC imports in the Ukrainian market increased by 17% in January-August 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) - Ukraine's imports of polycarbonate (PC) increased to 3,000 tonnes in January-August 2014, up 17% year on year, according to MRC DataScope report.

Injection moulding sector, which takes the largest share of the market (60%), for the period increased by 7% to 1,300 tonnes.
Extrusion sector (market share of 25%) consumed almost 700 tonnes of PC granules, nearly doubling compared to the same period a year earlier.

This trend has resulted from the tendency to import substitution of Russian PC sheets in the Ukrainian market.
Blow moulding sector (15% of the Ukrainian market of PC) for January-August showed an increase of 25% from the last year level, reaching 480 tonnes.

Market players expect buying activity to increase with the beginning of autumn. Despite complicating economic and political situation in the country, some companies have continued to successfully carry out their activities.

It is difficult to say clearly regarding the cooperation between Russian and Ukrainian companies so far. Some of them have kept relationship, others - not.

Ukrainian market of polycarbonate completely depends on import, as the country has not processing capacities. The main volumes of PC are imported from Europe (Sabic, Bayer, Styron).


Exporters are loyal to the pricing in the Ukrainian market. Domestic prices since the beginning of this year to a greater extent depend on the exchange rate, rather than on other factors.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The plant engineering and construction specialists, Uhde Inventa-Fischer, have executed the revamp of a plant for the production of bottle and packaging-grade PET for Indorama Ventures Poland Sp. Z.o.o. in Wloclawek, Poland, as per Packaging Europe.

The capacity of the polycondensation plant, which was built and commissioned by Uhde Inventa-Fischer in 2002, was increased from 160,000 to 216,000 tonnes per annum. At the same time, the production costs have been considerably reduced through economies of scale and an improvement in energy and feedstock efficiency.

The revamp, which focussed on optimizing all reactors, product pipe systems and utilities, was implemented swiftly and efficiently in order to achieve minimum plant downtime without compromising high quality standards. Uhde Inventa-Fischer's scope of supplies included the basic and detail engineering, supply of all core equipment and supervision of the revamp and recommissioning processes.

As MRC wrote previously, Indorama Ventures is going to expand the PET polymers production capacity in the USA by setting up a new plant with a capacity of 540,000 tonnes per year, according to the decision made by the Board of Directors of Indorama Ventures PCL at their meeting dated November 14, 2012. This expansion, which is expected to be completed in Q4 2015 will take IVL's total capacity in North America of PET polymers up to 2,100,000 tonnes per annum.

Uhde Inventa-Fischer is a leading international engineering company located in Berlin, Germany, and Domat/Ems, Switzerland. Uhde Inventa-Fischer’s scope of services includes the development, engineering and construction of industrial plants for the production of polyester, polyamide and polylactic acid. The company has built and commissioned more than 400 production plants throughout the world. In 2004 Uhde Inventa-Fischer joined the ThyssenKrupp Uhde Group, which has now become part of ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions AG.

Indorama Ventures is a leading producer in the polyester value chain in Thailand with strong global network and manufacturing across Asia, Europe and North America. Its products serve major players in diversified end use markets, including food, beverages, personal and home care, health care, automotives, textile, and industrial. The company"s main products are PTA, PET and polyester fibre, which are distributed across the world.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Eastman Tritan copolyester MXF121, an opaque material, was selected as the material of construction for the new Echo-Screen III hearing screener from Natus Medical, reported Eastman on its site.

Eastman is helping medical companies meet customer needs and regulatory requirements with the introduction of this revolutionary material. Launched at the 2014 Medical Design & Manufacturing show, the material is intended for use in hand-held and other medical-device housings. Tritan MXF121 is free of bisphenol A (BPA), tough and resistant to aggressive cleaners and disinfectants.

The Echo-Screen III device is used primarily for newborn hearing screening and is a compact, all-in-one device that incorporates transiently evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE), distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) and auditory brainstem response (ABR) capabilities. Natus Medical, a global leader in newborn hearing screening solutions, has manufactured and sold Echo-Screen technology for the past 10 years. To answer customer needs, the company established new material requirements for its infant care products, beginning with the Echo-Screen III hearing screener.

The device components were originally designed and tooled using polycarbonate (PC)/acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) alloy. Natus Medical selected Eastman Tritan copolyester MXF121 for its hearing screener because, compared with PC/ABS, the material is not manufactured with BPA and has superior chemical resistance. Tritan MXF121 also is made without halogens and ortho-phthalate plasticizers.

The Echo-Screen III hearing screener made with Eastman Tritan copolyester MXF121 also meets flame resistance safety ratings established by Underwriters Laboratories (UL). Tritan MXF121 received an all-color UL 94 V2 rating at 1.5 mm. The material also is suitable for transducer housing applications that have contact with skin.

As MRC wrote before, earlier this year, Eastman Chemical Company, a global specialty chemical company, enhanced its medical packaging portfolio with Eastalite copolyester, the company’s first opaque offering, which is styrene-free and can be a sustainable alternative to high-impact polystyrene (HIPS).

Eastman (headquartered in Kingsport, Tennessee, USA) is a global specialty chemical company that produces a broad range of products found in items people use every day. With a portfolio of specialty businesses, Eastman works with customers to deliver innovative products and solutions while maintaining a commitment to safety and sustainability. Its market-driven approaches take advantage of world-class technology platforms and leading positions in attractive end-markets such as transportation, building and construction, and consumables.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- RusVinyl's polyvinyl chloride (PVC) production facility in Kstovo (NizhnyNovgorod Region), ranking among Russia’s largest petrochemical investment projects, was inaugurated on 19, September, said the producer in its press-release.

Vladimir Putin, the Russian President, attended the grand opening ceremony, along with Alex van Meeuwen, Belgian Ambassador to Russia, Valery Shantsev, Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Region, Leonid Mikhelson, Chairman of SIBUR’s Board of Directors, Alexander Dyukov, Deputy Chairman of SIBUR’s Board of Directors, Jacques van Rijckevorsel, Chairman of the Board of SolVin, Dmitry Konov, CEO of SIBUR, and Guenther Nadolny, CEO of RusVinyl. RusVinyl is a joint venture between SIBUR, Russia's leading gas processing and petrochemical company, and SolVin, and was created to construct a new PVC production site that could meet a significant part of domestic demand.

RusVinyl is one of the largest PVC producers in Russia with an annual production capacity of 330,000 tpa of PVC and 225,000 tpa of caustic soda. It will benefit from the nearby supply of ethylene, a key raw material for PVC, from SIBUR-Kstovo's steam cracker, expanded to 360,000 tpa especially for the RusVinyl. Salt, the other feedstock for PVC production, will be provided from Belarus and from the Astrakhan Region of Russia.

In 2013, PVC consumption in Russia exceeded 1 mt, of which only 0.6 mt was produced locally. RusVinyl will provide its top-quality products to the undersupplied Russian market and is aimed at the further development of downstream operations and consumption of petrochemicals.

Leonid Mikhelson, Chairman of SIBUR's Board of Directors, said "SIBUR has increased its production capacity of ethylene in Kstovo, which guarantees the supply of the raw material to the new PVC complex. This has ensured the creation of a new, competitive and cutting edge industrial facility. The best global practices and technologies have been introduced to the Russian market due to the realisation of the latest large scale investment project. The new petrochemical facility will beneficially impact Russia’s economic development by meeting the challenge of import substitution." "SolVin is proud to have successfully completed this project, which is among its biggest industrial achievements ever. SolVin’s experts from across the globe pulled together with SIBUR’s team made this the most modern and most environmental friendly, fully-integrated PVC production plant in the world," said Jacques van Rijckevorsel, Chairman of the Board of SolVin.

This greenfield project, with an investment exceeding RUB 60 bn (EUR1.4 bn), entirely complies with Russia's strictest environmental regulations. Thanks to cutting-edge vinyl technology, fully automated production and state-of-the-art equipment, the facility's environmental footprint is marginal. Each section of the facility has multi-tier safety systems. An advanced membrane method prevents hazardous substances from being formed during electrolysis. Finally, RusVinyl uses a patented technology that makes electrolysis completely waste-free.

As MRC wrote before, RusVinyl started commercial production of suspension PVC (SPVC) on 10, September.

LLC "RusVinyl" is a joint Russian-Belgian venture founded by SIBUR, Russia"s largest petrochemical company, and the Belgian company SolVin, a leading PVC producers in Europe. The project started in 2007 and was targeted for a construction of a plant with the annual capacity of 300,000 tonnes of PVC, 30,000 tonnes of emulsion PVC and 225,000 tonnes of caustic soda.
MRC