Wacker Polymers raises prices for dispersible polymer powders in Europe

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Wacker Pplymers, a division of Wacker Chemie AG, is to raise its prices for dispersible polymer powders of the VINNAPAS brand in Europe, reported the company on its site.

Effective January 1, 2015, prices will be increased by up to EUR0.10 per kilogram, or as customer contracts allow.

This measure has been necessitated by the current increase in raw-material and distribution cost.

The price adjustments will enable Wacker Polymers to continue providing reliable supply and constantly high product quality, and to boost the development of innovative product and process technologies for the benefit of customers.

VINNAPAS dispersible polymer powders are used mainly in diverse construction chemical applications such as external thermal insulation composite systems, construction and tile adhesives, screeds, self-leveling flooring compounds, plasters, repair mortars, grouts and cementitious sealing slurries.

As MRC informed previously, Wacker Polymers is to raise its prices for VINNAPAS vinyl acetate-ethylene (EVA) and VINNOL ethylene-vinyl chloride-based (EVCL) copolymer dispersions and dispersible powders in the Americas. Effective 1 November, 2014, Wacker will implement a price increase of USD0.03/pound, or as customer contracts allow.

This measure has been necessitated by constantly rising raw material costs, in particular for vinyl acetate monomer (VAM). Additionally, a logistics surcharge of USD0.02/pound will be implemented for all shipments effective 1 November, 2014.

Wacker Chemie AG is a worldwide operating company in the chemical business, founded 1914. The company is controlled by the Wacker-family holding more than 50 percent of the shares. The corporation is operating more than 25 production sites in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. The product range includes silicone rubbers, polymer products like ethylene vinyl acetate redispersible polymer powder, chemical materials, polysilicon and wafers for semiconductor industry.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Dow Chemical Co. ’s transformation into a slimmed-down and more profitable company is working, Chief Executive Andrew Liveris said Wednesday, citing USD1.3 billion in asset sales so far this year and a 43% boost to third-quarter profit, said The Wall Street Journal.

Dow hopes to sell lower-margin business lines to raise another USD3.2 billion to USD4.7 billion by the end of 2015. This month, Dow began shopping around Angus Chemical Co., AgroFresh and its Sodium Borohydride business—units that could bring in USD2 billion of that total, the company said.

Profit rose to USD852 million, or 71 cents a share, for the third quarter, up from USD594 million, or 49 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, earnings were 72 cents a share, up from 50 cents in the prior-year period. Revenue rose by 4.9% to USD14.41 billion.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had projected 68 cents a share in earnings and USD14.31 billion in revenue, but expanding sales across all regions helped Dow beat market expectations. The company predicted it could maintain strong results, but acknowledged the global economic picture looks challenging.

Falling oil prices have sparked investor concerns about Dow and other petrochemical manufacturers in the U.S. Profit margins are bolstered in North America by cheap natural gas and other fuels that Dow and its peers use to make plastics and consumer goods, while foreign competitors tend to run plants on higher-priced oil-based feedstocks. Now that oil prices are drifting lower, some analysts have questioned whether Dow’s competitive edge may be fading.

The company’s shares are up more than 17% on the year, but have fallen nearly 8% in the last month. Mr. Liveris said competitive advantage isn’t evaporating. Dow’s margins may be squeezed in the near term, but the effect will be temporary, he said.

As MRC wrote before, Dow Elastomers, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, will soon break ground on its planned world-scale NORDEL EPDM (ethylene propylene-diene terpolymer) facility in Plaquemine, La., which will utilize the company’s newest proprietary catalyst technology to enable products with high Mooney viscosity.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber. In 2012, Dow had annual sales of approximately USD57 billion. The сompany's more than 5,000 products are manufactured at 188 sites in 36 countries across the globe.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- inge GmbH, a subsidiary of BASF SE and technology leader in ultrafiltration (UF) membranes, has secured the biggest project in company’s history and will supply high-capacity ultrafiltration technology for a desalination plant in Jamnagar (India), reported BASF on its site.

More than 4,000 modules from the T-Rack 3.0 series will provide 450,000 cubic meters of pretreated water per day to one of the country's largest oil refineries.

The desalination plant is built by IDE Technologies, one of the world’s leading water treatment specialists, and will use inge UF to protect the sensitive reverse osmosis membranes and to minimize the energy footprint of the plant. After multiple sea water pretreatment steps, the desalination plant will deliver up to 170,000 cubic meters of process water per day.

"Onsite pilot testing confirmed that our T-Rack 3.0 ultrafiltration modules meet the very demanding performance requirements in terms of process stability, filtrate quality and yield, especially during the monsoon period," explains inge CEO Bruno Steis. "Our unique technology delivers a continuous supply of pre-filtered water at a consistently high quality level independent of seasonal fluctuations with high turbidity, thereby helping to reduce the plant's energy and operating cost significantly."

The German-made modules are scheduled for delivery by the end of this year. The entire desalination plant is scheduled for commissioning in 2015 and represents one of the biggest ultrafiltration plants currently being built anywhere in the world. "The Jamnagar project is a landmark in our company’s history. It demonstrates that inge ultrafiltration membrane technology delivers exceptional performance at large-scale for multiple industries in need of innovative, sustainable and cost-effective solutions for water filtration," emphasizes Bruno Steis. Professional water treatment and environmentally beneficial water recycling are taking on increasing importance, particularly in water-stressed regions. inge ultrafiltration technology helps in promoting the sustainable use of the valuable resource water.

As MRC wrote previously, in early 2014, BASF announced it was inaugurating a new plant in Yeosu, Korea to strengthen the supply of Ultrason polyarylsulfone, one of the company’s high performance thermoplastics. The new plant, with an annual production capacity of 6,000 metric tons, will better serve the growing market in Asia Pacific. The new plant is the first of its kind to be built outside of Germany and brings the company’s global capacity of Ultrason polyarylsulfone to 18,000 metric tons per year.

Ultrason is widely applied in the electronics, automotive and aerospace industries for the production of heat-resistant, lightweight components. Other popular Ultrason applications include membranes for water treatment, fittings for drinking water pipelines or food contact parts as in espresso machines, or microwave-proof dishes. Ultrason is also used in the production of carbon fiber composite materials.

inge GmbH, based in Greifenberg, Germany, is a world's leading provider of ultrafiltration technology, a membrane process used to treat drinking water, process water, waste water and sea water. With a global reach enhanced by its network of partners, the company has completed numerous reference projects around the globe featuring its cutting-edge technology. In August 2011, inge became part of BASF, the world’s leading chemical company. Its range of products include highly-efficient ultrafiltration modules and cost-effective, space-saving rack designs as the core components of water treatment plants, rounded off by the superb technical support it provides to its customers. All the company's products are based on the in-house development of its patented Multibore membrane technology, providing the top-quality standards for which German-made goods are known.

BASF is the world’s leading chemical company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. BASF had sales of about EUR74 billion in 2013 and over 112,000 employees as of the end of the year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The overall polyethylene (PE) imports into the Republic of Belarus decreased by 5.6% over the first eight months of 2014. The high density polyethylene (HDPE) market still demonstrated negative results, whereas demand for other PE grades increased this year, reported MRC analysts.

August PE imports into Belarus totalled 9,400 tonnes versus 9,600 tonnes last month. The overall PE imports dropped to 67,600 tonnes from January to August 2014 from 71,300 tonnes over the same period a year earlier.

The structure of PE imports by grades in the Republic of Belarus looks the following way over the stated period.

August imports of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) decreased by 10% from July (4,900 tonnes) to 4,400 tonnes. The overall imports of these PE grades reached 33,100 tonnes from January to August 2014 versus 29,400 tonnes a year earlier. The main PE suppliers to the local market were producers from Russia (about 4,800 tonnes) and Saudi Arabia (19,200 tonnes).

Imports of high -density polyethylene (HDPE) rose to 5,000 tonnes in August from 4,700 tonnes in July. At the same time, PE shipments from Russia continued to fall, which was offset by higher imports of Middle Eastern PE for the second consecutive month. The overall HDPE imports to Belarus fell over the stated period to 34,600 tonnes, down by 18% year on year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Basic Industries Corp and Royal Dutch Shell have shelved plans to expand an existing petrochemical joint venture in Saudi Arabia as the results of feasibility studies were not encouraging, reported Arabian Business.

The two partners in the joint project, known as SADAF joint venture in Jubail, on the Gulf coast of Saudi Arabia, first announced plans to explore an expansion of their petrochemical plant in 2012.

The expansion was due to add polyols, propylene oxide (PO) and styrene monomer. SABIC did not say by how much the plant was due to be expanded nor gave an estimated cost.

"Shell and SABIC have agreed not to pursue this investment further but have agreed to continue to have constructive discussions to explore other opportunities for expansion," a Shell spokesman said in a statement on Thursday.

SABIC, one of the world's largest petrochemical groups, said the decision would not have any impact on its earnings, according to a statement on the Saudi bourse website.

As MRC wrote before, in February 2013, Royal Dutch Shell took a final investment decision tol increase production capacity at its Singapore petrochemical plant to meet demand for specialized materials used in the automotive and furniture industries. The upgrade will increase the plant's capacity to produce polyols - industrial chemicals used to make high-quality foams - by more than 100,000 metric tpy to 360,000 tpy. The project is expected to be completed in 2014.

Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) ranks among the world’s top petrochemical companies. The company is among the world’s market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.

Royal Dutch Shell plc is an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the biggest company in the world in terms of revenue and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors". Shell is vertically integrated and is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading.
MRC