PVC imports to Belarus dropped by 10% in 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Last year's overall imports of unmixed polyvinyl chloride (PVC) into Belarus decreased by 10.1% and totalled 39,200 tonnes, according to MRC DataScope report.

December PVC imports to Belarus remained at a rather high level, despite seasonal factors, and totalled 2,700 tonnes versus to 2,100 tonnes a month earlier. The overall demand for PVC from local converters fell to 39,200 tonnes from January to December 2014 from 43,700 tonnes a year earlier.

Weaker demand for PVC was caused by lower sales of finished products from PVC, particularly, shaped and linear articles, both in the domestic and foreign markets. 25,400 tonnes of shaped and linear articles from PVC were shipped only for exports during the stated period, whereas a year ago the figure was 29,100 tonnes.

German producers with a share of about 49% are the key PVC suppliers for the Belarusian market. Russian producers have actively narrowed German producers in the Belarusian market in recent months. The overall imports of unmixed PVC from Russia rose to 5,400 tonnes in 2014.

Anwil, Polish producer, also accounted for a significant share of the Belarusian market. PVC imports from Poland exceeded 8,400 tonnes over the said period.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- South Korea-based Daelim's petrochemical business division is planning to invest KRW74bn (USD67m) to expand its highly reactive polybutene plant located at Yeosu National Industrial Complex, said Chemical-technology.

The investment will help the company expand annual output of its existing Yeosu plant from 65,000t to 100,000t by November 2016. Following expansion, the company will be able to produce 185,000t of polybutene per year, including the polybutene plant's annual production output of 85,000t of general-purpose polybutene.

Polybutene is used as raw material for lubricant additives and fuel purifiers, and the highly reactive polybutene improves production efficiency as it simplifies the lubricant manufacturing process. "Following expansion, the company will be able to produce 185,000t of polybutene per year, including the polybutene plant's annual production output of 85,000t of general-purpose polybutene."

In addition, eco-friendly products can be produced since polybutene has no chlorine ingredient. The eco-friendly lubricant additive and fuel purifier markets are expanding as environmental regulations are consolidated worldwide.

More than 90% of Daelim's polybutene products are exported to global lubricant additive manufacturers including Chevron, Lubrizol, and Infineum.
The company claimed it developed a highly reactive polybutene with improved functionality of existing general-purpose polybutene.

According to market demand, the company operates production facilities by developing a technology to produce general-purpose polybutene and highly reactive polybutene together, using the swing process in a single plant for the first time in the world.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- LyondellBasell Industries, one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies, has reported record results in 2014, according to the company's report.

Thus, LyondellBasell announced earnings from continuing operations of USD4.2 billion for 2014, or diluted earnings per share of USD8.0 per share. Last year's EBITDA was at USD7,1 billion.

The company's full year cash generation from operations totaled USD6.0 billion, share repurchases and dividends totalled USD7.2 billion. The company also repurchased 63 million shares or approximately 12% of the shares outstanding.

The company reported of a completion of an 800 million pound La Porte ethylene expansion, one in a series of planned expansions expected to increase US ethylene capacity approximately by 25% by 2017.

Besides, LyondellBasell completed a 200 million pound PE expansion at its Matagorda site and announced the development of new propylene oxide and ethylene growth projects.

"We remain confident in our favorable industry position and in the fundamentals supporting our business. While we anticipate that margins will ease from the records of 2014 as crude oil prices decline, our positions remain advantaged, our growth program is generating incremental earnings, and our share count is greatly reduced through our repurchase program. The principles that Jim Gallogly established during his tenure as CEO are part of our core values. My mission is to build on this success and take the company to the next level. During 2015 we plan to advance approximately one billion pounds of ethylene expansion projects, improve operations at our methanol facility, and receive additional volumes of Canadian crude oil at our refinery," Patel said.

Headquartered in the Netherlands, LyondellBasell is one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies. LyondellBasell manufactures products at 58 sites in 18 countries. The company produces chemicals, fuels, and polymers used for packaging, clean fuels, durable textiles, medical applications, construction materials, and automotive parts. LyondellBasell is also a leading licensor of polypropylene and polyethylene technologies. The more than 250 polyolefin process licenses granted by LyondellBasell are twice that of any other polyolefin technology licensor.
MRC

Moscow (MRC) - Continued weakening of the national currency proportionally increases the cost of the polymers in the Ukrainian market. Many converters were not able to so quickly adjusted the prices and had to suspend their sales, according to ICIS-MRC Price Report.

Ukrainian hryvnya continues to depreciate against to foreign currencies, especially the dollar. Last week the hryvnya exchange rate has fallen from 26UAH=1USD to 27.5UAH=1USD. All polymers are imported into the country, so domestic prices were recalculated in proportion to the exchange rate.

Many converters in their turn said they did not manage to adjust prices so quickly and temporarily suspended their purchases of polymers. Prices for polymers in the Ukrainian market last week were recalculated on a daily basis, on the back of the dollar fluctuations. Some traders suspended their sales.

The situation is worsened by the converters' pessimistic outlook for further dollar rise, as well as planned, but not yet officially confirmed, a temporary increase in import duty of 5%. Earlier last week, the low end for film high density polyethylene (HDPE) price was at hryvnyas (UAH) 37,000/tonne FCA, including VAT, and by the end of the week it grew to UAH41,500/tonne FCA, including VAT.

A similar situation was also in the polypropylene (PP) market, with the deals for homopolymer PP raffia grade started at UAH36,000/tonne FCA, including VAT, and by Friday it reached a level of UAH39,000/tonne FCA, including VAT.

The devaluation of the currency had affected polymer prices in the Ukrainian market in the past. However, in previous months decline in prices of polymers in foreign markets actually offset devaluation of the hryvnya. This week prices have hit another record, and many converters were simply unable to buy feedstock at such prices.
Some converters said that they should increase their prices for finished products to resume purchases of the feedstock in the previous volumes.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- State-owned Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries (Orpic) is likely to restart its polypropylene (PP) plant following maintenance turnaround, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Oman informed that the plant is planned to be restarted in end-February 2015. The plant was shut in the last week of January 2015.

Located at Sohar in Oman, the plant has a production capacity of 340,000 mt/year.

As MRC reported earlier, in May 2014, ORPIC said it had awarded two contracts for construction of a USD3.6 billion plastics production complex, the Liwa Plastics Project. The plant will be built in Oman's northern industrial city of Sohar, next to ORPIC's oil refinery and petrochemical plants. The Liwa Plastics Project is due to be completed in 2018, doubling ORPIC's profitability by allowing it to extract more value from Omani crude oil and natural gas, the company said.

The project will boost ORPIC's annual production of polypropylene and polyethylene to 1.4 million tonnes, increasing Oman's exports, while additional production of 1 million tonnes of plastics will help to develop downstream industries within the country, ORPIC added.

ORPIC (Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company) is one of the leading companies in Oman and has two refineries in that country, in Sohar and Muscat. ORPIC is owned by the Government of the Sultanate of Oman and Oman Oil Company SAOC, the trading company created by the Government of the Sultanate of Oman for managing investments in the energy sector.
MRC