Fire broke out at Sadara Chemical site in Jubail, Saudi Arabia

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sadara Basic Services Company has announced that a fire broke out in one of the cooling towers under construction at the Sadara Chemical Company (the Parent) project site in Jubail Industrial City II at 9 pm on Saturday, 28 March, 2015, reported Tawadul.

The competent authorities were notified and they were able to contain the fire without any injuries.

Construction at the project site is continuing as normal.

Following completion of the assessment of damages, Sadara Basic Services Company will issue a supplemental announcement regarding the financial impact of the fire and any other relevant details.

As MRC wrote previously, in June 2013, Dow Chemical, an American multinational chemical corporation, announced the signing of the main financing for the Sadara project.

Sadara Chemical Company (Sadara), Dow's joint venture with Saudi Aramco, entered into definitive agreements with certain export credit agencies, commercial banks and the Public Investment Fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for approximately USD10.5 billion of additional project financing.

The financing supplements the USD2 billion raised through a Sukuk Islamic bond issuance in April, 2013, bringing the total Sadara project financing raised to approximately USD12.5 billion, which will be used to fund the construction and start-up of the joint venture.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Asahi Glass Co Ltd (AGC) has announced that it will increase the production capacity of the polyvinyl chloride (PVC) facility at Phu My Plastics & Chemicals Co Ltd (PMPC), AGC’s subsidiary engaged in PVC business in Vietnam, said Business-Standart.

In order to respond to the growing PVC demand in the country, PMPC’s PVC production capacity will be increased by 50% to 150,000 tonnes from the current 100,000 tonnes per year, which will make the Asahi Glass Group’s total PVC production in Southeast Asia 700,000 tonnes per year. The operation is scheduled to commence at the beginning of 2016.

Vietnam is the third largest PVC market in Southeast Asia following Thailand and Indonesia, and the PVC demand is growing at the similar level as the country’s GDP. Following the completion of the acquisition process in 2014, this investment will further strengthen the AGC Group’s business foundation in the Vietnamese polyvinyl chloride market which is expected to continue to grow.

After the completion of the capacity enhancement, PMPC will have PT Asahimas Chemical (ASC) as its main VCM supplier. ASC is one of AGC’s subsidiaries in Indonesia and currently working to enhance its production capacity.

As MRC informed earlier, Petronas sold its stake in Vietnamese Phu My Plastics and Chemical Company Ltd (PMPC) to Japanese Asahi Glass Co Ltd and Mitsubishi Corporation in November 2013.

Asahi Glass Co., Ltd., more commonly known as AGC, is a global glass manufacturing company, headquartered in Tokyo. It is one of the core Mitsubishi companies.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- French oil giant Total said that it has sold its stake in a Nigerian oil field to a local company for USD569 million (523 million euros), said Reuters.

Total's sale of its share in the onshore Oil Mining Lease 29 to Aiteo Eastern E&P comes after the French group made two similar divestments in Nigeria. The three transactions reached a sum of USD1 billion.

"These transactions ... reduce our exposure to non-operated blocks onshore Nigeria, and allow us to focus on our core, operated developments," said Patrick de La Chevardiere, Total's Chief Financial Officer.

The group added that the divestment is "in line with the Federal Government of Nigeria's aim of developing Nigerian companies in the sector".

Energy groups have been slashing their investments in a bid to shore up earnings, as crude prices have collapsed by about 60 percent since June.

As MRC informed earlier, Total acquired a majority 68% interest in Germany's Polyblend. Polyblend produces compounds, which are blends of polymers (polyethylene and polypropylene) and other ingredients such as mineral fillers, glass fibres, elastomers and additives, formulated to customer specifications.

Total S.A. is a French multinational oil and gas company and one of the six "Supermajor" oil companies in the world with business in Europe, the United States, the Middle East and Asia. The company's petrochemical products cover two main groups: base chemicals and the consumer polymers (polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene) that are derived from them.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Brazilian petrochemical producer Braskem has lifted the investment forecast for its flagship Etileno XXI complex in Mexico by 13% amid rising construction costs, the company said on Friday, reported BNAmericas.

The overall outlay for the project in the Coatzacoalcos region of Veracruz state has been revised to USD5.2bn, according to a Braskem securities filing.

The Sao Paulo-based firm said it had assumed additional expenses related to infrastructure and local services, and a change to the power generating unit capacity. The company aims to sell surplus electricity from the unit to Mexico's grid.

Braskem also said "the amount corresponding to its portion of the additional contribution, close to USD450mn, required for the project completion, will not result in an increase of its annual level of investments."


The centerpiece of Braskem's project pipeline, Etileno XXI is a joint venture with Mexican industrial conglomerate Idesa, which owns a 25% stake.

The ethane cracker, expected to begin operating by December, will have annual polyethylene (PE) capacity of 1.05Mt.

As MRC wrote before, in 2012, Braskem Idesa announced the approval of a line of credit in the amount of USD700 million by the Brazlian National Economic and Social Development Bank - BNDES to finance the construction of the largest petrochemical complex being developed in the Americas: Braskem Idesa- Etileno XXI Project. The group of financial institutions will also include Mexico's development banks, Bancomext and Nafinsa- Nacional Financiera, and commercial whose loans are subject to the completion and closing of the formal documentation.

Braskem is Brazilian main producer of polyethylene and polypropylene. In addition with ongoing plants located in both petrochemical complexes, in April 2008 Braskem opened a 300,000 metric ton polypropylene plant in the city of Paulinia (Sao Paulo).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sasol has started construction work on its USD8.1bn ethane cracker and derivatives complex in Westlake, Louisiana, US, said Chemicals-Technology.

Said to triple Sasol's chemical production in the US, the petrochemical complex will benefit from domestic ethane supplies, to produce various speciality chemicals for global markets.

Sasol international operations executive vice-president Steve Cornell said: "By the time construction is complete in 2018, Sasol's investment will total almost USD9bn dollars, making it one of the largest investments in our company's history.

"Along the way, we'll create more than 5,000 construction jobs and more than 500 full-time positions, 100 of which have already been filled." "By the time construction is complete in 2018, Sasol's investment will total almost USD9bn dollars."

The company has been carrying out early works, site preparation and civil construction work since 2014.
Sasol will soon start site above-ground work and heavy equipment deliveries with plans to commence mechanical, electrical and instrumentation work in 2016 and 2017.

The complex, which will also have six chemical manufacturing plants, is planned to commence operations in 2018. It will produce around 1.5 million tonnes of ethylene a year, which will be used to produce chemicals for products such as synthetic fibres, detergents, fragrances, paints, film and packaging.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal said: "This industrial complex of an ethane cracker and six affiliated chemical plants is an important component of the remarkable economic success story that is south-west Louisiana." The company plans to invest USD800m in infrastructure improvements, land acquisition and utility improvements at the site.

In 2012, Sasol announced the project during the feasibility stage alongside plans for a gas-to-liquids facility.
Louisiana will grant USD115m incentives to Sasol if the gas-to-liquids is also finalised.

As MRC informed earlier, in late January 2015 Sasol said it would delay its USD8.1 billion investment in an ethane cracker in Louisiana, in response to low global oil prices.

Sasol Limited is an integrated energy and chemical company based in Johannesburg, South Africa. It develops and commercialises technologies, including synthetic fuels technologies, and produces different liquid fuels, chemicals and electricity.
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