Bashneft plans higher oil output in 2016

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russian mid-sized oil company Bashneft plans a small increase in output in 2016 and is on track to meet this year's production target, Bashneft President Alexander Korsik told business daily Vedomosti, reported Reuters.

"With a high probability we will extract 19 million tonnes this year," Korsik was cited as saying in an interview published on Tuesday. "Next year, we are planning a slight increase."

In October, the state won court approval to seize shares held by billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov in Bashneft over what it called an "improper privatisation" in the early 2000s.

Korsik, Bashneft's president since 2011, also said that the company had based its budget this year on an average oil price of USD60 per barrel and later on a slightly higher price.

"But I will not forecast the oil price," Korsik said. "For now we should live in the situation that we are in."

As MRC said before, Bashneft started pilot operations at a new hydrogen production unit at the Bashneft-Novoil Branch on 8 October 2014. The commissioning of the hydrogen production unit marks the completion of an important stage in Bashneft’s Ufa refinery upgrade programme aimed at meeting the requirements of Russia’s Technical Regulations on engine fuel quality. Presently, the new unit is the largest in Russia, with its rated capacity of 420 tpd.

Bashneft is a Russian oil company. It is one of the largest producer of oil products in the country. The company operates 140 oil and natural gas fields in Russia and has an annual oil production of 16 million tonnes. Bashneft owns three oil refineries located in Ufa with a combined capacity of 820,000 bbl/d (130,000 m3/d) and 100 petrol stations. Besides, as of January 22, 2010, Ufaorgsintez OAO operates as a subsidiary of Bashneft Joint Stock Oil Company. Among other products, Ufaorgsintez produces polyethylene and polypropylene.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Samsung Total Petrochemical is likely to take off-stream a high density polyethylene (HDPE) plant for maintenance turnaround, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in South Korea informed that the plant is likely to be shut in April 2015. It is likely to remain off-stream for around one month.

Located in South Korea, the plant has a production capacity of 175,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed before, Samsung Total Petrochemical is in plans to shut its polypropylene (PP) plant in South Korea for maintenance turnaround in mid-April 2015 for maintenance turnaround. It is likely to remain off-stream for around one month. Located in Daesan, South Korea, the plant comprises of three line with a combined production capacity of 250,000 mt/year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PPG Industries announced that it has completed the acquisition of certain assets of Flood® Australia, which manufactures and distributes specialty wood stain and paint additive solutions for consumer, commercial and industrial applications, said the company on its site.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

"The acquisition of Flood Australia allows PPG to further expand its architectural paint and coatings offering and establish a position in wood care in Australia," said Michael McGarry, PPG president and chief operating officer. "We look forward to providing customers with the same quality products for which the Flood brand has become known in Australia."

Flood products in Australia are distributed at home improvement stores, including Bunnings, Masters, Mitre 10, Danks, and independent paint dealers. No manufacturing assets or facilities were included in the acquisition.

PPG currently manufactures and distributes Flood wood care products in North America.

As MRC informed before, U.S. chemicals maker PPG Industries Inc had formally finalized its acquisition of Mexican paints maker Consorcio Comex for USD2.3 billion. The Pittsburgh-based PPG Industries said it had received a favorable ruling from Mexico's competition watchdog to complete the purchase, which came after the Mexican company's deal to sell to U.S. rival Sherwin-Williams Co fell through.

Flood Australia manufactures and distributes specialty wood stain and paint additive solutions for consumer, commercial and industrial applications.

PPG already manufactures and distributes Flood wood care products in North America.

PPG Industries, Inc. (PPG) is a global supplier of protective and decorative coatings. Performance Coatings, Industrial Coatings and Architectural Coatings- EMEA segments supply protective and decorative finishes for customers in a range of end use markets, including industrial equipment, appliances and packaging; factory-finished aluminum extrusions and steel and aluminum
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Thailand’s PTT Global Chemical (PTTGC) is likely to take off-stream its butadiene (BD) unit owing to technical issues at an upstream naphtha cracker, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Thailand informed that the unit is likely to be shut in April 2015. The shutdown of the BD unit has been attributed to the planned shutdown of an upstream cracker at the same site.

Located in Map Ta Phut, Thailand, the unit has a production capacity of 75,000 mt/year.

As MRC reported earlier, in 2013, Indonesian state-owned energy company Pertamina signed an agreement to purchase petrochemical products from PTT Global Chemical. The agreement serves as a pre-marketing strategy for Pertamina and PTT’s joint Indonesian petrochemical business. Under the agreement, PTT will deliver at least 5,000 tonnes of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) products each month to Pertamina for sale in Indonesia.

Besides, Pertamina and PTTGC were to start joint shipments of PE to the Indonesian market from 1 July 2014, but they were posponed till September 2014.

PTT Global Chemical is a leading player in the petrochemical industry and owns several petrochemical facilities with a combined capacity of 8.45 million tonnes a year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Lanxess subsidiary Bond-Laminates GmbH has taken into operation a demonstration cell for processing Tepex continuous-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites at the Brilon site, which enables Tepex to be both formed in a fully automated, near-series process and also simultaneously formed and overmolded in a hybrid molding process, reported Lanxess on its site.

"We plan to use the facility as a platform for transferring technology to customers. We want to familiarize our customers with the strengths of Tepex and how it is processed, as well as supporting the development of innovative components," explains Ulrich Jecmeniza, applications engineer with Bond-Laminates.

In addition, production processes of Tepex processors are to be simulated for quality assurance and improvement purposes. Not least, Bond-Laminates aims to use the facility to drive forward its own material development. This new demonstration cell supplements a Technical Service Center facility that Lanxess already operates at the Dormagen site.

The cell is manufactured by ENGEL AUSTRIA GmbH. The Tepex inserts are introduced to the machine using a magazine with separation function, so that various Tepex sections can be processed in a single production run.

The new facility will initially be fitted with a mold for the sports goods industry. The relevant component consists of a Tepex section with TPU matrix that is overmolded with TPU on both sides after shaping. Other near-series molds will soon be available. Jecmeniza: "This will enable us to cover applications for our most important customer groups – that is to say the automobile, consumer electronics and sports goods industries."

As MRC informed previously, in March 2015, The Bond Laminates GmbH expanded its Tepex range of continuous-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic high-performance composites to include halogen-free flame-retardant versions with a polycarbonate matrix.

Lanxess is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 8.3 billion in 2013 and roughly 17,000 employees in 31 countries. The company is currently represented at 52 production sites worldwide. The core business of Lanxess is the development, manufacturing and marketing of plastics, rubber, intermediates and specialty chemicals.
MRC