WACKER opened new logistics center in China

MOSCOW (MRC) -- WACKER, the Munich-based chemical group, started operating its new logistics center in China, said the producer in its press release.

The facility is located on WACKER’s Zhangjiagang production site in Jiangsu province. Used as a distribution center for downstream silicone products manufactured on site, the new facility enables the company to supply its customers in the region even faster and with even greater flexibility. A total of EUR6 million has been invested in this new logistics center.

The heart of the new logistics center in Zhangjiagang is a high-bay ware-house covering 4,000 square meters. All incoming and outbound goods are recorded electronically and distributed across the center’s 9,000 pallet bays by a computer-aided warehouse management system.

The heart of the logistics center is a high-bay warehouse covering 4,000 square meters. All incoming and outbound goods are recorded electronically and distributed across the center’s 9,000 pallet bays by a computer-aided warehouse management system.

WACKER’s Zhangjiagang site has been experiencing a rise in volumes for years. The new center can supply customers with silicone products faster and with greater flexibility. This gives WACKER a competitive edge on the service front while helping to keep costs in line. What is more, the high-bay warehouse provides plenty of space for expansion. The IT-assisted warehouse management system will also help to improve the handling of small volume specialty products.

WACKER has been operating its own subsidiary in Greater China for 20 years and has expanded its activities significantly in recent years. WACKER maintains not only eight sales offices in all key economic regions, but also two technical centers and three production sites. The group produces silicones and polymers in Zhangjiagang and Nanjing, both situated in Jiangsu province. These plants are the largest of their kind in China. WACKER generated sales of over EUR1.2 billion in the Greater China region (including Taiwan) in 2014.

As MRC reported earlier, WACKER Chemie AG launched its new production plant for ethylene-vinyl-acetate copolymer (EVA) dispersions at its Ulsan site in South Korea. The additional 40,000 tonnes from the second reactor line increases the site's EVA-dispersion capacity to a total of 90,000 tonnes per year. The production capacity of the site, thus, almost doubled, making the plant complex one of the biggest of its kind in South Korea.

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) -- Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, has announced capacity expansions for its leading TONSIL bleaching earths for edible oil purification, as per the company's press release.

New TONSIL operations at Clariant's existing sites in Turkey and Mexico, and the construction of a new site in Indonesia, will optimize local supply and enable the company to better serve the markets and needs of its regional customers.

Today a considerable share of edible oil produced globally is treated with Clariant's TONSIL bleaching earths. They set the gold standard in efficient and sustainable edible oil purification through the use of natural resources, the efficient removal of impurities from all kinds of oils, and minimizing waste throughout the entire process. Combining 110 years of expertise in bleaching earth and oil purification with state-of-the art development and production factilities enables Clariant to continuously develop new grades of highly-active bleaching earths derived from natural clays. Tailored acid activation processes ensure that TONSIL grades effectively bind impurities and undesired substances from the oil, protect nutrients and extend the product's shelf-life and optics.

Clariant's addition of new production facilities will improve supply lead times and product availability for customers in these regions. They include on-site teams of experts in product and application techniques, as well as analytical laboratories to support the development of bleaching earths that meet local oil refining requirements for color improvement, odor removal and shelf life.

Customers in Turkey and the Middle East will benefit in particular from the newly developed TONSIL Supreme 158FF grade, which will be produced at the expanded Balikesir site using a specific clay from a local Turkish mine. The clay is well-suited for this grade which offers a balanced profile of superior bleaching performance in various oils, fast filtration and low oil retention.

Across its regions, Clariant sources bentonite from its local mines to both secure clay access and ensure sustainable mining practices with strict re-cultivation standards.

As MRC informed previously, last summer CB&I and Clariant announced that their new Ziegler-Natta (ZN) polypropylene catalyst plant in Louisville, Kentucky, is on schedule to begin production in 2015. The plant is part of a long-term strategic partnership between Clariant’s catalysts business and CB&I’s Lummus Novolen Technology business. Based at Clariant’s largest US production hub, the new facility will combine innovative catalysts jointly developed by both companies with high-capacity output.

Clariant AG is a Swiss chemical company and a world leader in the production of specialty chemicals for the textile, printing, mining and metallurgical industries. It is engaged in processing crude oil products in pigments, plastics and paints.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Petrobras chairman Murilo Ferreira is taking a leave of absence less than five months after he was appointed to help the Brazilian government-controlled company emerge from a mountain of debt and a corruption scandal, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Ferreira, who will continue in his role as CEO of Vale, requested leave from Petrobras board duties until Nov. 30 for personal reasons, the iron-ore miner said in an e-mailed response. His backup at Petrobras, Clovis Torres, also a Vale executive, will stand aside to make it easier for the board to nominate an interim chairman among current members.

"This could lead to greater concerns about the independence of the board and corporate governance," Bank of America analysts Frank McGann and Vicente Falanga said Monday in a note to clients. "We believe this could lead to additional investor caution towards Petrobras’ shares."

Divergences between Ferreira and management, led by CEO Aldemir Bendine, surfaced last month when Ferreira voted against selling a stake in the company’s fuel distribution unit before taking steps to improve performance.

Ferreira’s temporary board departure comes as Petrobras seeks to deepen cutbacks and productivity measures after prices collapsed and its credit rating was cut to junk. The Rio de Janeiro-based producer, formally known as Petroleo Brasileiro, declined to comment on reasons for the leave.

Prior to a rating downgrade by Standard & Poor’s last week, Petrobras had announced plans to reduce its operating costs by about USD12 billion through 2019. The company will also review its outlook for currency and oil prices, as the scenario has deteriorated since it unveiled a business plan in June.

Ferreira’s appointment in April, replacing Luciano Coutinho, broke with a tradition of political appointees. Previously, the chairman position was occupied by former finance minister Guido Mantega and president Dilma Rousseff during the government of her predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

He and Bendine were appointed to guide Petrobras out of a scandal involving graft and mismanagement at refinery projects that cost the company billions of dollars and contributed to the biggest debt load among oil producers globally.

As MRC informed earlier, Braskem signed a contract with state-run producer Petrobras for the supply of naphtha feedstock. The new contract, which continues the terms of a previous naphtha deal, is valid until the end of October.

Headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, Petrobras is an integrated energy firm. Petrobras' activities include exploration, exploitation and production of oil from reservoir wells, shale and other rocks as well as refining, processing, trade and transport of oil and oil products, natural gas and other fluid hydrocarbons, in addition to other energy-related activities.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Dow Chemical Company was named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index as one of the top performers in the global chemical industry, marking the 15th time Dow has received this recognition since the launch of the index, as per Dow's press release.

This year’s announcement ties Dow as the longest-standing representative in the chemical category since the list’s inception in 1999.

With only 10 chemical companies named to the World Index in 2015, Dow is proud to be recognized for sustainability performance in the top 10 percent of the chemical industry. In addition, Dow received a perfect score of 100 on the Climate Strategy and Customer Relationship Management sections, demonstrating the Company’s unique strengths of working closely with customers to develop differentiated, science-based solutions to address today’s global challenges.

"Through our 2025 Sustainability Goals, Dow will help lead the transition to a more sustainable economy and society," said Neil Hawkins, Dow’s corporate vice president for environment, health and safety (EH&S) and chief sustainability officer. "From the ‘footprint’ of our operations, to the positive 'handprint' of our products, to the development of new ‘blueprints' for a more sustainable world, we are proud to be embarking on the third decade of rigorous sustainability goal-setting at Dow. Today’s announcement marks the latest milestone in our sustainability journey, and we are both proud and humbled to be named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for the 15th time."

Dow remains committed to sustainability, setting the standard through public goal-setting, metrics and transparent reporting. Announced in 2015, the Company’s aggressive 2025 Sustainability Goals seek to redefine the role of business in society, focusing on unlocking the potential of people and science, valuing nature and collaborating courageously.

As MRC reported earlier, in November 2014, The Dow Chemical Company announced an increased divestiture target aligned to further enhance the value of its portfolio and support the company’s market-driven, integrated strategy. On track to complete its goal of realizing USD4.5 billion to USD6 billion in proceeds by year-end 2015, and with additional portfolio management actions underway, Dow is now increasing its divestiture target to USD7 billion to USD8.5 billion to be complete by mid-2016. Since 2013, the company has generated USD2.5 billion in proceeds, reallocating this capital to remunerate shareholders, fund growth and reduce debt.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation. As of 2007, it is the second-largest chemical manufacturer in the world by revenue (after BASF) and as of February 2009, the third-largest chemical company in the world by market capitalization (after BASF and DuPont). Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Amec Foster Wheeler has announced the award of a contract by Yuhuang Chemical Inc. (YCI), a US-based subsidiary of Shandong Yuhuang Chemical Company Co. Ltd (SYCC), for its first major project in the US, a 1.7 million tons per year world-scale methanol facility on the Mississippi River in St. James Parish, Louisiana, said the company on its site.

Under the contract, the value of which has not been disclosed, Amec Foster Wheeler will be providing engineering, project management, procurement and early construction services. The intention is to extend this into a full scope EPC contract during 2016 on mutually agreed terms.

This contract is for the first phase of YCI’s planned investment in US chemical facilities, which will be executed in a multi-phase strategy over the next decade. Construction is expected to begin in 2015, with the first phase of the methanol project beginning operations by 2018. The new methanol facility will use natural gas as its primary feedstock and utilise the Lurgi MegaMethanol technology developed by Air Liquide Global E&C Solutions, a subsidiary of Air Liquide Group.

Simon Naylor, Amec Foster Wheeler’s Group President for the Americas commented: "We are delighted to have been selected by YCI to help deliver this milestone project safely and sustainably, and look forward to expanding our relationship and building a strong partnership that will stimulate YCI’s future growth."

YCI is leading a growing trend of Chinese investment in US production facilities and helping develop a growing level of beneficial trade between China and the US.

As MRC wrote before, Foster Wheeler has been selected by Rosneft and ExxonMobil to undertake the initial phase of the front-end engineering design (FEED) for a proposed Russian Far East liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. Foster Wheeler is one of two companies to be awarded separate contracts for the initial FEED work prior to selection of a single contractor for the second FEED phase.
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