Lyondell Houston refinery draws bids from Aramco, Valero and Suncor

MOSCOW (MRC) -- At least three firms including Saudi Arabian state oil giant Saudi Aramco have bid over USD1 B for LyondellBasell's refinery in Houston, according to four people familiar with the process, reported Reuters.

The Saudi firm was initially seen as the front-runner among bidders that also included Valero Energy Corp. and Suncor Inc., sources said, but added it is unclear if that is still the case.

Aramco has bid USD1.5 B for the plant, after an initial bid of USD1.2 B, three sources said.

Aramco may be looking to boost its US refining capability to compensate for capacity that it is losing as it breaks up a JV with Royal Dutch Shell.

Canadian crude producer Suncor also bid around USD1.2 B, and San Antonio-based refiner Valero bid USD900 MM, three of the people said.

Lyondell has not stated publicly what it considers the plant to be worth, but a source familiar with negotiations said that the refinery could fetch USD2 B.

"As we stated on August 25, we are continuing to explore all options," said Michael Waldron, vice president of corporate communications for LyondellBasell. He said the company would not "comment further on market rumors or speculation."

Recent US refinery sales have fetched about USD5,000/bbl of capacity, which would value the plant at about USD1.3 B. Variables such as a plant's operating income and its ability to process heavy grades of crude help determine its value.

The cost of renewable fuel credits may affect the price of the plant, because Lyondell will need to spend about USD200 MM this year on the credits, known as RINs, said Matthew Blair, an equity analyst with Tudor, Pickering and Holt. That could cap the price bidders are willing to pay, he added.

In August, Reuters reported that Lyondell retained Bank of America Merrill Lynch to advise on the potential sale of the 264 Mbpd refinery.

The plant imports South American and Mexican grades of crude oil, so it could offer Saudi Arabia a new outlet for its crude.

The US currently imports about 1 MMbbl of Saudi crude a day. Motiva processed 162 Mbpd of Saudi crude in July, the most recent month for which data is available.

The Motiva joint venture is currently being dissolved. After the split, Aramco may seek additional outlets for its crude besides the one Motiva plant it will retain in Port Arthur, Texas.

Valero operates refineries close to the Lyondell plant in Houston and Texas City. Suncor, which produces crude in Alberta's oil sands, could also be seeking additional outlets for its crude.

We remind that, as MRC wrote before, LyondellBasell completed the previously announced acquisition of the polypropylene (PP) compounding assets of Zylog Plastalloys Pvt. Ltd. (Zylog) in India. The company entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Zylog's PP compounding assets in November 2015.

LyondellBasell is one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies and a member of the S&P 500. LyondellBasell manufactures products at 57 sites in 18 countries. LyondellBasell products and technologies are used to make items that improve the quality of life for people around the world including packaging, electronics, automotive parts, home furnishings, construction materials and biofuels. Hostacom and Hifax are trademarks owned by LyondellBasell. The manufacturing facilities in India are owned and operated by Basell Polyolefins India Pvt. Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of LyondellBasell.
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Clariant responds to global megatrends to deliver value for people

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, focused on the global Megatrends influencing the plastics industry at its K 2016 press conference, demonstrating how the company is bringing true value to the industry based on the real needs of people arising from these trends, said The company on its site.

Clariant’s commitment to delivering Value for People – its motto for K 2016 – was summarized by Executive Committee Member Christian Kohlpaintner in the context of the trends driving the challenges of its plastics industry customers. "Our customers in the plastics industry require a mixture of tailor-made innovation and volume driven support in order to address the needs being accelerated by global Megatrends. At K 2016, we show our particular focus on innovations underlined by sustainability because these are priorities connecting both. By supporting our customers developing innovative and sustainable solutions, this is how we can create most Value for People."

Christian Kohlpaintner drew attention to four global Megatrends impacting the plastics industry: Health & Nutrition, Lifestyle, Mobility, and Urbanization.

To provide optimum support to its customers and end-users, Clariant’s services and solutions for plastics applications address aspects such as safety and comfort, more efficient and environmentally-compatible production, and reliable cleaner energy.

We remind that, as MRC reported previously, in February 2016, Clariant Masterbatches Saudi Arabia, a joint venture (JV) between Clariant and Rowad National Plastic Company, started construction of a new masterbatch production unit in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia.

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

Clariant Pigments, Konica Minolta & matchmycolor join forces to make color matching of Polyolefin products faster

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, has developed a calibration database with its well known PV Fast and Graphtol pigments, said the company on its site.

The database can easily be integrated into matchmycolor’s Colibri software and used together with the premium grade portable and bench-top spectrophotometers from Konica Minolta to color match polyolefin articles. Unveiled at K 2016, the collaboration will benefit masterbatch producers and compounders, as well as designers and brand owners looking to ensure finished products carry exactly the same color all over the world.

The color matching service brings direct sustainability advantages to the plastics industry by reducing the traditional time- and cost-consuming sequence of creating a color calibration data set.

Clariant has provided matchmycolor and Konica Minolta with the data set of 60 organic pigments from its PV Fast and Graphtol ranges in different concentrations in high density polyethylene (HDPE), to allow fast and precise color matching using Konica Minolta spectrophotometers. The consistently high quality pigments offer various technical properties for a wide variety of applications. The matchmycolor Colibri cloud-based software calculates color collections centrally in seconds and the recipes are available instantly for quick access globally to consistent data. The combined expertise of Clariant, matchmycolor and Konica Minolta makes it possible to accurately match a wide range of colors, from opaque to translucent and highly-transparent shades.

With this set of data, masterbatch producers and their customers can significantly reduce the number of laboratory and testing steps normally required to replicate a color, resulting in time savings, cost- and energy-savings, and high matching rates that improve the quality of the end result.

Michael Grosskopf, Head of BU Pigments Clariant, comments: "Color plays a decisive role in brand identity and consumer product acceptance. The collaboration between Clariant, Konica Minolta and matchmycolor provides a turnkey solution for fast, precise and efficient color matching; helping support a more streamlined production across the value chain. Masterbatch producers and compounders can look forward to time and energy savings as a result of fewer color development steps in the laboratory and in production. Plus the high matching rates ensure a consistent color match globally, supporting industry standards and the demands of global brand owners."

We remind that, as MRC reported previously, in February 2016, Clariant Masterbatches Saudi Arabia, a joint venture (JV) between Clariant and Rowad National Plastic Company, started construction of a new masterbatch production unit in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia.

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

S Arabia's SABIC starts commercial ops at KEMYA PBR unit

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) said Sunday that it started commercial operations the previous day at the polybutadiene industrial rubber part of its KEMYA complex, a JV with ExxonMobil Chemical, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The Saudi firm, one of the world's largest petrochemicals groups, added in a bourse filing that it had also begun trial operations at the ethylene propylene diene monomer unit of the KEMYA complex on Friday.

The financial impact of the start of commercial operations at the polybutadiene unit would be reflected in its fourth-quarter earnings, while the ethylene propylene diene monomer business would likely reach full capacity in 1Q of 2017.

Al-Jubail Petrochemical Company (KEMYA) rubber plant cost USD3.4 B and is a JV between SABIC and Exxon Chemical Arabia, a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil.

The project will supply over 400 Mtpy of rubber, thermoplastic polymers and carbon black for domestic markets and for export to Asia, according to the statement.

As MRC informed earlier, a decision on whether Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) will go ahead with a JV with ExxonMobil will likely be made by Q2 2017.

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

MRC

Petrobras and Total form a Strategic Alliance in Upstream and Downstream

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Petrobras and Total have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which sets the general framework for a Strategic Alliance covering Upstream and Downstream activities in Brazil as well as international potential opportunities, as per Total's press release.

Through this agreement, the companies undertake to join forces in some key areas of mutual interest and to evaluate opportunities in Brazil and abroad to jointly benefit from their internationally recognized expertise on all segments of the oil and gas value chain.

As a first phase of implementation, the companies intend to focus on Upstream and on Gas and Power.

In Upstream, Petrobras will propose Total to partner in projects in Brazil and Total will propose Petrobras to partner in opportunities outside Brazil. This new partnership will allow both companies to combine their world class experience and expertise in deep water development to optimize the production and jointly develop this strategic area of activity in Brazil and in other high potential oil and gas provinces, as well as sharing costs and risks in projects with high investment and complexity.

In Downstream, the companies will be working to develop joint activities in the gas and power generation in Brazil.

MOU also states that the cooperation will be extended, in a second phase, to a broader cooperation in Brazil focused on all downstream segments.

Currently, Petrobras and Total are jointly participating in 15 consortiums worldwide in exploration and production, nine of which are in Brazil and six abroad. In Brazil, the companies are partners in the development of the giant Libra area which is the first production sharing contract in the Brazilian pre-salt in Santos basin. Outside Brazil, Petrobras and Total are partners on the Chinook field in the US Gulf of Mexico, on the deep-water Akpo field in Nigeria and on the gas fields of San Alberto and San Antonio/Itau in Bolivia, as well as in the Bolivia-Brazil gas pipeline.

As MRC reported earlier, Brazil's state-led oil company Petrobras wants to sell its stake in Brazilian petrochemicals producer Braskem, Latin America's largest petrochemical producer. Petrobras owns 47% of Braskem's common shares and 21.8% of its non-voting preferred stock. Braskem S.A. produces petrochemicals and generates electricity. The Company produces ethylene, propylene, benzene, toluene, xylenes, butadiene, butene, isoprene, dicyclopentediene, MTBE, caprolactam, ammonium sulfate, cyclohexene, polyethylene theraphtalat, polyethylene, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

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.

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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