PKN ORLEN opens to a new model of urban mobility

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PKN ORLEN has got involved in car-sharing services by becoming the strategic fuel partner for Traficar. As part of this cooperation, in the cities where the service is available, customers will be able to leave or rent a car at selected PKN ORLEN service stations, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing.

"The cooperation fits perfectly with our strategy and the future growth plans for the ORLEN Group’s retail segment. We keep monitoring market trends in order to tailor our offering to customer needs. Car sharing is a very promising service and by supporting its development we help improve innovation in Polish economy and expand the mobility offer based on Polish companies and capital," said Zbigniew Leszczynski, Member of the Management Board, Sales, PKN ORLEN.

"By joining forces with PKN ORLEN we create the opportunity to develop and increase the availability of the car-sharing service. It is important for us that PKN ORLEN, just like Traficar, recognizes the need to invest in modern transport solutions and is an active initiator of social change in mobility and transport. That is why our cooperation goes much deeper than just the presence of cars at the partner’s stations. Customers receive an innovative, convenient and complete service," said Piotr Gronski, CEO of Traficar.

The car rental service at PKN ORLEN service stations will be available from June 1 in Warsaw and Krakow. Besides designating special parking spaces at PKN ORLEN stations, a number of joint sales, promotion and social initiatives are to be launched.

As MRC informed before, in early May 2016, PKN ORLEN signed a contract with Saudi Aramco for the supply of ca. 200 thousand tonnes of crude oil monthly to its refineries. The contract was effective from May 1st to December 31st 2016, with an option of automatic renewal for successive years. The oil will be processed by all PKN ORLEN's refineries in Poland, the Czech Republic and Lithuania.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- WorleyParsons announces today that it has been awarded a 5-yr Framework Agreement by Shell Global Solutions International, B.V., for the provision of engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) services for Shell downstream projects worldwide, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The inclusion of the management and technical consulting services of Advisian helps WorleyParsons Group provide 360 degree solutions to its clients.

"We are looking forward to working with Shell and delivering success. We appreciate the continued confidence shown in WorleyParsons’ capabilities" said Andrew Wood, CEO of WorleyParsons.

Shell reported a 136 percent surge in the profit for the first quarter, boosted by stronger oil and gas prices and improved refining margins.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) will work together with the Austrian producer OMV to help grow Adnoc’s downstream businesses.

The memorandum of understanding, signed in the presence of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and the Austrian chancellor Christian Kern, covers cooperation on new downstream projects, refining operations, refinery-petrochemical integration and optimisation, and technical and maintenance support.

"This agreement provides the opportunity to work with OMV to identify areas for mutual collaboration that will contribute to our plans to maximise the value from our assets and operations. It will provide access to the in-depth knowledge and experience of OMV, in refining operations and petrochemicals, enhancing our own experience and skills, as we focus on delivering the company’s strategic objectives," said Sultan Al Jaber, the Adnoc chief executive and Minister of State.

Adnoc has set a target to grow domestic petrochemicals production capacity to 11.4 million tonnes per annum by 2025 from 4.5 million tonnes last year. "Together...we have the opportunity to expand our cooperation across the entire value chain, from upstream to downstream, including petrochemicals. We will have a close exchange of expertise that will enable us to make our outstanding, long-term partnership with Adnoc even stronger," said Rainer Seele, the chief executive of OMV, which produces petrochemical products as well as oil and gas.

Earlier this month, Mr Al Jaber toured the Shanghai manufacturing plant of Borouge, a joint venture between Adnoc and Borealis, which is part owned by OMV.

The plant produces up to 90,000 tonnes of value-added compounds a year for the Chinese automotive industry. Mr Steele said in January that OMV planned to increase its investments with Adnoc.

The Austrian company, in which Mubadala Investment Company has a 25 per cent stake, is a partner in the exploration of Abu Dhabi’s offshore oil and gasfields. Earlier this month, OMV reported that its refinery utilisation rate reached a high of 96 per cent thanks to its "petrochemical business and Borealis strongly contributed to this favourable result".

Upstream production in the first quarter hit a 10-year high at 335,000 barrels of equivalent per day on gains from operations in Libya and Norway.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- LyondellBasell has announced that its Supervisory Board has authorized the company's Management Board to declare a dividend of USD0.90 per share, representing a 5.9% increase over the company's first quarter 2017 dividend, as per the company's press release.

The interim dividend will be paid June 12, 2017 to shareholders of record June 5, 2017, with an ex-dividend date of June 1, 2017.

"This dividend increase represents the eighth increase since we began paying dividends in 2011," said Bob Patel, LyondellBasell CEO. "The increase announced today reflects our commitment to provide strong returns to our shareholders and the confidence we have in our ability to consistently generate strong cash flows through market cycles."

The company also announced that at its Annual General Meeting on May 24, 2017, shareholders approved a new share repurchase program authorizing the company to repurchase up to 10 percent of the company's shares over the next 18 months. The repurchases will be executed from time to time through open market or privately negotiated transactions.

The amount and timing of future share repurchases and dividends will depend on, and be subject to, market conditions, general economic conditions, applicable legal requirements and other corporate considerations. The share repurchase program and dividend policy may be suspended or discontinued at any time. This share repurchase program does not obligate LyondellBasell to acquire any particular amount of shares. LyondellBasell had approximately 401 million shares outstanding as of May 22, 2017.

As MRC reported earlier, in August 2016, LyondellBasell made the final investment decision to build a high density polyethylene (HDPE) plant on the US Gulf Coast. The plant will have an annual capacity of 1.1 billion pounds (500,000 metric tons) and will be the first commercial plant to employ LyondellBasell's new proprietary Hyperzone PE technology. The start-up of the new plant is scheduled for 2019.

LyondellBasell is one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies. The company 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.
MRC

April PE imports to Ukraine continued to decrease and went down to 17,500 tonnes from 19,500 tonnes a month earlier. Local companies reduced their purchasing of HDPE because of weak demand for finished products in the domestic market. Overall PE imports reached 76,800 tonnes in January-April 2017, compared to 87,500 tonnes a year earlier, only shipments of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) and ethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA) increased.

The structure of PE imports looked the following way over the stated period.

HDPE imports to the Ukrainian market dropped last month, oversupply of polymer in the market and weak demand for finished products forced local companies to reduce their purchasing in foreign markets. April imports were 7,700 tonnes, compared to 9,000 tonnes in March. Overall HDPE imports reached 24,000 tonnes in the first four months of 2017 versus 43,500 tonnes a year earlier, shipments of film grade and injection moulding HDPE fell by almost a third, demand for PE in the pipes extrusion sector subsided by 20%.

April LDPE imports fell to 4,100 tonnes from 4,500 tonnes a month earlier, a major reduction in export quotas from Russian and European producers was the main reason for lower shipments. Overall LDPE imports exceeded 20,400 tonnes over the stated period, down by 10% year on year.

Last month's imports of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) were 4,300 tonnes, compared to 4,100 tonnes in March, with films producers accounting for a slight increase in demand. Overall LLDPE imports grew to 19,200 tonnes in January-April 2017 from 18,400 tonnes a year earlier. Producers of film and cabling and wiring products accounted for the main increase in demand.

Imports of other PE grades, including EVA, totalled 5,400 tonnes over the stated period, compared to 3,000 tonnes a year earlier.

MRC