Shin-Etsu Polymer chooses KetaSpire PEEK to meet growing demand for its ultra-thin, high-performance film

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Solvay, a leading global supplier of specialty polymers, is supplying KetaSpire PEEK (polyetheretherketone) to Shin-Etsu Polymer for the manufacture of its ultra-thin, high-performance Shin-Etsu Sepla Film, which is widely used in speaker diaphragms for mobile devices and loudspeakers, and other related consumer goods such as headphones and microphones, as per Plastemart.

"KetaSpire PEEK’s unique combination of excellent mechanical properties, high temperature tolerance, high purity, flame retardancy, and superior resistance to wear, abrasion and fatigue meets the stringent performance requirements for Shin-Etsu Sepla Film,"says Kazuhiro Kiroko, Managing Director for Solvay Specialty Polymers Japan K.K. "Also, the processing ease of Solvay’s PEEK has enabled Shin-Etsu Polymer to optimize its fabrication process and develop a broad range of grades and gauges to help boost market end-use growth."

Thanks to its ability to minimize acoustic output distortion and suitability for post-lamination, Shin-Etsu Sepla Film is already used extensively in speaker diaphragms in smartphones and other mobile devices. "Consumers are demanding better sound quality, and our ultra-thin film helps optimize acoustic performance through more effective resonance concerning volume and loudness," says Katsuhiko Seriguchi, Director GM, Group II Sales & Marketing Division IV at Shin-Etsu Polymer. "Our ultra-thin film technology is also being used to develop and grow end-use applications in other industrial market segments."

Shin-Etsu Sepla Film is also suitable for applications in a wide range of industries that include electrical wiring insulation and other insulative applications such as in cable wrapping, automotive components, electronic circuit boards, aerospace, robotics, and medical devices. Because of its high-temperature performance, Shin-Etsu Sepla Film® can be used as a masking material for lead-free soldering in electronic applications.

KetaSpire is a registered trademark of Solvay, Shin-Etsu Sepla Film is a registered trademark of Shin-Etsu Polymer.

As MRC informed before, in 2015, Shintech Inc. added almost 700 million pounds of PVC capacity as part of a USD500 million expansion of its plants in Louisiana. Shintech's parent firm - Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. Ltd. of Tokyo - said in a June 19 2013 news release that the firm would addd 660 million pounds of PVC capacity in Louisiana by 2015. Houston-based Shintech makes PVC in Plaquemine and Addis, La. The project also includes 660 million pounds of new capacity for PVC feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) and 440 million pounds of new capacity for caustic soda.

Shin-Etsu is the world and US' largest polyvinyl chloride (PVC) producer.
MRC

S-Oil lets contract for Ulsan integrated complex

MOSCOW (MRC) -- S-Oil Corp., Seoul, has let a contract to Lloyd's Register Group Ltd. (LR), London, to provide a fully integrated risk-based inspection (RBI) system for its new USD4.2-billion residue upgrading complex (RUC) and olefin downstream complex (ODC) under construction in Ulsan, South Korea, said OGJ.

As part of the contract, which begins this month, LR will implement its proprietary RBI Axxim software package to make management of failure probability more systematic and efficient at the RUC-ODC plant, the service provider said on June 20.

Alongside software implementation, LR also will deliver additional RBI consultancy services across areas such as systems, software training, and inspection management modules, as well as services to assist S-Oil in selecting thickness measurement locations for equipment and pipes.

A value of the contract was not disclosed.

The RUC-ODC projects remain on schedule for startup in 2018, according to Dong-Hak Lee, S-OIL’s inspection department manager.

As MRC informed earlier, S-Oil Corp expects healthy refining profits this year, buoyed by growing demand for oil products in places such as China and Southeast Asia.
MRC

Pemex fined USD20 MM for anti-competitive fuel practices

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mexico's antitrust watchdog has fined a division of state-owned oil company Pemex for failing to establish a competitive fuel market, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Pemex's Industrial Transformation unit, responsible for a range of refining and transport activities, was fined nearly $20.3 MM for the "possible commission of a monopolistic practice in the diesel market."

According to a statement from the Federal Economic Competition Commission (Cofece), the Pemex unit has not complied with its obligations following a 2014 energy reform to refrain from offering discretional benefits for selected buyers and not arbitrarily suspend some sales and marketing contracts.

The Cofece decision can be challenged by Pemex within 15 days of being notified of the fine.

Pemex, which has 15 work days to challenge the ruling, said it respected Cofece's decision, but said it was incomplete and would fight it once it had conducted a full analysis of the resolution.

As MRC informed before, Pemex is investing almost USD5.5bn in upgrading its refineries, increasing pipeline capacity and modernising a fertiliser plant.

Pemex, Mexican Petroleum, is a Mexican state-owned petroleum company. Pemex has a total asset worth of USD415.75 billion, and is the world's second largest non-publicly listed company by total market value, and Latin America's second largest enterprise by annual revenue as of 2009. Pemex has two steam crackers, one at Morelos and one at Cangrejera, and each has a similar capacity. Ethylene production at the crackers is estimated at 500,000 mt/year each. Company produces such polymers, as polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene.
MRC

Russia keeps top spot as China oil supplier in May, Angola pips Saudi again

MOSCOW (MRC) — For the third month in a row, Russia has maintained its spot as China's top crude oil supplier and Angola clung onto the second spot over Saudi Arabia, data from Chinese customs for May imports showed on Friday, as per Reuters.

The data release follows the decision from Saudi Arabia and Russia, the world's two-biggest oil producers who are vying for market share in China, to extend a global oil supply cut agreement to bolster prices in an oversupplied market.

Russia supplied a record 5.74 MMt, or 1.35 MMbpd, to China last month, the General Administration of Customs said, rising from April's 1.15 MMbpd.

Russia was also the largest supplier for the first five months of the year with shipments averaging 1.16 MMbpd, followed by Angola at 1.11 MMbpd and Saudi Arabia at 1.1 MMbpd, customs reported. Angolan shipments were 5.56 MMt last month, or 1.31 MMbpd, up 79.5% from a year ago, the data showed.

Saudi exports were 4.43 MMt, or 1.04 MMbpd, which was 8.6% higher compared to May last year, the data showed. That was down from April's 1.147 MMbpd.

"Declining premiums in Russian export grade ESPO (East Siberian Pacific Ocean) starting in around April may have attracted Chinese buying," said a Beijing-based trading executive.

China's total crude oil imports rebounded to the second highest on record in May, making China the world's top buyer for the month, but the pace is expected to ease from June through August after some local importers ran out of quotas and as refiners contemplate run cuts.

The data also showed China's May imports from Iran gained 10% from a year ago to 681,800 bpd while purchases from Iraq sunk 36% year-on-year to 513,800 bpd.
MRC

Pemex sees restart of Salina Cruz refinery on July 30

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mexican state oil producer Pemex said that it expects to restart operations on July 30 at Salina Cruz, its largest oil refinery, after it was hit last week hit by flooding and subsequent fire that forced a shutdown of the plant, as per Reuters.

The Pacific coast refinery is Mexico's biggest, with a daily processing capacity of 330,000 bbl of crude oil.

Pemex said it was focused on restarting operations, cleaning up and rehabilitating the plant's affected areas, and on general maintenance work.

Taking advantage of the plant shutdown, Pemex said it will perform maintenance work initially planned for April 2018, thereby "reducing the economic impact of the refinery shutdown."

As MRC informed earlier, a major fire broke out at Mexican state oil producer Pemex's Salina Cruz refinery after a crude spill, injuring nine people and extending the shutdown of the plant into a second day.

Pemex, Mexican Petroleum, is a Mexican state-owned petroleum company. Pemex has a total asset worth of USD415.75 billion, and is the world's second largest non-publicly listed company by total market value, and Latin America's second largest enterprise by annual revenue as of 2009. Company produces such polymers, as polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS).
MRC