US starts anti-dumping probe into PET resin imports

MOSCOW (MRC) — The US Department of Commerce said on Tuesday it began an investigation into whether imports of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin from Brazil, Indonesia, South Korea, Pakistan and Taiwan were being dumped in the US market, said Reuters.

The US International Trade Commission is expected to make a decision by Nov. 13 on whether imports of the material used to make clothing and plastic bottles harm or threaten to harm US producers, the department said in a statement

If they are found to do so, the Commerce Department would continue its investigation and make a preliminary antidumping decision by March 5, 2018, the department said.

The probes were prompted by petitions filed by DAK Americas LLC of North Carolina, Indorama Ventures USA Inc of Alabama, M&G Polymers USA LLC of Houston, and Nan Ya Plastics Corp America of South Carolina, a unit of Taiwan’s Nan Ya Plastics Corp, the department said. Indorama Ventures USA Inc is not a petitioner with respect to the Indonesia investigation, it said.

The estimated dumping margins alleged by the petitioners range from 18.76% to 115.87%, 8.49% to 53.50%, 55.74% to 101.41%, 25.03% to 43.40%, and 14.67% to 45.00% for Brazil, Indonesia, South Korea, Pakistan and Taiwan, respectively, the statement said.

In 2016, imports of PET resin from Brazil, Indonesia, South Korea, Pakistan and Taiwan were valued at an estimated USD51.7 MM, USD35.7 MM, USD24 MM, USD34.1 MM and USD109.8 MM, respectively.
MRC

Total, Saudi Aramco discussing JV refinery expansion

MOSCOW (MRC) — Total is in talks with Saudi Aramco to expand their Saudi joint venture refinery by more than 10%, the chief executive of the French energy company said on Wednesday, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Capacity at their Saudi Arabia Total Refining and Petrochemical (SATORP) complex in Jubail can raise its capacity to 440,000 bpd through greater efficiency, Patrick Pouyanne said.

"We are working with Saudi Aramco, discussing gas allocation," Pouyanne told reporters at the Oil & Money conference.

"To go up to 440,000 bpd can be quick," he said.

The SATOROP refinery on Saudi Arabia’s east coast was launched in 2014 and is considered one of the world’s most advanced plants producing fuels and plastics.
MRC

China refineries run at record Sept pace

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China's oil refineries increased their run rates by 12.7% to a record for September, data showed on Thursday, after a major new state-run refinery launched operations and independent plants came back on stream after maintenance, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Processing volumes in September were up 12.7% in September compared with the same month a year ago at 49.34 MMt, or 12 MMbpd. That was also an increase on August's 11.1 MMbpd, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

For the first three quarters of the year, refinery output rose 4.7% from the same period last year to 418.4 MMt.

China National Offshore Oil Co's 200,000-bpd Huizhou plant, in southern Guangdong province, started test runs in late September, becoming the second new major refinery brought on stream this year.

PetroChina started trial production at its 260,000 bpd Yunnan plant, near the southwestern city of Kunming, at end of June.

Meanwhile domestic crude oil production fell 2.9% on year to 15.53 MMt, or 3.78 MMbpd.

Natural gas production rose 10.7% in September over the same month a year ago to 11.2 Bcm.

As MRC reported earlier, Petrochina recently expressed interest in developing the Nassiriya oil refinery in southern Iraq, the oil ministry said in the last week's statement.

PetroChina Company Limited, is a Chinese oil and gas company and is the listed arm of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation, headquartered in Dongcheng District, Beijing. It is China's biggest oil producer.
MRC

Rosneft says ready to discuss Citgo collateral swap

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russian oil major Rosneft will consider proposals to replace a stake in US-based refiner Citgo it holds as collateral for a 2016 loan to Venezuela with another asset, reported Reuters with reference to CEO Igor Sechin.

"If they offer something more interesting, we will consider (proposals)," Sechin told a news briefing, adding Rosneft had no plans to use the Citgo stake in any way other than collateral.

Reuters reported in July that Rosneft was negotiating to swap its collateral in Venezuelan-owned, US-based refiner Citgo for oilfield stakes and a fuel supply deal in a move to avoid complications stemming from US sanctions.

As MRC informed before, in June 2016, Rosneft and China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) signed a Framework Agreement on joint pre-feasibility study of the project related to the construction and operation of a gas processing and petrochemical complex in East Siberia. The Agreement signed in furtherance of the Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in petrochemical projects, provides to select a technology for natural gas processing from its components to polymers. The parties also decided to choose a consultant for the project management and identified competitive challenges and the time to fix them before entering the stage front-end engineering design (FEED). In the event of successful outcomes as stipulated by the Framework Agreement, it is supposed to create a joint venture between Rosneft and Sinopec in 2017.

Rosneft became Russia's largest publicly traded oil company in March 2013 after the USD55 billion takeover of TNK-BP, which was Russia’s third-largest oil producer at the time.
MRC

PVC imports to Belarus rose by 45.6% in first eight months of 2017

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Overall imports of unmixed polyvinyl chloride (PVC) into Belarus grew in January-August 2017 by 45.6% year on year, totalling 22,300 tonnes, according to MRC's DataScope report.


According to the statistical committee of the Republic of Belarus, local converters maintained strong demand for PVC in August, total imports were 3,500 tonnes, compared to 3,600 tonnes a month earlier. Thus, PVC imports rose in the first eight months of 2017 to 22,300 tonnes from 15,300 tonnes in January-August 2016, with local window profiles producers accounting for the main increase in demand.

Russian producers were the key suppliers of resin to Belarus. They accounted for about 84% of the Belarusian market in the first eight months of the year. Producers from Germany with the share of about 13% were the second largest suppliers.

MRC