Oil holds near 2014 high, supported by threat of Nigeria attack

MOSCOW (MRC) - Oil held steady above USD69 a barrel on Thursday, supported by falling inventories of crude and threats of an attack on Nigeria's petroleum industry, although a reported rise in U.S. fuel supplies weighed, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Crude is within sight of its highest since December 2014, supported by supply cuts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and concern that unrest in producer nations such as Nigeria could further curb output.

Militant group Niger Delta Avengers threatened to attack Nigeria's oil sector in the next few days, potentially hampering supplies in Africa's largest exporter. "The impact of such a threat, if carried out, would be significant on the global supply and demand balance," said Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM. "The market is still sensitive to geopolitical developments."

Brent crude, the global benchmark, had slipped 7 cents to USD69.31 by 0943 GMT. On Monday it hit USD70.37, the highest since December 2014. U.S. crude was up 2 cents at USD63.99 and reached its highest since December 2014 on Tuesday. A supply report from the American Petroleum Institute on Wednesday presented a mixed picture, with inventories of gasoline and diesel rising and crude stocks falling. The U.S. government's weekly supply data is due on Thursday. Brent has risen from USD61 a barrel in early December and some analysts say the rally may be about to run out of steam.

"The upside is now limited for oil prices," said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at brokerage Forex.com. "U.S. oil producers will ramp up production in the coming months." The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Tuesday it expects U.S. oil output to continue to rise in February with production from shale increasing by 111,000 bpd. The agency previously said U.S. output could reach 10 MMbpd in February and 11 MMbpd in 2019. Even so, traders said prices were unlikely to fall far due to the OPEC-led curbs and the risk of further disruptions.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia's production of high density polyethylene (HDPE) decreased in January-December 2017 by 10% year on year to 898,000 tonnes. All Russian producers reduced their output, with Kazanorgsitez being the exception, according to MRC's ScanPlast report.

December production of HDPE in Russia increased to 73,700 tonnes, whereas a month earlier this figure did not exceed 63,700 tonnes. Gazprom neftekhim Salavat and Stavrolen increased PE production. Overall HDPE production reached 898,000 tonnes in 2017, compared to 1,000,000 tonnes a year earlier. Only Kazanorgsintez increased its production, whereas other producers reduced their output because of different reasons.

The structure of HDPE production by plants looked the following way over the stated period.

Russia's December HDPE production at Kazanorgsintez increased to 47,500 tonnes from 46,500 tonnes a month earlier. The Kazan plant's overall HDPE production was 507,700 tonnes in January-December 2017, up by 4% year on year.

Stavrolen last month increased the production of HDPE for long-term preventive maintenance, but did not reach 100% of capacity utilisation. December HDPE production grew to 17,700 tonnes, compared with 8,700 tonnes in November. The plant's HDPE output reached 232,600 tonnes in 2017, down by 14% year on year.

Gazprom neftekhim Salavat decreased capacity utilisation in December, producing about 8,500 tonnes of HDPE against 7,700 tonnes in November (the producer shut the plant for a week long maintenances in November). Overall HDPE production at the Bashkir plant reached 92,200 tonnes in January-December 2017, down by 15% year on year. This year's low production was caused by a long shutdown for maintenance in July-August.

Nizhnekamskneftekhim switched over to production of linear PE in the early November. Thus, only 65,600 tonnes of HDPE were produced in 2017, whereas in 2016 this figure was 135,600 tonnes. Such a noticeable reduction in the output was caused by an increase in the share of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) in the total production.


MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - Ukraine reduced import duty on European expandable polystyrene (EPS) by 1.6%, according to the ICIS-MRC Price Report, citing data from the Ministry of Economic Development of Ukraine.

Special import duty for the import of goods from the European Union are applied in the framework of free trade between Ukraine and the EU. The Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU entered into force in full on 1 September, 2017, and its trading part is effective from 1 January, 2016.

According to the document, the import duty on EPS was reduced from 6.5% to 0% during the transitional period of 3 years. In 2017, the rate was at the level of 3.25%. VAT for this group of goods remains unchanged at 20%. To date, EPS is not produced on the territory of Ukraine.

EPS imports decreased by 3% to 29,800 tonnes in January-November 2017 against 30,600 tonnes in the same period last year.

The share of EPS produced by Sibur-Khimprom in the domestic market of Ukraine for eleven months was 54%.
Traders accounted for about 58% of the total import shipments to the country.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - Royal Dutch Shell gave the green light on Monday for an expansion of the Penguins oil and gas field in the UK North Sea, its first major new project in the ageing basin in six years, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Shell said the development, which includes the construction of a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, reaffirmed the Anglo-Dutch company's commitment to the region after it sold around half of its assets there last year. "Penguins demonstrates the importance of Shell's North Sea assets to the company's upstream portfolio," said Andy Brown, director of Shell's oil and gas production, known as upstream.

The FPSO is expected to produce up to 45,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d). The Shell-operated Penguins redevelopment is the first major project Shell has announced since 2012, when it made a final investment decision for the Fram field in the central North Sea.

The project will generate a profit even with oil prices below $40 a barrel, Shell said in a statement, making it competitive against other offshore basins and most of North America's shale production. We struggled to make it economic until the last couple of years when we closely worked with supply to redefine and redesign the development to reduce costs," Steve Phimister, head of Shell Upstream in the UK and Ireland, told Reuters.

After Penguins, Shell is expected to decide on a number of new projects in the central North Sea in the next year or two, Phimister said. Shell gave no details on the cost of the project, which analysts at Bernstein last September estimated would be up to USD2.5 billion.

Production in the UK North Sea has steadily declined since the late 1990s but has seen a modest recovery in recent years thanks to a number of new projects, including the BP-operated Quad 204 field in the western Shetlands last year, in which Shell holds a 55 percent stake. Operators have drastically reduced operating costs as a sharp drop in oil prices since 2014 forced companies to become more efficient and service providers to slash costs. Shell's production is currently around 135,000 boe/d in the UK North Sea after completing the sale of a USD3 billion package of assets to private-equity-backed Chrysaor last November, Phimister said. The company intends to maintain its production at this level into 2030, he added.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sabic, a global leader in the chemical industry, has unveiled a new line of high-clarity, high-heat, injection moldable polycarbonate copolymer resins, as per the company's press release.

LEXAN CXT resins can offer a unique balance of high temperature resistance, high flow and excellent color stability under extreme molding conditions, together with a high refractive index.

LEXAN CXT resins can be used in optical applications in the electronics, consumer & industrial, and healthcare industries. Typical products in the first two areas include lenses and small sensors that detect visible light; in healthcare, the materials answer the call for excellent optical quality and the ability to resist high temperatures involved, for example, when over-molding clear face shields with silicone rubber.

Global industry trends such as miniaturization and the need to integrate more functions into less space are driving a growing demand for the level of performance offered by LEXAN CXT resins. With Vicat B120 softening temperatures as high as 190 C and glass transition temperatures (Tg) of up to 195 C, LEXAN CXT resins can provide converters with the potential to injection mold parts that can withstand demanding assembly processes, such as cold reflow or wave soldering onto printed circuit boards. Parts will also stand up to prolonged exposure to high service temperatures.

LEXAN CXT resins, which can have a refractive index (RI) over 1.6 as well as high transparency (greater than 89% in the visible and infrared spectra at a thickness of 1 mm), can help enable the production of very small lenses (such as those used in mobile phones) that can be assembled onto a PCB that then goes through various soldering operations. The very good thermal stability of the LEXAN CXT resins can help prevent deformation or discoloration.

Feedback from Sabic customers over the course of the development of LEXAN CXT resins indicates numerous other potential benefits. These potential benefits include: improvements in productivity and system costs through shorter cycle times; improved dimensional accuracy; fewer production stoppages and lower reject levels; and the potential to create components with more complex geometries, thinner and longer walls, and improved textural definition.

"The launch of this new portfolio is the result of us taking heed of the current and future needs of our key customers in different segments and then implementing key innovations in resin and product technology to respond to these challenges," said Joshua Chiaw, Director at Sabic.

The new LEXAN CXT resins will complement existing LEXAN polycarbonate copolymer specialty resins, which include EXL, XHT and SLX resins. These can be distinguished, respectively, by particularly good low-temperature impact resistance, heat resistance in clear and opaque forms, and high weatherability.

As MRC informed before, in October 2016, Sabic announced that it had developed next generation low density polyethylene (LDPE) foram grades. The first product of a new generation of LDPE foam grades from SABIC was designed to increase production efficiency at the foam manufacturer.

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