Ethydco launches international tender for polybutadiene plant next month

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Egyptian Ethylene and Derivatives Company (Ethydco) is preparing to submit an international tender for general contractors next month for the implementation of the polybutadiene industrial rubber plant, as per GV.

Khaled Talaat, Ethydco assistant head of marketing, told Daily News, "Ethydco will address companies that have previous experience to present their technical and financial offers and the awarded company is expected to be announced in May."

He explained that the production capacity of the plant is 36,000 t/y of industrial rubber, i.e. polybutadiene, with investments of USD 100 million, while the plant is expected to run in 2020, according to the economic studies of the project.

He added that the company is still studying ways to market polybutadiene and export it as part of the strategy of the Ministry of Petroleum to implement projects to maximize added value, which aims to achieve economic returns to the state from the manufacture of raw materials and production inputs, rather than sales of crude material.

He added that the new plant will contribute to fulfilling local market needs of industrial rubber, which is used in many important feed-in industries, such as car tyres, conveyors, carpets, the manufacture of polystyrene, and many different industries.

Ahmed El-Sakka, project manager at Ethydco, said that a number of scenarios are on the table to finance the USD 100 million project, whether through shareholders or agreements with banks to lend part of the cost. "We are seeking to decide on the general contractor for the project in the coming period, then agree on funding as the next step."

The company produces a high-quality product of high- and low-density polyethylene and butadiene using the latest technology. The company exports its products to 28 countries in the world while its sales in the domestic market reach 25 %.

He said that the Ethydco petrochemical complex in Alexandria is the latest project in the Egyptian petrochemical industry and one of the most important national projects with investments of USD 1.9 billion.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- BEWi Group AB, a leading full-line supplier in the Nordic countries of particle foam products, has through a Dutch wholly-owned subsidiary, entered into a conditional agreement today with funds managed by Gilde Buy Out Partners (Gilde) and its co-investors to acquire Synbra Holding B.V. (Synbra), as per press-release from BEWi.

Synbra is a specialist in particle foam and specialty foams for industrial products and solutions and sustainable insulation systems with operations in Northern Europe and Portugal. The combined Group would become a leading European provider of value-adding particle foam products, with a strong potential for accelerated growth. The acquisition is subject to financing and regulatory approval, completion of relevant works council consultations procedures and notifications under the SER Merger Code will be made.

In order to present proforma financial information in connection with the transaction, BEWi presents a preliminary financial information summary for full year 2017.

BEWi intends to acquire Synbra through a newly incorporated Dutch wholly-owned subsidiary The contemplated acquisition strengthens and expands BEWi’s position as a European supplier of particle foam products and related services, with a broader market reach and product range.

Purchase price will be a cash consideration of EUR 117.5 million (approximately SEK 1,165 million) on a cash and debt free basis. BEWi intends to finance the acquisition by own cash, a directed share issue and a bond issuance.

Closing is expected in the first half of 2018, subject to customary conditions, regulatory approval, completion of the relevant works council consultation procedures, notifications in accordance with relevant legislation and BEWi issuing a bond for the financing of the Synbra acquisition.

ln connection with the transaction, Synbra has entered into a conditional agreement to sell 66 percent of the shares in Synbra’s German subsidiary lsoBouw GmbH to Hirsch Servo Gruppe (“Hirsch”), an Austrian manufacturer active in the EPS business and hence lsoBouw would not be part of the contemplated joint BEWi and Synbra Group. The divestment of lsoBouw to Hirsch is subject to, interalia, regulatory approval. The remaining 34 percent of the shares in lsoBouw GmbH will be acquired by BEWi. Hirsch has entered into an agreement with Saint-Gobain Rigips to acquire Saint-Gobain’s insulation operations conducted in four production units in Germany.

The intended Synbra acquisition would contribute with a balanced and attractive customer portfolio, as well as modern production facilities and highly committed staff. Synbra has approximately 710 employees (not including lsoBouw GmbH) and operates 10 strategically located production facilities in the Netherlands, Denmark and Portugal. Synbra’s net sales in 2017 was approximately EUR 233 million excluding lsoBouw GmbH (approximately SEK 2 300 million).

Synbra’s portfolio of products, geographic footprint and skilled employees will be a valuable addition to BEWi and the combined Group’s expansion strategy and will make the combined Group the leading full-line particle foam supplier in Northern Europe. Additionally, the acquisition will provide BEWi with the opportunity to accelerate its broad product and service portfolio and support the combined businesses’ objective of becoming the preferred partner for particle foam products used for efficient packaging, building and insulation.

As a result of this contemplated acquisition, BEWi and Synbra would become one of the largest manufacturer of particle foam, also known as expanded polystyrene (“EPS”) and related materials in Europe. BEWi and Synbra together are anticipated to drive growth within this product segment, outperforming the European particle foam/EPS market on average.

BEWi’s major shareholders have proposed the appointment of Gunnar Syvertsen as the new chairman of BEWi Group AB. Gunnar has been a member of the BEWi board since 2014 and his experience includes General Manager in Heidelberg Cement North Europe. Following the contemplated transaction, the combined Group management is expected to include senior members of both companies, to ensure knowledge- sharing and efficient implementation of the integration process.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- U.S. gasoline consumption has leveled off as the stimulus provided by low and falling oil prices between 2014 and 2016 has faded, so refiners are increasingly turning to diesel and customers in emerging markets, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

U.S. gasoline consumption is forecast to rise by just 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2018, after remaining essentially unchanged last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Smoke is released into the sky at a refinery in Wilmington, California March 24, 2012. Picture taken March 24, 2012.

Slower consumption growth stands in contrast to the earlier surge when usage rose by almost 260,000 bpd in 2015 and another 140,000 bpd in 2016 (“Short-Term Energy Outlook”, EIA, February 2018).

Traffic volumes are also growing more slowly, after rising sharply during most of 2015 and 2016, according to separate estimates from the Federal Highway Administration.

Traffic on U.S. roads was up by less than 1 percent in the three months to November compared with the same period a year earlier (“Traffic volume trends”, FHWA, January 2018).

Traffic growth has slowed from a peak of well over 3 percent per year in the early part of 2016, shortly after oil prices hit their lowest point in the current cycle.

Oil prices have been trending higher for more than two years and are now within USD10 per barrel of their average real level over the entire of the last cycle.

So while the cost of fuel is not expensive, it is no longer especially cheap, and the steady increase in prices has started to moderate consumption growth.

The nationwide weighted-average retail price of gasoline was USD2.67 per gallon in January, an increase of more than 60 cents per gallon compared with two years previously.

If oil prices continue to climb through the remainder of 2018 and into 2019 as the price cycle matures, U.S. gasoline consumption growth will likely slow even further.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Bestgrand Chemical Group has announced the successful start-up of its wet gas sulfuric acid (WSA) plant - the world’s largest with a production capacity of 300,000 tons of sulfuric acid per year, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The plant will treat 131,000 tons of acid gas over-the-fence per year from the neighboring world-scale refinery plant operated by a joint venture between CNOOC (China National Offshore Oil Corporation) and Shell in Huizhou City, China.

Bestgrand Chemical Group has focused on the environmental benefits from using WSA to capture gaseous sulfur and convert it into commercial grade sulfuric acid. It has also been a deciding factor that both the energy efficiency and the heat recovery of the process are very high. The company predicts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 220 Mtpy and to reduce sulfur (SO2) emissions to a level 50% lower than what is required of the sulfuric acid industry.

"Haldor Topsoe is proud to be awarded the license, engineering design, tech service, and hardware & catalyst contract for the world’s largest WSA plant by Bestgrand Chemical Group. The successful start-up is a milestone for the WSA technology both in China and globally, and it proves that this technology has an important role to play in reducing harmful sulfur emissions in a commercially sound way," says Frank Lei, Senior Sales Director, Topsoe in China.

Since 2000, Topsoe has sold 68 WSA plants in China, 54 are already on stream, and 14 plants are being constructed.

WSA is a patented Topsoe technology, including proprietary equipment and performance catalysts, that removes sulfur from off-gas streams in the refining industry, chemical production from coal, and steel production. WSA converts the sulfurous gases into concentrated sulfuric acid which is re-used in production or sold as a commercial product.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Celanese Corporation has announced that chief financial officer, Chris Jensen, has tendered his resignation after a successful 12 years with the company to spend time with his family and commence the next chapter of his career. He will be succeeded as CFO by Scott Richardson, currently Senior Vice President, Engineered Materials, effective as of 19 February, as per the company's press release.

"We are thankful for the many years of service and leadership Chris has given to Celanese," said Chairman and CEO Mark Rohr. "Chris has been instrumental to the Company's success and his actions to oversee transformative change at the Company. We understand and support Chris' decision and wish him and his family the very best."

Richardson joined Celanese in 2005 and held a variety of roles at the Company including Vice President and General Manager of Acetyls, and his most recent role as Senior Vice President, Engineered Materials.

"I am excited for this opportunity to lead Celanese forward and want to thank Chris for his leadership and partnership over the years. I am grateful to be able to benefit from his experience," said Richardson.

Rohr continued, "I believe that with Scott's extensive industry knowledge and experience, coupled with his proven abilities as a global leader, he will build on Chris' record of success and continue to deliver solid results."

As MRC wrote before, Celanese Corporation increased list and off-list selling prices for Vinyl Acetate Monomer (VAM) sold in Europe, the Middle East and the Americas. The price increases below were effective February 1, 2018, or as contracts otherwise allow, and are incremental to any previously announced increases:

- by EUR50/mt - for Europe and the Middle East;
- by USD0.05/lb - for USA and Canada;
- by USD100/mt - for Mexico and South America.

Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications. Based in Dallas, Celanese employs approximately 7,300 employees worldwide and had 2016 net sales of USD5.4 billion.
MRC