Malaysia says concludes talks with Saudi Aramco over Rapid investment

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Malaysia has completed talks with Saudi Aramco over the oil giant's planned USD7 billion investment in Petronas' Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (Rapid) project, said the minister in the prime minister's department, Abdul Rahman Dahlan, as per The Business Times.

Aramco's investment will come in by the end of the month, minister Abdul Rahman said on Tuesday at the OTC Asia conference.

Saudi Aramco agreed last February to buy a USD7 billion stake in the Rapid project of Malaysian state energy firm Petroliam Nasional Bhd.

Minister Abdul Rahman had said in November the companies will finalise the joint venture after resolving "technical issues".

As MRC informed previously, in early 2017, Petronas said its new USD27 billion refining and petrochemical complex project in the southeast Asian country is on track for start-up in 2019. Thus, Petronas plans to build a C6-based metallocene linear LDPE plant and a low density polyethylene (LDPE)/ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) swing plant at its greenfield integrated refinery and petrochemical complex in southern Johor state by mid-2019. The proposed metallocene LLDPE will have a capacity of 350,000 tpa, while the LDPE/EVA will have a capacity of about 150,000 tpa. The two plants are part of Petronas' planned Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development project in Pengerang at Johor.

Petronas, short for Petroliam Nasional Berhad, is a Malaysian oil and gas company wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia. The Group is engaged in a wide spectrum of petroleum activities, including upstream exploration and production of oil and gas to downstream oil refining; marketing and distribution of petroleum products; trading; gas processing and liquefaction; gas transmission pipeline network operations; marketing of liquefied natural gas; petrochemical manufacturing and marketing; shipping; automotive engineering; and property investment.

Saudi Aramco is an integrated oil and chemicals company, a global leader in hydrocarbon production, refining processes and distribution, as well as one of the largest global oil exporters. It manages proven reserves of crude oil and condensate estimated at 261.1bn barrels, and produces 9.54 million bbl daily. Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the company employs over 61,000 staff in 77 countries.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A fire that had broken out at an oil storage tank at Tankstore's Pulau Busing terminal in Singapore on Tuesday evening was extinguished after six hours, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said on Wednesday, reported Reuters.

"After approximately 6 hours of intense firefighting operations, the raging oil storage tank fire was extinguished," the SCDF said on its Facebook page.

The cause of the fire is not yet known and is under investigation, an SCDF spokesman told Reuters on Wednesday.

Thirty-one firefighting and support vehicles and 128 SCDF personnel were involved in the operations, said the SCDF, adding that it had been alerted to the fire at about 5:50 p.m. on Tuesday.

Singapore-based Tankstore operates the terminal on Pulau Busing, an island off Singapore's southwest coast. It has a total capacity of 2 million cubic meters, or 112 tanks, to store petroleum and petrochemical products, according to the company's website.

The fire-struck storage tank was said to have contained fuel oil, according to a Tankstore employee who declined to be identified as he is not authorized to speak to the media.

A by-product of the crude oil refining process, fuel oil is used as a shipping fuel and in power generation.

The fire is not expected to have any material impact on fuel oil trading and supply in Singapore, a global trading hub of the fuel, two Singapore-based fuel oil traders said.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The global chemical company Oxea aims to annually produce 60,000 metric tons of dioctyl terephthalate (DOTP), a general purpose non-ortho-phthalate plasticizer, in Europe by the second half of 2019, as per the producer's press-release.

To that effect, Oxea has entered into a cooperation with Oxxynova, Steyerberg, Germany, a manufacturer of dimethyl terephthalate (DMT). Oxea’s DOTP will be produced at a new, dedicated production unit in the transesterification process, which is superior to conventional esterification. Oxea will supply the key precursor 2-ethylhexanol (2-EH) to Oxxynova and will market the end product DOTP through its own sales channels. The new DOTP production unit will be constructed at Oxxynova’s manufacturing site in Germany, with engineering activities already well under way. Dioctyl terephthalate is a phthalate-free plasticizer that meets highest environmental requirements. A direct replacement mainly for dioctyl phthalate (DOP) and diisononyl phthalate (DINP), DOTP is used in a wide range of applications such as construction, automotive, coatings, and flooring.

“By 2019 Oxea will become the major supplier of DOTP in Europe. Our primary goal is to improve delivery reliability through local production to sustainably meet our customer’s current and future needs for this important non-ortho-phthalate plasticizer. Together with Oxxynova, we are fully backward-integrated into the two key raw materials: Oxea is the largest European producer of 2-EH, and Oxxynova is the leading European producer of DMT,” said Max Grudda, Marketing Manager Plasticizers at Oxea.

"At Oxxynova we are very pleased to be working with Oxea on producing DOTP at Steyerberg. As the world market leader in terms of volumes to the DMT merchant market, we bring over 40 years of manufacturing experience into the cooperation. By combining our new dedicated, state-of-the-art DOTP production unit with Oxea’s resources and sales experience, we will bring the supply of locally produced DOTP to the next level in Europe,” stated Dr. Klaus Puell, CEO of Oxxynova.

Oxea is a global manufacturer of oxo intermediates and oxo derivatives, such as alcohols, polyols, carboxylic acids, specialty esters, and amines. These products are used for the production of high-quality coatings, lubricants, cosmetics and pharmaceutical products, flavorings and fragrances, printing inks and plastics. Oxea employs more than 1,400 people worldwide. Oxea is part of the Oman Oil Company S.A.O.C. (OOC), a commercial company wholly owned by the Government of Oman. Established in 1996, it pursues investment opportunities in the wider energy sector both inside and outside Oman. OOC plays an important role in the Sultanate's efforts to diversify the economy and to promote domestic and foreign investments.

Oxxynova manufactures dimethyl terephthalate (DMT), a monomer used to produce technical PBT, PET resins, coatings, fibers, and films, as well as DOTP and CHDM, which have a diversity of end applications within the automotive, electro-electronic, personal care and household industries. For 40 years Oxxynova has supplied the European market with DMT-molten of highest quality, and more recently by the construction of a state-of-the-art DMT-solid plant the worldwide markets with DMT-solid in flake and briquette form. In addition, for some years Oxxynova established itself as a 24/7 distiller of high volumes of chemical side streams, e.g. in the field of THF, glycols, and methanol.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Corpus Christi Polymers LLC - a newly formed joint venture between Alpek, S.A.B. de C.V. (Alpek), Indorama Ventures Holdings LP (Indorama) a subsidiary of Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, and Far Eastern Investment (Holding) Ltd, as per company's press release.

Far Eastern has entered into an asset purchase agreement with M&G USA Corp. and its affiliated debtors (M&G) whereby CC Polymers will acquire the integrated PTA-PET plant currently under construction in Corpus Christi, Texas (Corpus Christi Project), certain M&G intellectual property, and a desalination/boiler plant providing water and steam needs to the Corpus Christi Project. The purchase agreement provides M&G with a binding bid of USD1.125 billion in cash and other capital contributions.

The Corpus Christi Project is an integrated PTA-PET plant currently under development that, when completed, will have nominal capacity of 1.1 million and 1.3 million metric tons per year of PET and PTA, respectively. The plant is expected to be the largest single line vertically integrated PTA-PET production facility in the world and the largest PTA plant in the Americas.

Pursuant to the terms of the newly formed joint venture:
The parties will provide resources to CC Polymers to complete the project in the most efficient and cost effective way. A timeline for project completion will be communicated at a later stage. Each of Alpek, Indorama, and Far Eastern will have the right to receive one-third of the capacity of PTA and PET produced at the Corpus Christi Project upon completion. Each party will independently procure its raw materials and will independently sell and distribute their corresponding PTA and PET.

The closing of the transaction is subject to conditions precedent including approval by the bankruptcy court and applicable governmental authorities.

PJT Partners is serving as financial advisor and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP is serving as legal advisor to Alpek. HSBC is serving as financial advisor and Lowenstein Sandler LLP is serving as legal advisor to Indorama. Morgan Stanley is serving as financial advisor and Duane Morris LLP is serving as legal advisor to Far Eastern.

Alpek is a leading petrochemical company operating two business segments: Polyester (PTA, PET and polyester fibers), and “Plastics & Chemicals” (polypropylene, expandable polystyrene, caprolactam, and other specialty and industrial chemicals). Alpek is an integrated producer of PTA and PET in North America, the largest expandable polystyrene manufacturer in the Americas, and the only producer of caprolactam in Mexico. Alpek also operates one of the largest polypropylene facilities in North America. In 2017, Alpek reported revenues of U.S. D5.2 billion and EBITDA of U.S.D 384 million. The Company operates 23 plants in the United States, Mexico, Canada, Brazil, Argentina and Chile, and employs more than 5,000 people. Alpek is a publicly traded company listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange.

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, a DJSI member, listed in Thailand (Bloomberg ticker IVL.TB), is one of the world’s leading petrochemicals producers, with a global manufacturing footprint across Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. The company’s portfolio comprises Necessities and High Value-Added (HVA) categories of Polymers, Fibers, and Packaging, selectively integrated with self-manufactured Ethylene Oxide/Glycols and PTA where economical. Indorama Ventures products serve major FMCG and Automotive sectors, i.e. Beverages, Hygiene, Personal Care, Tire and Safety segments. Indorama Ventures has approx. 15,000 employees worldwide and consolidated revenue of USD 8.4 billion in 2017.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Bayer has received the green light from the EU to buy Monsanto on Wednesday, after promising to sell off substantial parts of its business, clearing a major hurdle to the last of a trio of mega-mergers consolidating the global agrochemical industry, reported Financial Times.

The German company promised to sell some of its herbicide and seeds businesses to rival BASF to alleviate the watchdog’s concerns that the tie up with the giant American agribusiness would cut competition in the EU and lead to higher prices, lower quality, a cut in choice and less product innovation. Bayer will also license BASF its digital farming portfolio.

Margrethe Vestager, EU competition commissioner, said: "We have approved Bayer’s plans to take over Monsanto because the parties’ remedies, worth well over EUR6 billion, meet our competition concerns in full. Our decision ensures that there will be effective competition and innovation in seeds, pesticides and digital agriculture markets also after this merger."

BASF agreed to buy Bayer’s non-selective herbicide business and some of its seeds business in October for EUR5.9bn, and has recently agreed a further purchase of its rival’s vegetable seed business for around EUR1.5bn. European authorities are considering the competition implications of these sales to BASF.

The approval comes less than a week after Monsanto shares fell on the reports that American antitrust officials at the Department of Justice may have concerns with the deal. While a difference opinion is possible, it is unlikely as American and European antitrust officials work closely when considering global mergers of this scale.

"The EU Commission and the DOJ will have been coordinating closely in their reviews," said Chris Cook, antitrust partner at lawyers Cleary Gottlieb. "The European commission took a more hawkish position than DOJ on the Dow/DuPont (merger), so it would be surprising now if DOJ were the more aggressive agency here."

Bayer’s agreement to buy Monsanto for USD66bn in September 2016 was the third of three mega-mergers in the agri-chemical and seed industry.

The other two deals, the merger of Dow and DuPont and the purchase of Syngenta by ChemChina, were approved by Ms Vestager last year after in-depth reviews but only after both companies promised to sell substantial parts of their business to allay concerns that each of those deals would cut competition.

Ms Vestager said she received thousands of emails, postcards, letters and tweets "expressing concerns about the proposed acquisition which raised concerns about food safety, consumers, the environment and the climate".

She responded: "While these concerns are of great importance, they cannot form the basis of a merger assessment", rather they are dealt with by European and National regulators.

As MRC informed before, in September 2017, Monsanto accepted an increased takeover bid of USD128/share from Bayer, paving the way for Bayer to acquire Monsanto in an all-cash transaction valued at USD66 billion.

Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech polymer materials. As an innovation company, it sets trends in research-intensive areas. Bayer's products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life. At the same time, the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development and to its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen.
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