SINOPEC awarded RMB10.932B contracts

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SINOPEC Engineering (Group) Co. announced that it recently entered into several contracts of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) with Zhongke (Guangdong) Refining & Chemical Co. in relation to the chemical engineering and power station segment of Zhongke Guangdong integrated refining and petrochemical project, which is located at Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province, China, as per Oceanwir.

SINOPEC Engineering (Group) Co.'s scope of work under the contracts mainly includes the main process units of chemical segment, such as a 800 thousand tons per annum (Ktpa) ethylene steam cracking unit, a 400 Ktpa pyrolysis gasoline hydrogenation unit, a 550 Ktpa polypropylene unit, a 350 Ktpa high density polyethylene unit, a 250 Ktpa EO and 400 Ktpa EG unit, a 100 Ktpa EVA unit, a 180 thousand standard cubic meters per hour coal-to-hydrogen unit, a power station and other utilities and facilities.

The total value of the contracts is approximately RMB10.932 billion. The contracts took effect from the date of signing. The intermediate handover date of the project as agreed under the contracts is October 2019.
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According to the statistical committee of the Republic of Belarus, local converters increased their purchasing of PVC in January 2018 on the back of low prices of some suppliers. Total imports were 2,700 tonnes, compared to 1,400 tonnes a year earlier and 3,200 tonnes in December 2017.

As reported earlier, PVC imports rose to 34,600 tonnes in 2017 from 24,800 tonnes in 2016, with local windows producers accounting for the main increase in demand.

Russian producers with the share of 89% of the Belarusian market were the key suppliers of resin to Belarus in the first month of the year. Producers from Ukraine and Germany were the second and third largest suppliers.

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February output of PC granules was 5,620 tonnes versus 6,530 tonnes a month earlier. The plant has been operating normally. The plant has been increasing its output of extrusion grades as the start-up of the season of strong demand approaches.

Some PC sheets producers reported limited quantities of extrusion grade material at the plant in January-February. January output of extrusion grade PC accounted for 67% of the total production, whereas it reached 94% in February.

Overall production of extrusion grades reached 9,700 tonnes in the first two months of 2018 or 79% of the plant's total output. Production of injection moulding PC accounted for 21% or 2,500 tonnes. The main quantities of Kazanorgsintez's injection moulding PC was shipped for export to China.

Kazanorgsintez again raised its prices of extrusion grade and injection moulding PC by Rb5,000/tonne in March. Extrusion grades were offered from Rb220,000/tonne FCA plant, including VAT, whereas injection moulding grades were offered from Rb225,000/tonne FCA plant, including VAT.

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Some Russian producers reduced their capacity utilisation amid weak demand for PVC from the domestic market, the total output of unmixed PVC was 75,400 tonnes versus 89,800 tonnes a month earlier. Overall PVC production reached 65,200 tonnes in January-February 2018, all plants increased their output.

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

RusVinyl (JV of SIBUR and SolVin) produced about 22,600 tonnes of PVC in February, with emulsion polyvinyl chloride (EPVC) accounting for 2,500 tonnes, compared to 31,200 tonnes a month earlier. Overall output of resin at RusVinyl reached 53,800 tonnes in the first two months of the year, the plant will be shut down for a two-week turnaround in April.

SayanskKhimPlast increased its capacity utilisation last month (given the calendar factor), the plant's total SPVC production reached 25,000 tonnes, whereas this figure was 27,100 tonnes in January. SayanskKhimPlast managed to produce 52,100 tonnes of resin over the stated period.

Bashkir Soda Company (BSC) produced about 20,500 tonnes of SPVC in February, whereas 23,300 tonnes were produced in January. Overall output of resin at the Bashkir plant was 43,800 tonnes in January-February 2018.

Kaustik (Volgograd) slightly decreased its production last month, total SPVC output was about 7,300 tonnes versus 8,200 tonnes in January. The plant's overall output of resin reached 15,500 tonnes over the stated period.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Taiwan's Formosa Petrochemical Corp is expected to restart a 700 Mtpy naphtha cracker in about 7 to 10 days after the unit failed to resume normal operation on Monday as intended, a company spokesman said on Tuesday, reported Reuters.

The unit was idled unexpectedly early Monday due to minor glitches and was to restart later in the same day.

But the sudden shutdown has affected some of its structure and prevented Formosa from restarting the unit as planned, the spokesman said.

Formosa, Asia's top naphtha importer, has two other larger crackers which have a combined capacity of 2.23 MMtpy, both of which are operating normally.

Steam crackers break down naphtha into petrochemical precursors such as ethylene or propylene that are used to manufacture plastics and other chemicals.

As MRC wrote before, in 2016, Formosa Petrochemical conducted maintenance works at its No.1 residual fluid catalytic cracker (RFCC) unit from early March to mid-April. Located in Mailiao, Taiwan, the No.1 RFCC unit has a propylene capacity of 375,000 mt/year.

Formosa Petrochemical is involved primarily in the business of refining crude oil, selling refined petroleum products and producing and selling olefins (including ethylene, propylene, butadiene and BTX) from its naphtha cracking operations. Formosa Petrochemical is also the largest olefins producer in Taiwan and its olefins products are mostly sold to companies within the Formosa Group. Among the company's chemical products are paraxylene (PX), phenyl ethylene, acetone and pure terephthalic acid (PTA). The company's plastic products include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resins, polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP) and panlite (PC).
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