Index of chemical production in Russia grew by 2.1% in Q1 2017

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia's output of chemical products dropped in March by 2.3% year on year. Thus, this figure increased by 2.1% in the first quarter of 2018, according to Rosstat's data.

According to the Federal Service of State Statistics, last month's production of basic chemicals fell by 2.3% from March 2017, output of ethylene, some polymers and rubbers decreased. Overall production of chemical products grew in January-March 2018 by 2.1% year on year.

264,000 tonnes of ethylene were produced in March, compared to 245,000 tonnes a month earlier. 783,000 tonnes of this olefin were produced in the first three months of the year, up by only 1% year on year.

Last month's production of benzene rose to 134,000 tonnes from 125,000 tonnes in February. Overall output of this product reached 389,800 tonnes over the stated period, up by 3.5%year on year.

March production of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) was 112,000 tonnes (100% of the basic substance) versus 104,000 tonnes a month earlier. Overall output of caustic soda grew to 329,000 tonnes in January-March 2018, up by 2.9% year on year.

Last month's production of mineral fertilizers was 2,046,000 tonnes (in terms of 100% nutrients) versus 1,967,000 tonnes in February. Overall, Russian plants produced about 6,032,000 tonnes of mineral fertilizers in the first three months of 2018, up by 4.4% year on year. Phosphorous fertilizers accounted for the greatest increase in production - up by 7.2% year on year.
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PVC imports to Belarus rose by 64.4% in January-February

MOSCOW (MRC) - Imports of unmixed polyvinyl chloride (PVC) into Belarus increased to 5,800 tonnes in the first two months of this year, up 64.4% year on year, according to MRC DataScope.

According to the statistical committee of the Republic of Belarus, local converters increased significantly their purchasing of PVC in February 2018 on the back of low prices of some suppliers and expectations of price rise in March.
February imports were 3,100 tonnes, compared to 2,700 tonnes a month earlier. Thus, PVC imports rose to 5,800 tonnes in January-February from 3,500 tonnes in the same time a year ago, 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 Germany and Ukraine were the second and third largest suppliers.
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Praxair supplies hydrogen to Marathon Petroleum Louisiana refinery

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Praxair, Inc. has announced that it has begun supplying hydrogen to Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s refinery in Garyville, Louisiana, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Marathon Petroleum is one of the largest transportation fuels refiners in the U.S. and operates an integrated refining, marketing and transportation system in the Midwest, East, Southeast and Gulf Coast.

The Garyville refinery is the last major grassroots refinery that was built in the U.S. and is the third largest operating in the US today.

The hydrogen is supplied through a recently commissioned new extension to Praxair’s Southeast Louisiana pipeline network and is being used by Marathon Petroleum in an ultra-low-sulfur diesel project.

"Marathon Petroleum is a valued customer of Praxair and we are proud to be able to extend our relationship to include supplying hydrogen to their refinery in Louisiana," said Dan Yankowski, president of Praxair’s global hydrogen business. "Our extensive hydrogen system in the lower Mississippi River corridor has been expanded to support the region’s growing chemical and refining industries and this is a great example of how our robust and reliable supply capability is able to support such growth."

As MRC informed before, in July 2017, Praxair, Inc. announced the start-up of a new air separation plant to supply 700 tons per day of nitrogen to Samsung’s display manufacturing complex in Tangjeong, South Korea. Samsung’s Tangjeong complex, the world’s first and largest sixth-generation flexible Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLED) panel plant, is expanding to meet increasing demand for future generations of displays. OLEDs are used in a variety of products including televisions, mobile devices, digital cameras, virtual reality headsets and laptops. Praxair’s nitrogen is being used for cooling and purging applications in Samsung’s manufacturing process.
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Enterprise expands marine terminal on the Houston Ship Channel

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Enterprise Products Partners L.P. has announced that the company has purchased a 65-acre waterfront site on the Houston Ship Channel that will serve as the next phase of expansion at the Enterprise Hydrocarbon Terminal, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Located immediately to the east of EHT, the property features two existing docks, dredging infrastructure that will be utilized for maintenance and dock expansion at the site, and land for significantly expanding Enterprise’s marine terminaling capabilities. Future plans include construction of at least two deepwater docks capable of accommodating Suezmax vessels.

"As one of the last waterfront properties for sale adjacent to our existing ship channel assets, this strategic acquisition complements our world-class EHT marine terminal and strengthens our position as an industry leader in providing waterborne access," said A.J. "Jim" Teague, chief executive officer of Enterprise’s general partner. "The growth opportunities available at the 65-acre site enhance our ability to accommodate growing U.S. hydrocarbon production which is increasingly destined for global markets."

Combined with the EHT complex, the newly acquired assets will be part of Enterprise’s premier Gulf Coast network of marine terminals that includes 18 ship docks, and eight barge docks. In addition, Enterprise’s Gulf Coast infrastructure system features access to approximately 125 pipelines, 400 million barrels of storage and every refinery in the Houston, Beaumont, Port Arthur and Texas City region, representing more than 4 million barrels per day of capacity.

As MRC wrote earlier, in 2015, Enterprise Products Partners L.P. announced a series of projects to convert and expand segments of its petrochemicals pipeline network designed to increase throughput capacity for polymer grade propylene (PGP) and enhance system flexibility and reliability.
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Eni will invest EUR7B in Italy over the next four years, including EUR1B in green activities

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi presented the company’s Strategic Plan for the four-year period 2018-2021 to the Italian financial community, also providing an update on the company’s results regarding safety, its green activities in Italy and ongoing progress in research and development, including the downstream sector, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Eni’s CEO underlined the company’s commitment to the creation of bio-products in the downstream sector: Eni is the first company to have converted a traditional oil refinery into a bio-refinery, in Venice, and by the end of the year will complete the conversion of a plant in Gela; these plants will produce 1 million tons of green diesel per year by 2021, making Eni one of Europe’s leading producers. Meanwhile, the company has also launched a series of projects related to green chemicals, such as intermediate products from vegetable oil and experimental plantations of Guayule for the production of natural rubber.

Claudio Descalzi went on to highlight the fundamental role played by research in Eni’s development strategy: “Thanks to extensive research we have been able to consolidate and enhance our technical know-how, giving us new and important internal skills. We work with more than 50 leading institutions, from universities to research centers, over half of which are in Italy, more than 220 projects, promoting a profound exchange of knowledge between Eni and the rest of the country. From 2009 to 2017, we spent €1.7 billion on research and development, building a portfolio of technologies in a wide range of areas, in the upstream and downstream sectors, as well as in renewables, environmental protection and safety, with a total of over 6,000 patents. Over the course of the next Plan, we will spend more than EUR750 million."

In the field of renewables, Eni’s CEO explained how the company will concentrate its research mainly in solar power, energy storage, advanced biofuels, biomass and wind power, and in the development of technologies for the production of energy from nuclear fusion, a joint project with MIT. In the downstream sector, Eni’s focus is on the research into products and processes with a low environmental impact, also through the use of technologies linked to the circular economy (waste to fuel and lignocellulosic biomass).
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