Naphtha cracker brought on-stream by BASF-YPC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- BASF-YPC, a 50-50 joint venture of BASF and Sinopec, has restarted its naphtha cracker following a planned shutdown, according to Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the company resumed operations at the cracker on May 9, 2018. The cracker remained under maintenance for around three weeks.

Located in Nanjing, China, the cracker has an ethylene capacity of 740,000 mt/year.

As MRC wrote before, in February 2016, BASF-YPC began production at its new 40,000-t/y neopentyl glycol (NPG) facility in Nanjing, China.

BASF is the world's leading chemical company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas.
MRC

According to the National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus, the local LDPproducerer - Polymir - reduced slightly its capacity utilisation in April. April polyethylene (PE) output was 5,400 tonnes, compared to 5,600 tonnes a month earlier. Thus, Polymir's total LDPE output was almost 20,000 tonnes in January-April 2018, compared to 20,800 tonnes a year earlier.

As reported earlier, Polymir completely shut down its LDPE production for a scheduled overhaul on 5 May. The resumption of production is scheduled for 20 May.

The Belarusian producer also plans to resume some of its ethylene production capacities in August after the forced outage because of fire, which took place in June 2016. When the ethylene unit achieves 100% capacity utilisation, LDPE production capacities will also reach the nominal level of its capacity utilisation.

Polymir (part of Naftan) is Belarus' largest petrochemical company, producing a wide range of chemical products, such as low density polyethylene (LDPE), acrylic fibers, products of organic synthesis, hydrocarbon fractions, etc. Polymir was founded in 1968. The producer uses technologies of the largest foreign companies from Great Britain, Japan, Germany, Italy (Courtaulds, Asahi Chemical Co. Ltd, Kanematsu Gosho, SNIA BPD, etc.), as well as the developments of scientific research institutes and design institutes of the CIS countries. The plant's annual production capacity is 130,000 tonnes.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - Russia's imports of polypropylene (PP) slightly exceeded 61,900 tonnes in first four months of this year, up 35% year on year, compared to the same period of 2017. Supply of all grades of PP increased, according to a MRC's DataScope report.

Russian companies decreased volumes PP imports in April, which reached 16,100 tonnes against 16,800 tonnes in March; shipments of homopolymer PP from Turkmenistan decreased. In general, PP imports into Russia exceeded 61,900 tonnes in January-April 2018, compared with 45,700 tonnes year on year. The import for all grades of propylene polymers increased, the greatest increase in supplies accounted on homopolymer PP.

Overall, the structure of PP imports by grades looked the following way over the stated period.

April imports of homopolymer PP decreased to 5,200 tonnes against 6,200 tonnes a month earlier, shipments of homopolymer PP raffia from Turkmenistan decreased. Overall imports of homopolymer PP reached 21,000 tonnes in the first four months of 2018, compared to 14,000 a year earlier.

April imports of PP block copolymers in Russia were about 4,900 tonnes against 4,300 tonnes in March. Local companies increased their purchasing of PP block copolymer for extrusion injection moulding in Europe. Imports of PP block copolymers into Russia rose to 16,200 tonnes in January-April 2018, compared to 13,600 tonnes a year earlier.

April imports of PP random copolymers were about 3,000 tonnes versus 2,500 tonnes a month earlier. Total imports of PP random copolymers in Russia were 10,800 tonnes in January - April 2018, compared with 8,700 tonnes year on year. The greatest increase in supply accounted for pipe propylene copolymers.

Imports of other propylene polymers for the reported period decreased to about 14,000 tonnes compared with 9,500 tonnes in the same time a year earlier.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SABIC, a global leader in the chemical industry, has unveiled a new and growing portfolio of SABIC polypropylene (PP) compounds that deliver a soft feel combined with excellent scratch performance in unpainted, low gloss automotive interior components, as per the company's press release.

The new SABIC PP compounds offer the luxurious haptics and finishes that today’s consumers demand - even in lower-priced vehicles. At the same time, these injection molding materials can help automotive OEMs and tiers reduce costs by as much as 50 percent by avoiding secondary operations such as applying soft paint, fabric, foam or other surface covering.

"Elegance, comfort and quiet in automotive interiors are becoming increasingly important to buyers of vehicles at all price points," said Scott Fallon, global leader of SABIC’s Automotive business. "SABIC engineered these new PP compounds to address this demand by helping manufacturers deliver an interior environment that connotes luxury while controlling costs. Our customers can benefit from the outstanding aesthetics and value this innovative material technology provides."

In addition to a soft tactile feel, SABIC PP compounds provide an attractive matte surface with excellent scratch resistance, good impact performance and low shrinkage. These SABIC materials also deliver good sound damping capability to help create a quiet cabin environment. The portfolio, which is available globally, includes several grades of short glass fiber-reinforced PP to give customers a choice of stiffness level and material density. The materials are also UV stabilized to prevent fading and color shift.

Possible applications where this material can be used include interior trims, seat and console side cladding, glove boxes, door panels and other similar interior components. SABIC PP compounds allow these types of parts to be efficiently manufactured using only one high-volume injection molding step.

Leading Indian automaker, Tata Motors, is the first automotive manufacturer to use one of the SABIC PP compounds in vehicle interior applications. Tata Motors selected a SABIC PP compound to mold parts with a soft feel and high-end appearance in the steering column cover and speedometer cluster top for its 2017 Tiago hatchback.

The company eliminated the need for expensive paint systems, saving about 30 percent, while achieving the same level of performance and aesthetics.

As MRC informed before, Sabic was named a winner of the prestigious Best Polymer Producer Award in the category of Polypropylene (PP) at an award ceremony held in conjunction with the European Plastics Converters (EuPC) Annual Event on 1 June 2017 in Madrid, Spain.

Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) ranks among the world's top petrochemical companies. The company is among the world's market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil Catalysts and Licensing LLC and BASF Corporation have signed an alliance agreement to jointly develop new gas treating solvents and process technologies for use in natural gas processing and petroleum refining, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Under this new agreement, BASF will market and license technologies developed from this collaboration, along with FLEXSORBTM and OASE technologies.

"With over 35 years of experience providing advance technologies for gas treating, we are excited to partner with BASF to provide innovative solutions to the industry," said Chris Birdsall, President of ExxonMobil Catalysts and Licensing LLC. "The alliance leverages our collective expertise to meet customer needs by providing technologies to increase capacity, reduce energy consumption, and meet tighter sulfur specifications."

"By bringing together two highly capable research and development teams, we expect to accelerate technology development and reduce the time to market," said Heidi Alderman, Senior Vice President, Intermediates, for BASF Corporation. “The next generation technologies will offer significant performance improvements for the benefit of our customers."

ExxonMobil has been offering its unique selective gas processing technology under the FLEXSORB brand since 1983, including the proprietary FLEXSORB SE and FLEXSORB SE PLUS solvents. The technology has been demonstrated in over 120 commercial applications worldwide.

With more than 40 years of experience, BASF offers its customers efficient solutions for the treatment of various gases such as natural gas, gas synthesis and biogas. Worldwide, these solutions have been proven and demonstrated in more than 400 reference plants. BASF markets its range of technologies, gas treatment agents and complete technical services under the brand OASE - Gas Treating Excellence by BASF.
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