PVC imports into Belarus increased by 27.4% in January-April

MOSCOW (MRC) - Total import of unmixed polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to Belarus increased by 27.4% compared to the same period of 2017 and amounted to about 10,900 tonnes in the first four months of this year, according to MRC DateScope Report.

According to the statistical committee of the Republic of Belarus, local converters significantly reduced the volume of PVC purchases in April of this year due to large stocks left since March and weak demand for finished products. Total imports into the country were about 2,100 tonnes against 3,100 tonnes a month earlier.
Thus, imports of unmixed PVC rose to 10,900 tonnes in the first four months of the year against 8,600 tonnes a year earlier, the main increase in demand accounted for local window profile producers.

The key suppliers of PVC in the Republic of Belarus for the period under consideration were producers from Russia, their share in the Belarusian market was about 90%. The second and third place in the volume of supplies were taken by producers from Germany and Ukraine.
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Russian oil export, refinery plans point to increase in output

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Ahead of a meeting with Saudi Arabia and other producers, Russia already plans to increase oil exports, its July-September schedule shows, which coupled with increasing refinery runs suggests Moscow is gearing up to raise production, reported Reuters.

OPEC and non-OPEC producers are scheduled to meet on June 22-23 in Vienna to discuss a possible increase in output after more than a year and a half of coordinated cuts which have taken 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) out of the market.

Those cuts, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, having helped slash global oversupply and raised prices by almost $20 a barrel, but there are now calls, from Russia's energy minister Alexander Novak and others, that the deal be re-examined.

Crude exports and transit from Russia is expected to rise to 63.34 million tonnes in the July-September quarter from 62.45 million planned for April-June, Russia's export schedule shows.

That works out to an increase of around 20,000 bpd - not significant in itself - but comes alongside plans by Russian refiners to raise third-quarter throughput by 2.2 million tonnes versus the second quarter, energy ministry forecasts show.

Raising both would typically require a production increase.

Under the deal among OPEC and non-OPEC producers, Russia agreed to cut production by 300,000 bpd compared to its output in October 2016.

It has exceeded its production quota for the last three months, however, pumping an average 10.97 million bpd in May - or around 20,000 bpd more than agreed, ministry data showed.

Russia could quickly add back at least 300,000 bpd of production, the ministry has said.

Top producer Rosneft could increase output by 70,000 bpd in just two days, according to analysts who have recently visited the company.
MRC

Tianjin to use gasoline with ethanol in most vehicles

MOSCOW (MRC) - The Chinese city of Tianjin will use gasoline with added ethanol in most vehicles by the end of September, according to a document published on the city government's website, as Beijing pushes for adoption of the biofuel nationwide, as per Reuters.

The central government said last year that it plans to roll out the use of gasoline blended with 10 percent added ethanol nationally by 2020, to cut corn stocks and clean up choking smog.

The move by Tianjin, a port city of around 15 million people in northern China, was the first official plan by a provincial government to implement the national policy since it was announced.

Tianjin is expected to use 260,000 tonnes of fuel ethanol each year if that goal is realized, the city government said.

That would mean consumption of 780,000 tonnes of corn, as three tonnes of corn would be used to make one tonne of ethanol.

China is currently sitting on huge stocks of corn estimated to be at about 200 million tonnes, following a now discontinued government stockpiling scheme to support farmers.

China currently produces less than 2.5 million tonnes of ethanol a year, but the new policy could increase demand to 15 million tonnes a year by 2020, according to a Reuters estimate.

Domestic producers were ramping up output, on cheaper corn and government subsidies, hoping to get a share in the potentially booming market.
MRC

BASF inaugurated application center for plastic additives in Switzerland

MOSCOW (MRC) -- BASF has recently inaugurated its new EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) Application center for Plastic Additives in Kaisten, Switzerland, said the producer on its site.

The new facility, located in the existing BASF production site, includes a state of the art compounding extruder, stretch film and tape lines as well as an injection molding unit capable of simulating the polymer production and processing technology. The facility can combine intelligent process automation and expertise that will increase the quality of plastics produced.

The new application center serves as the regional technical support base for customers for applications such as polymer production, master batch and leading players in the converting industry but is also the global competency center for the automotive as well as the film and tape industry. The state of the art facility is equipped with specialized equipment that can precisely simulate commercial production processes. The test laboratory can expertly evaluate processing stabilization, light stabilization, long term stabilization or effect performance of additives. With the combination of this new innovative technical facility and the global experience of the dedicated teams, BASF is significantly better positioned to support the business success of its customers.

"The housing of existing innovation units and intelligent laboratories on one dedicated site will lead to both shorter development cycles and help our customers by reducing complexity. Supported by the latest digital technologies, we will continue to strengthen our development capabilities to not only to meet with customer needs but also to drive innovation that addresses the future market needs," said Alberto Giovanzana, Head of Plastic Additives Europe, Africa and Middle East, BASF.

The existing BASF site located in Kaisten is well known for the production of plastic additives such as antioxidants which are added to plastics and lubricating oils to protect against ageing. The site already houses a development lab for the form giving of additives and with the new investment, the site is now the European competence center for Plastic Additives in addition to the regional technical centers in Pontecchio Marconi, Italy and Ludwigshafen, Germany. By combining the current application technology labs together with the Marketing and Product Management functions all on one site, it will enhance automation and deliver faster results to its customers.

The BASF Plastic Additives business has 5 labs globally: the global competence center as well as the regional technical center in Kaisten, and the regional technical centers in Pontecchio Marconi, Ludwigshafen, Shanghai (China) and Tarrytown (U.S.).

As MRC wrote before, in December 2017, BASF’s Coatings division inaugurated a new automotive coatings plant at its Bangpoo manufacturing site, Samutprakarn province, Thailand. The new plant is the first BASF automotive coatings manufacturing facility in ASEAN, and will produce solventborne and waterborne automotive coatings to meet growing market demand in the region.

BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries. BASF generated sales of EUR64.5 billion in 2017.
MRC

DuPont increasing Tyvek production

MOSCOW (MRC) -- DuPont Safety & Construction, a business unit of DowDuPont Specialty Products Division, plans to invest more than USD400 million to increase capacity for the manufacture of Tyvek nonwoven materials at its facility in Luxembourg, as per Technicaltextile.

The production increase, which will add a new building and third operating line at the site, is scheduled to start up in 2021. "Global demand for DuPont Tyvek continues to grow worldwide in all of our key end-use markets," said Rose Lee, president, DuPont Safety & Construction. "This capacity expansion plan is a critical step in growing the Tyvek business, maintaining our leadership in nonwoven materials, and delivering the innovation customers expect from DuPont."

According to industry estimates, the global segments for potential Tyvek use total several billion dollars. A world leader in nonwoven technology, in 2017 DuPont celebrated the 50th anniversary of DuPont Tyvek, a unique nonwoven material made of 100 per cent high-density polyethylene that has enabled new dimensions of protection, security and safety in a wide variety of industries and applications.

Core segments include building envelope solutions, such as Tyvek HomeWrap, Tyvek CommercialWrap, DuPont Flashing Systems and Tyvek Protec to create more comfortable, energy-efficient buildings with fewer chances for moisture damage caused by water buildup; Tyvek protective garments, which provide superior protection for workers in industrial and cleanroom applications and for first responders; Tyvek for medical packaging, widely used to help protect patients in healthcare settings. Since its introduction to the medical device industry more than 45 years ago, Tyvek has been recognised as a standard of excellence for sterile device packaging.

Tyvek has had a tremendous impact across numerous industries, resulting in the creation of new categories of products, such as house wrap, which helped revolutionise home construction; setting new standards for personal protective apparel; enabling advancements in medical device technology; and playing an important role in many other applications.

DuPont, along with its customers, continue to develop new Tyvek products and applications to meet evolving marketplace needs. Designers of consumer products for lighting and fashion accessories and apparel are increasingly demanding Tyvek for their products because of its lightweight durability and texture.
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