AkzoNobel teams up with Renmatix to develop biomass-derived additives for paint and construction

MOSCOW (MRC) -- AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals and Renmatix will jointly develop biomass-based performance additives that improve the properties of architectural paints and construction materials, as per ChemEurope.

Renmatix is one of the winners of the 2017 Imagine Chemistry challenge, a program through which AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals collaborates with startups, scale-ups, scientists and others to uncover business opportunities for sustainable chemistry.

Renmatix's proprietary Plantrose Process utilizes 'supercritical' water under high temperature and pressure to convert biomass into cellulosic sugars and bio-fractions, which are valuable green chemistry building blocks. It is the first application under a joint development agreement signed by the companies to research, develop and commercialize novel products using Crysto(TM) Cellulose, a unique form of crystalline cellulose, and the newest bio-fraction isolated by Renmatix.

"I am impressed by Renmatix's thinking and their development of a biomass conversion technology that is not only disruptive technically and economically, but also enables green chemistry," said Geert Hofman, General Manager of AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals' Performance Additives business. "Being able to access and work with unique cellulose materials derived from biomass fits closely with our growth strategy and innovation agenda and will give a significant sustainability advantage to our customers," Hofman said.

"We look forward to working with AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals to advance their sustainability initiatives," said Mike Hamilton, Renmatix CEO. "This agreement is significant because it demonstrates a bright future for plant-based ingredients in the industrial materials segment, and we're uniquely positioned to enable strong performance from biobased alternatives. This collaboration highlights our efforts to partner with progressive market leaders as we work to commercialize our technology for broader industrial applications," he said.

"We will work jointly with Renmatix to develop a range of novel cellulose-based materials for commercial use, ranging from improving personal care to cleaning and construction materials," said Annika Karlsson, AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals RD&I Director for, amongst others, cellulose ethers. "This collaboration is another testament to the success of the Imagine Chemistry challenge and shows that startups, scale-ups and corporates can work together efficiently to break barriers in innovation."

As MRC informed earlier, in June 2018, AkzoNobel entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares of Fabryo Corporation S.R.L. (Fabryo), becoming the leader in the Romanian decorative paints market.

Akzo Nobel N.V., trading as AkzoNobel, is a Dutch multinational, active in the fields of decorative paints, performance coatings and specialty chemicals. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the company has activities in more than 80 countries, and employs approximately 55,000 people.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- S&P Global Ratings announced on 23 July 2018 that it has upgraded its long-term issuer credit rating for Perstorp Holding AB to B-. The outlook is stable, as per the company's press release.

Concurrently, S&P announced that it is raising the issue rating on Perstorp’s Euro and USD Senior Secured Notes to B and that it is raising the issue rating on the company’s Second Lien Secured notes to CCC and the issue rating on Prague CE Sarl’s Subordinated Notes to CCC.

According to S&P, the upgrade reflects Perstorp’s sustained EBITDA growth and deleveraging, having seen strong volume growth in its main business lines over the past several quarters.

"We are pleased to see our investment discipline and performance reflected in this upgrade decision. This should further increase our financial flexibility and the potential to lower our future cost of capital", says Magnus Heimburg, Chief Financial Officer of Perstorp.

As MRC informed earlier, in May 2018, Perstorp AB, global leading specialty chemicals company, and 3D4Makers, a high performance 3D printing filament producer, joined forces with a new Joint Venture: ElogioAM, to bring new material solutions in order to advance the additive manufacturing industry. By combining the deep insights of both companies into chemicals and polymers, ElogioAM is bringing the world’s first fifth-generation 3D filament, Facilan, which enables applications previously unobtainable with other 3D printing materials.

Perstorp is one of the world leaders in various sectors of the specialty chemicals market, it's pioneer in formalin chemistry, plastics and surface materials. Perstorp was founded in 1881 and is controlled by PAI partners,a major European private equity company. The company has around 1,500 employees in with 22 production plants in Europe, Asia and North America.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Marathon Petroleum Corp plans to “maximize” input of U.S. crude in the third quarter, taking advantage of bottlenecks in key shale plays that have weakened domestic prices, reported Reuters.

The company said during an earnings call that about 32 percent of its total throughput of 1.95 million barrels per day will be crude linked to the U.S. benchmark price, up from 23 percent during the same stretch last year.

Input of U.S. crude at the company’s Midwest refineries is expected to jump to 53 percent of total throughput in the third quarter, up from 38 percent last year.

U.S. and Canadian producers have been forced to sell crude at a discount versus global prices as production has outpaced pipeline capacity.

As MRC wrote before, in July 2018б Marathon Petroleum Corp. and Andeavor announced that the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 expired in connection with the proposed transaction whereby MPC would acquire all of Andeavor's outstanding shares. The transaction is still expected to close in the second half of 2018, and remains subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by Andeavor shareholders of the proposed merger, approval by MPC shareholders of the new MPC shares to be issued in connection with the transaction, and the receipt of other required regulatory approvals.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil said that operations have commenced at its new 1.5 million ton-per-year ethane cracker at the company’s integrated Baytown chemical and refining complex, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The new cracker, part of ExxonMobil’s Growing the Gulf initiative, will provide ethylene feedstock to new performance polyethylene lines at the company’s Mont Belvieu plastics plant, which began production in the fall of 2017. The Mont Belvieu plant is one of the largest polyethylene plants in the world, with a manufacturing capacity of about 1.3 million tons per year.

"Our new ethane cracker will help us meet the growing global demand for high-performance plastic products that deliver key sustainability benefits such as lighter packaging weight, lower energy consumption and reduced emissions, further enhancing our competitiveness worldwide," said John Verity, president of ExxonMobil Chemical Company. "The abundance of domestically produced oil and natural gas has reduced energy costs and created new sources of feedstock for U.S. Gulf refining and chemical manufacturing while creating jobs and expanding economic activity in the area."

Together, the Baytown ethane cracker and Mont Belvieu plant represent ExxonMobil’s largest chemical investment in the U.S. to date. Operations associated with the Baytown and Mont Belvieu projects are expected to increase regional economic activity by roughly USD870 million per year and generate more than USD90 million per year in local tax revenues. The two projects have created more than 10,000 construction jobs, 4,000 jobs in nearby communities and 350 permanent positions.

ExxonMobil is strategically investing in new refining and chemical-manufacturing projects in the U.S. Gulf Coast region to expand its manufacturing and export capacity. The company’s more than USD20 billion Growing the Gulf expansion program consists of major chemical, refining, lubricant and liquefied natural gas projects at proposed new and existing facilities along the Texas and Louisiana coasts. Investments began in 2013 and are expected to continue through at least 2022.

With the increase in chemical manufacturing and the industry’s need for more skilled workers, ExxonMobil has contributed more than USD2 million over the last five years to the Community College Petrochemical Initiative, a training program offered by nine Houston-area community colleges to provide technical skills to high school graduates, returning military veterans and others.

As MRC informed earlier, in November 2016, Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. announced it received a contract from ExxonMobil Chemical Company to provide engineering, design and construction management services as part of a new 650 kTa polyethylene facility to be located at ExxonMobil’s Beaumont polyethylene plant.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world's oil and about 2% of the world's energy.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mitsui Chemicals, the Japanese-based maker of spunbond nonwovens, is eyeing several Asian countries for its next investment opportunity, as per Nonwovens-industry.

The company has recently expanded its Japanese output with the addition of a new line and currently has foreign operations in China and Thailand, but sources familiar with the company say it is now weighing its options in India, Thailand and Indonesia.

India, with its rapidly growing diaper market, is the more likely choice. An investment would likely add 15,000 tons to its currently global capacity which is currently 115,000 tons.

As per MRC, in June 2018, a fire that broke out at Mitsui Chemicals' plant in Osaka in western Japan was extinguished on Friday morning. The fire started on Thursday afternoon in the chimney of a utility unit that supplies electricity, water and steam to multiple petrochemical facilities at the firm's Osaka Works in Takaishi City.

Mitsui Chemicals is a leading manufacturer and supplier of value added specialty chemicals, plastics and materials for the automotive, healthcare, packaging, agricultural, building, and semiconductor and electronics markets. Mitsui Chemicals is a Japanese Chemicals company, a part of the Mitsui conglomerate. The company has a turnover of around 15 billion USD and has business interests in Japan, Europe, China, Southeast Asia and the USA. The company mainly deals in performance materials, petro and basic chemicals and functional polymeric materials.
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