Maire Tecnimont secures EPCC contracts for new PP and HDPE units

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. has announced that its subsidiary Tecnimont S.p.A., in consortium with its Indian affiliate Tecnimont Private Limited, has been awarded two EPCC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning) Lump Sum contracts by HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited (HMEL), for the implementation of a new High-Density Polyethylene unit (HDPE) and a new Polypropylene unit (PP), as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The units will be located adjacent to Guru Gobind Singh Refinery at Bathinda, Punjab, in northern India.

HMEL is a joint venture formed by Mittal Energy Investments Pte. Limited Singapore and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

The overall value of the EPC Lump Sum contracts is in the range of USD 225 million. The projects’ scope entails Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning activities up to the Performance Guarantees Test Run of the monomer purification sections and the polymerization areas. Once completed, the new HDPE unit will have a capacity of 450,000 tons per year, while the new PP unit will have a capacity of 500,000 tons per year. The time schedule is 25 Months for Mechanical Completion.

Pierroberto Folgiero, Maire Tecnimont Chief Executive Officer, commented: "With this important step in India supporting very prestigious clients such as HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited, we confirm our global leadership in polyolefins and consolidate our technology-driven footprint in Asia, a market with a very promising downstream investment cycle thanks to the availability of natural resources and the growing demand for petrochemical products."

As MRC reported earlier, in March 2018, HMEL received clearance from India’s ministry of environments for the polymer addition project at its Guru Gobind Singh refinery and Petrochemical complex. The proposed units at the petrochemical complex include a 1.2m tonnes/year naphtha cracker, two linear low density polyethylene/high density polyethylene (LLDPE/HDPE) swing plants of 400,000 tonnes/year capacity each. The complex, in Bhatinda region of Punjab province, will also house a 450,000 tonnes/year HDPE unit, a 500,000 tonnes/year polypropylene (PP) plant and a 55,000 tonnes/year butane-1 line. The project will cost Indian rupees (Rs) 196.4 bn (USD3bn) and is expected to be completed by April 2021.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) is an Indian state-owned oil and natural gas company with its headquarters at Mumbai, Maharashtra and with Navratna status. HPCL has about 25% marketing share in India among PSUs and a strong marketing infrastructure. The Government of India owns 51.11% shares in HPCL and others are distributed amongst financial institutes, public and other investors.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- DowDuPont announced the filing of the initial Form 10 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for the separation of its Materials Science Division (to be called Dow), as per Businesswire.

Dow’s initial Form 10 filing includes a business and strategy overview, competitive strengths and end-market information, as well as historical and unaudited pro forma financial information, among other details for the intended company.

"The Form 10 is a significant step towards the creation of the new Dow – the world’s leading materials science company,” said Jim Fitterling, chief operating officer of the Materials Science Division of DowDuPont and chief executive officer of Dow. “The new Dow will be a more focused and agile solutions provider, well-positioned to quickly and effectively innovate and grow with customers in our targeted market verticals to deliver greater shareholder value."

As detailed in the filing, the new Dow will have a portfolio comprised of six global business units, serving three consumer-driven market verticals: consumer care, infrastructure and packaging. Through its deep materials science expertise, value chain intimacy, global reach, scale and competitive capabilities, the new Dow will provide differentiated products and solutions to its customers.

"This initial filing underscores the position of financial and operational strength the new Dow will possess upon separation,” said Howard Ungerleider, chief financial officer of DowDuPont and president and chief financial officer of Dow. “It also emphasizes our focus on driving profitable growth, increasing return on invested capital and enhancing free cash flow."

Consistent with the Form 10 process, the filing will be iterative, with additional information regarding capital structure, dividend policy, governance, initiation of Dow common stock upon separation from DowDuPont and other matters filed in subsequent versions of the document. Dow anticipates the SEC will declare the Form 10 effective in the first quarter of 2019, aligned to the company’s timeline to separate from DowDuPont by April 1, 2019.

As previously communicated, Corteva Agriscience intends to file its Form 10 in October.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A demonstration plant for a groundbreaking technology to produce chemicals from sunlight will be built at Delfzijl, the Netherlands by AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals and partner firm Photanol BV, said the company.

The companies formed a partnership in 2014 to jointly work on a technology using cyanobacteria that mimics the way plants use photosynthesis to produce chemical building blocks such as organic acids from carbon dioxide (CO2). These have applications in biodegradable plastics, personal care products and as intermediates for the chemical industry.

Photanol has closed a financing round with a group of Dutch investment firms that will allow the construction of the unit to go ahead; completion is expected in 2020.

Marco Waas, Director RD&I and Technology - Industrial Chemicals at AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals said: "The joint development of Photanol’s production capability is part of our strategic choice to collaborate with innovative companies to drive growth by developing more sustainable chemical platforms for our customers."

As MRC informed earlier, AkzoNobel has 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.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Huntsman has opened a multi-purpose facility at the Amata Vietnam Industrial Park, near Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, as per GV.

The site is a greenfield investment, will house Huntsman's Polyurethanes and Advanced Materials businesses, and comprises manufacturing, R&D capabilities, a technical service center, warehouse and distribution space, and a commercial office.

Commenting on the new facility, Huntsman's CEO Asia Pacific and President of the Polyurethanes business, Tony Hankins, said: "Vietnam is one of the largest and fastest growing countries in Asia Pacific. For Polyurethanes, we've seen double digit growth rates for a sustained period and fully expect this to continue. At the new site, we'll manufacture formulated systems for the footwear and automotive markets, rigid insulation foam used in construction and cold chain applications, and simulated wood for the furniture market. These products will be consumed primarily in Vietnam, with the balance being exported to Cambodia. The facility will enable Huntsman to collaborate more effectively with Vietnamese customers and will also strengthen our strategy of globalising downstream bolt-on acquisitions."

Scott Wright, President of Huntsman's Advanced Materials business, added: "This is the first manufacturing expansion investment outside China for our business in Asia Pacific and we see many opportunities in Vietnam to support large-scale infrastructure and construction projects in one of the fastest growing economies in the region. The new plant will give us the capability to efficiently supply customers across the ASEAN region with high quality electrical insulation, coatings and adhesive solutions that will ensure these ambitious projects are implemented successfully."

In addition to this facility, Huntsman has a distribution warehouse located in the inland container depot at Long Binh – Dong Nai Province, and a site in Hanoi which offers technical service and comprises warehouse and distribution space and a commercial office.

As MRC wrote before, this summer, Huntsman Corporation announced plans to build a new polyurethanes systems house in Dubai. Located within the Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone (JAFZA), the new facility will strengthen Huntsman's differentiated downstream capabilities in the heart of the Middle East.

Huntsman Corporation is a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated and specialty chemicals with 2017 revenues of more than USD8 billion. Its chemical products number in the thousands and are sold worldwide to manufacturers serving a broad and diverse range of consumer and industrial end markets. The company operate more than 75 manufacturing, R&D and operations facilities in approximately 30 countries and employ approximately 10,000 associates within its four distinct business divisions.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Bangkok Polyethylene, a PTT Global Chemical (PTTGC) subsidiary, has undertaken a planned shutdown at its low density polyethylene (LDPE) plant, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Thailand informed that the company has taken off-stream its LDPE plant on September 5, 2018. The planned shutdown is expected to remain in force for around two weeks. The plant is expected to resume operations on September 16-17, 2018.

Located at Map Ta Phut in Thailand, the plant has a production capacity of 300,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed previously, PTT started commercial operations at its new 400,000 mt/year metallocene C6 linear low density polyethylene plant at Map Ta Phut, Thailand, in the first quarter of 2018.

PTT Global Chemical is a leading player in the petrochemical industry and owns several petrochemical facilities with a combined capacity of 8.45 million tonnes a year.
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