INEOS plans largest phenol production unit in the world

MOSCOW (MRC) -- INEOS Phenol announced that it is planning to expand the capacity of its plant in Mobile, Alabama (US) up to 850,000 tonnes a year, making it the largest phenol production unit in the world, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Hans Casier, CEO INEOS Phenol said "An investment to increase the capacity of our Mobile production facilities up to 850 kt will make our plant the largest unit in the world. This expansion will meet anticipated growth in demand and shows a clear commitment to our customers to meet their long-term needs in North America."

"The Mobile asset is already the largest and most efficient single train plant in the USA and the expansion will build on this key strength. It also takes full advantage of our Gulf Coast location and our propriety best in class operating technology."

The INEOS Phenol business is the largest producer of Phenol and Acetone in the world, and the only Phenol and Acetone manufacturer with production facilities spanning Europe and America. Its products are used in a diverse range of end-markets including the automotive, construction, electronics and fibre industries.

As MRC wrote before, in August 2017, INEOS Phenol unveiled plants to invest in world-scale cumene unit in Germany. The construction of a new cumene plant will support customer demand improve the security of raw material supply to INEOS phenol and acetone plants located in Gladbeck and Antwerp. INEOS Phenol is a producer of phenol and acetone and the largest consumer of cumene, which is an essential raw material. This investment reinforces its commitment to its customers across its world markets.

INEOS Group Limited is a privately owned multinational chemicals company consisting of 15 standalone business units, headquartered in Rolle, Switzerland and with its registered office in Lyndhurst, United Kingdom. It is the fourth largest chemicals company in the world measured by revenues (after BASF, Dow Chemical and LyondellBasell) and the largest privately owned company in the United Kingdom.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- India is cutting prices of petrol and diesel by 2.50 rupees (USD0.03) a liter, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Thursday, the government’s latest step to tackle the impact of a sharp rise in crude oil prices and a weak local currency, Reuters said.

The cut includes a reduction in excise duty of 1.50 rupees per liter, which will reduce government revenue by 105 billion rupees, Jaitley said. State-run refiners will also cut the price they charge by 1 rupee per liter. Jaitley also asked state governments to cut value-added tax on fuel by a further 2.50 rupees per liter.

Taxes on petrol and diesel, which account for more than a third of retail fuel prices, are one of the biggest sources of income for the government, which is seeking to keep the country’s budget deficit in check. “It certainly has fiscal implications. If the government wishes to stick to its glidepath of fiscal consolidation, then it will have to cut its expenditures significantly,” said Rupa Rege Nitsure, chief economist at L&T Finance Holdings.

Shares in Indian Oil Corp, the country’s biggest oil refiner, dropped 11.4 percent in reaction to the news. The price cut is likely to result in a loss of margin of 70-72 billion Indian rupees on auto fuel sales, according to K Ravichandran, senior vice president, corporate ratings, at ratings agency ICRA Ltd.

Among other state-run companies, shares in Hindustan Petroleum Corp closed down 13.5 percent, and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd lost 12.4 percent. The Nifty Energy Index fell 6.14 percent.

Global crude prices hit near 4-year highs on Wednesday, and a weak rupee has added to the woes of Indians, who have been hit by record high fuel prices. India’s fuel demand grew at its slowest pace in the last twelve months in August.

India stopped controlling petrol prices in 2010 and diesel prices in 2014, linking them to global crude markets in a bid to ease pressure on government finances and improve the earnings of oil refiners. But analysts said the announcement on Thursday shows there is still a heavy government hand in the industry.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is facing a tough election in three key states this year, followed by a national election which is due by May. Asked by a reporter about the economic implications of the move, Jaitley said the decision was “good economics” as it won’t impact the fiscal deficit and will allow consumers to boost spending on other goods.

Devendra Kumar Pant, chief economist at India Ratings and Research, said the move could act as a “minor comforting factor” for the central bank during its monetary policy meeting scheduled on Friday, as a fuel price cut will ease retail inflation.

The national reduction translates to a 3 percent cut in petrol prices, and a 3.3 percent fall in diesel prices in India’s capital New Delhi. Fuel prices are not uniform across the country due to variable state taxes. Petrol was sold at 83.85 rupees a liter, while diesel was sold at 75.25 a liter on October 3, according to state-run retailer Indian Oil Corp’s website.

Some states such as Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Maharashtra, ruled by Modi’s BJP, cut their own taxes following the federal government’s announcement. But it is unclear how many of India’s 29 states will meet the request, though some had in recent weeks already reduced their take.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) has raised USD2 billion through a dual-tranche U.S. dollar bond issue, a bank document seen by Reuters showed.

The amount is equally split between two tranches of five- and 10-year notes.

SABIC, rated A1 by Moody’s and A-(minus) by S&P, has issued the 144A/Regulation S bonds through SABIC Capital II B.V, a special purpose vehicle.

The five-year notes offer a 4 percent coupon, while the 10-year notes offer 4.5 percent.

The deal received orders in excess of USD9 billion.

Proceeds from the debt sale will be used to repay outstanding debts to third parties.

BNP Paribas, Citi, HSBC, MUFG and Standard Chartered Bank have arranged the deal.

The Saudi Arabian company is now the single biggest shareholder of Clariant. Riyadh-based Sabic acquired General Electric Co.’s plastics division for USD11.6 billion a decade ago, with the operations now fitting with Clariant’s masterbatches and plastic compounding assets.

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

MOSCOW (MRC) -- OMV and Gazprom have signed a "Basic Sale Agreement" which foresees a potential acquisition of a 24.98% interest in the Achimov IV and V phase development in the Urengoy gas and condensate field by OMV for a purchase price to be negotiated in good faith, said OMV.

The “Basic Sale Agreement” replaces the “Basic Agreement” concluded between OMV and Gazprom on December 14, 2016 which provided for a potential asset swap of the aforementioned interest against a 38.5% participation of Gazprom in OMV (NORGE) AS.

The execution and implementation of the potential transaction is, amongst others, subject to agreement with Gazprom on the final transaction documents and regulatory and corporate approvals at a later stage. The signing of the final transaction documents is expected in the beginning of the year 2019.

OMV is producing and marketing oil and gas, innovative energy and high-end petrochemical solutions – in a responsible way. With Group sales of EUR 20 bn and a workforce of around 20,700 employees in 2017, OMV Aktiengesellschaft is one of Austria’s largest listed industrial companies. In Upstream, OMV has a strong base in Romania and Austria and a balanced international portfolio, with the North Sea, the Middle East & Africa and Russia as further core regions. 2017 daily production stood at approximately 348,000 boe/d. In Downstream, OMV operates three refineries with a total annual processing capacity of 17.8 mn tons and more than 2,000 filling stations in ten countries as of year-end 2017. OMV runs gas storage facilities in Austria as well as in Germany; its subsidiary Gas Connect Austria GmbH operates a gas pipeline network in Austria. In 2017, gas sales volumes amounted to 113 TWh.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SNC-Lavalin has announced that it has signed a project management contract (PMC) with Long Son Petrochemicals Company Limited (LSP), a subsidiary of the Siam Cement Public Company Limited (SCG) of Thailand, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Under the agreement, SNC-Lavalin and LSP will form an integrated team of dedicated personnel to manage a variety of contractors on site, as part of a comprehensive project management structure. Under this structure, the team will provide oversight and various professional services, including interface and document management, design verification, safety management and risk assessment, engineering services and other studies.

"We look forward to building a long-term relationship with LSP and SCG, by supporting their expansion plans in Vietnam," said Christian Brown, President, Oil & Gas, SNC-Lavalin. "This project will leverage SNC-Lavalin’s project management and technical skills, as well as further strengthen our PMC reputation in petrochemicals and position us for future opportunities in Vietnam and globally."

LSP is planning to develop, construct and operate the first integrated petrochemicals complex in Vietnam. Located on Long Son Island in Vung Tau City, Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province, southeast of Ho Chi Minh City, the USD5.4 billion complex will consist of an olefins cracker, high density polyethylene (HDPE), linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) and polypropylene (PP) units, tank farm, central utility facilities, port and jetty. Once completed it will have olefins production capacity of 1.6 million tons per year.

As MRC reported earlier, in March 2018, SNC-Lavalin (SNC) in consortium with TechnipFMC was awarded a lump sum EPC contract to supply Nova Chemicals with two gas cracking furnaces. This award supports the recently announced third phase of the conversion and expansion of Nova Chemicals’ Corunna cracker. The cracker which is expected to increase the unit’s current ethylene capacity by more than 50 percent and is linked to the construction of a new polyethylene facility being developed by Nova Chemicals.
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