Japanese November petchem naphtha imports rise 1%

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Japan's naphtha imports for the petrochemical sector rose 1 percent in November from the same month a year earlier, reported Reuters with reference to government figures.

Imports of naphtha for ethylene production totaled 1.24 million tonnes last month, up from 1.22 million tonnes in the same month a year earlier, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said.

As MRC informed before, Tosoh Logistics Corp., a subsidiary of Tosoh Group, will construct a new specialized chemical logistics warehouse in Shunan City, Yamaguchi Prefecture (harbor district), Japan. The facility, tentatively named Rinkai Logistics Center No. 2, will feature freezing, cooling and heating capabilities. It will be the "largest" integrated logistics warehouse for chemical products in western Japan, and the company's third large-scale logistics warehouse in the Shunan area, Tosoh noted. Construction will start in January 2019 and completion is scheduled for December 2019. Operations are expected to begin in January 2020.
MRC

McDermott awarded two polypropylene technology contracts in India

MOSCOW (MRC) -- McDermott International, Inc. announced that it has been awarded two sizeable* technology contracts by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOCL) for the license and basic engineering design of a 200 KTA polypropylene plant in Barauni, India, as well as a 420 KTA polypropylene plant in Gujarat, India, said the company.

Indian Oil Corporation is the leading refiner and a major petrochemical player in India. Both plants will use Lummus' proprietary NOVOLEN® process reactors and proprietary NHP® catalyst to produce a wide range of leading polypropylene products for the Indian and regional markets.

"Lummus' Novolen Technology offers the most competitive technology for the manufacturing of polypropylene, and continues to provide innovations in process and products," said Daniel M. McCarthy, Executive Vice President of McDermott's Lummus Technology business. "By licensing this technology to enhance the profitability of both the Barauni Refinery and the Gujarat Refinery, IOCL will be able to produce a variety of polypropylene products to meet India's increasing demand for plastics."

McDermott's Lummus Technology is a leading licensor of proprietary petrochemicals, refining, gasification and gas processing technologies, and a supplier of proprietary catalysts and related engineering. With a heritage spanning more than 100 years, encompassing approximately 3,100 patents and patent applications, Lummus Technology provides one of the industry's most diversified technology portfolios to the hydrocarbon processing sector.

These awards were reflected in McDermott's third quarter 2018 backlog.
MRC

LyondellBasell Houston refinery coker to restart late this week

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Lyondell Basell Industries (LBI) plans to restart the large coker at its 263,776 barrel-per-day (bpd) Houston refinery on Thursday or Friday, reported Reuters with reference to Gulf Coast market sources.

The 57,000 bpd coker was shut by a Nov. 28 fire that filled a heater with hard carbon deposits, the sources said. The heater has to be cleaned before the unit can restart. The coker was shut for a four-week overhaul in October and November.

As MRC wrote previously, in August 2016, LyondellBasell made the final investment decision to build a high density polyethylene (HDPE) plant on the US Gulf Coast. The plant will have an annual capacity of 1.1 billion pounds (500,000 metric tons) and will be the first commercial plant to employ LyondellBasell's new proprietary Hyperzone PE technology. The start-up of the new plant is scheduled for 2019.

LyondellBasell is one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world. Driven by its 13,000 employees around the globe, LyondellBasell produces materials and products that are key to advancing solutions to modern challenges like enhancing food safety through lightweight and flexible packaging, protecting the purity of water supplies through stronger and more versatile pipes, and improving the safety, comfort and fuel efficiency of many of the cars and trucks on the road. LyondellBasell sells products into approximately 100 countries and is the world's largest licensor of polyolefin technologies.
MRC

Strike lowers production at Portugal refineries

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Workers at Portugal’s Galp Energia started a one-week strike on Monday, reducing production at the Sines and Matosinhos refineries, reported Reuters with reference to union leaders.

Reduced refinery runs were expected during the strike that was called to demand that Galp resume a collective bargaining agreement and improve pay, they said. Product shipments from the Matosinhos were also interrupted, they added.

"Sines is working with a reduced load of about 60 percent of the normal throughput and we expect it to remain this way," said Helder Guerreiro, a Fiequimetal union coordinator at the 220,000 barrel per day Sines refinery in southern Portugal.

Galp Energia declined to comment. During similar strikes in the past, it has said production was not significantly affected.

Galp shares were steady on the Lisbon exchange, while the broader market was 0.5 percent lower.

As is common practice in Portugal, the government has demanded the refineries continue operating with skeleton crews, so no shutdowns are planned.

At the 110,000 bpd Matosinhos plant near Porto the strike halted shipments of products by truck to petrol stations and there was no loading and unloading of ships at the sea terminal, said another union coordinator, Jose Santos.

The refineries can run on stocks of crude for several days.

The terminal was working normally in Sines and filling of trucks for petrol stations continued, although unions said those could be interrupted during some shifts during the dispute.

A second, longer strike is planned for Jan. 2-14 if no progress was made in talks, the Fiequimetal union said.
MRC

AkzoNobel acquires full ownership of Chinese decorative paints joint venture

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Akzo Nobel N.V. has signed and closed the acquisition of Swire Industrial Limited’s minority interest in the AkzoNobel Swire Paints (ANSP) joint venture, as per the company's press release.

Having held the majority share in the decorative paints joint venture since 1989, AkzoNobel has now acquired full ownership.

This acquisition strengthens AkzoNobel’s leading position in the Chinese decorative paints market while also increasing the flexibility to further develop the business.

Thierry Vanlancker, CEO of AkzoNobel, said: "China has been, and continues to be, a strategic growth market for AkzoNobel. The timing of this acquisition is perfect. It will strengthen our leading position and help drive our value creation ambition for China. It also supports our ongoing transformation into a focused paints and coatings company and gives further momentum to our strategy of achieving 15% return on sales by 2020."

Ruud Joosten, COO of AkzoNobel, added: "We would like to thank Swire for the constructive and strong partnership we’ve had over the last three decades. The ANSP joint venture has well established sales channels, strong brand recognition and a high level of innovation. We look forward to maintaining this successful path and continuing to serve our customers with top quality brands."

The ANSP joint venture manufactures and distributes decorative paints, primarily under the Dulux brand. Manufacturing plants are located at Guangzhou (including a 10% joint venture with a local partner), Shanghai, Langfang and Chengdu.

As MRC informed before, in December 2016, AkzoNobel finalized the acquisition of BASF’s global Industrial Coatings business, which supplies a range of products for industries including construction, domestic appliances, wind energy and commercial transport, strengthening its position as the global number one supplier in coil coatings.

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