Ethane producer announces USD72 B export deal

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Texas-based ethane producer and exporter, American Ethane announced plans to build ethane export terminals on the site of Martin Midstream Partners’ Beaumont, Texas, terminal on the Neches River, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Ethane from the terminal would be exported to China.

According to the company, American Ethane has signed binding agreements with three Chinese companies to buy and sell USD72 billion of ethane, the largest such agreement in history.

John Houghtaling, CEO of American Ethane, estimated the project would create up to 5,000 construction and production jobs in the United States and more than 1,000 jobs in the Beaumont area.

The announcement from American Ethane said China must still issue permits for the three Chinese companies, but Houghtaling expressed confidence, given that the project has been part of trade negotiations between the Trump administration and that of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

S&B Engineers and Constructors will build the export terminals and will oversee the initial hiring for the job.

"Everything will be dependent on the local workforce," S&B CEO James Brookshire said. "We don’t want to have to bring in what we would call travelers. We would much rather recruit locally."

American Ethane said skills pertinent to the terminal construction project will include pipefitters, electricians, cement finishers, ironworkers, riggers, equipment operators and other industrial tradesmen.

The announcement comes after American Ethane signed a memorandum of understanding with China Merchants Group (CMG), China’s largest state-owned entity, to deliver America-sourced ethane to China. The transportation group, operating under the subsidiary of Nanjing Tanker Corporation, plans to build, own and operate a fleet of Very Large Ethane Carriers to transport up to 7.2 million tons of ethane per year from the United States to China, according to the agreement between American Ethane and CMG.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- US refiner Phillips 66 posted a better-than-expected profit as access to low-cost crude oil from U.S. shale basins and Canada boosted its refining margins, sending its shares up 5 percent in premarket trading, reported Reuters.

Tight pipeline capacity in the US shale basins and Canada has pushed the price of crude oil from those regions lower, benefiting Phillips 66 as well as its rivals.

The refiner’s utilization rate, the percentage of the total equipment or refinery involved in processing crude, touched 99 percent, while refining margins jumped 84 percent to USD16.53 per barrel of oil, over the same period a year earlier.

"The system ran well and capture rates were well above our forecast, retail clearly witnessed the benefit of sticky margins in the face of collapsing crude prices," Piper Jaffray analyst Blake Fernandez said in a note.

The Houston, Texas-based company, which sells its fuel under different brand names including Conoco, 76 and JET, said earnings from its marketing and specialties business surged more than three-fold to USD589 million.

Phillips 66, which also reported higher earnings in its midstream and chemicals units, said last week that it is confident on securing alternative sources of oil, after U.S. sanctions on Venezuela’s state-owned oil company PDVSA took away about 500,000 barrels per day of oil from the US market.

Larger rival Marathon Petroleum Corp said on Thursday it would replace Venezuelan crude with imports from Middle East and Latin America.

On an adjusted basis, Phillips 66’s profit rose to USD2.26 billion, or USD4.87 per share, in the quarter, from USD548 million, or USD1.07 per share, a year earlier.

Analysts on average were expecting the company to post a profit of USD3.01 per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

The company’s total revenue and other income fell nearly 1 percent to USD29.84 billion.

As MRC wrote previously, US-based Phillips 66 remains open to developing another ethane cracker for its Chevron Phillips Chemical (CP Chem) joint venture, the refiner's CEO said in March 2018,
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Incitec Pivot Limited is supporting the Premier’s Queensland Floods Appeal to help Queenslanders and their communities impacted by the devastating floods, with a contribution of USD100,000, said the company.

Jeanne Johns, Managing Director & CEO said, “Our thoughts, support and care go to the people of North Queensland, whose lives, homes and businesses have been impacted by the recent floods.

"This region has a special place in our company’s heart given our people work and live in these regional communities".

“Our commitment to the North Queensland region is strong and we will continue to support it during this difficult time, as the communities start to understand the consequences of this tragic event”.

IPL’s regional businesses, Dyno Nobel Asia Pacific and Incitec Pivot Fertilisers, will continue to work with our resources and agricultural customers across North Queensland through this difficult period.

IPL will liaise with the Queensland Government to support the recovery phase of critical infrastructure across Northern Queensland, to get the communities and businesses back up and running.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Fashion label Seven Crash unveiled its innovative ‘Quantus’ collection of unlimited possibilities with its futuristic urban streetwear outfits at the Autumn/Winter New York Fashion Week 2019, said Basf.

The collection, designed in collaboration with chemical company BASF and downstream fabric maker - San Fang, pushes the boundaries in fabric innovation to enable fashion-forward designs and functionality. BASF’s advanced material solutions presented in the ‘Quantus’ collection provide a significant breakthrough in fashion with its eco-conscious manufacturing techniques that also permit intricately crafted and stitched designs, while ensuring premium quality:

Freeflex™ fibre spun from Elastollan® TPU looks and feels like a favorite cotton tee. The material is soft and moisture-wicking which makes it easy to care for, and delivers ample stretch and recovery for an impeccable fit. Freeflex can change the colors and appearance even for the most complex textile designs and gives a futuristic look and feel to Seven Crash’s collection while ensuring that individuals are able to stay cool and dry. In addition, this dynamic fabric can be incorporated into traditional clothing to make outfits more exciting with its luminous feature. This is displayed in a series within the collection where the fabrics glow in the dark through its reflective surfaces.
Haptex®, a sustainable and innovative polyurethane (PU) solution for synthetic leather, offers good haptics, strong stitching, and high peel strength. It complies with stringent volatile organic compounds (VOC) standards, as no organic solvents are used in the manufacturing process.

For the development of Freeflex, San Fang supported the entire manufacturing process, from material to moldings, as well as the final product in a variety of colors and intricate patterns. The product’s low heat setting temperature enables fabrics to dry quickly and saves energy in its production and daily use.

For the ‘Quantus’ collection, with the brand concept “crash the rules”, Brand CEO Jason Yao, together with Creative Director Enchi Shen, redefined Seven Crash as an innovative brand pushing the boundaries on futuristic workwear and fashion streetwear by experimenting with different fashion styles and cultures through the use of advanced materials. These materials are woven with technological and textural elements – enhancing not only the use of the fabric but the wearer as well. The result is a unique blend of east coast urban street fashion and trendy runway fashion that showcase the latest material which traditional fabrics cannot match.

The outfits from the futuristic urban streetwear collection can be easily combined with different looks, taking people from work to play, thanks to the versatility of colors, textures, and effectsdetails made possible with Freeflex and Haptex – demonstrating the true essence. The use of design freedom for different textures and effects are made possible by Freeflex which is able to change the colours and appearance even for the most complex textile designs, and bringing smart textiles to the next level. This gives a more futuristicfuturistic look and feel to the collection, while ensuring that individuals can stay cool and dry thanks to Freeflex’s moisture-wicking properties.

Additionally, owing to its luminous feature, this dynamic fabric can be incorporated into traditional clothing to make outfits more stunning and exciting. This clothing can be displayed in another series within the collection where the fabrics glow in the dark through its reflective surfaces, resulting in a mysterious yet bold look.

Seven Crash and BASF previously collaborated to design outfits for a fashion show held during CHINAPLAS 2018. They also collaborated with Chinese brand Three Gun to design a casual outfit using Freeflex. BASF and Seven Crash will continue the partnership to pave the way for a future of eco-conscious and innovative fabric for clothing.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Custom flexible packaging supplier PPC Flexible Packaging LLC has acquired HFM Packaging Ltd., a manufacturer of packaging for cosmetics, personal care, pharma, food, and industrial applications headquartered in Pewaukee, Wis, said Canplastics.

The terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

HFM produces packaging solutions for cosmetics, personal care, pharma, food, and industrial applications, and is said to be a market leader in the use of labels as peel and reseal closures for personal care markets as well as a converter of pouches.

PPC, headquartered in Buffalo Grove, Ill., supplies flexographic printing and converting of flexible films, bags, and pouches. The firm operates four manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and one in Colombia.

"It’s our goal to leverage HFM’s state-of-the-art reclosable and pouch technologies in both consumer and healthcare markets to an even higher level of growth through new and existing customers across all of PPC’s businesses," Kevin Keneally, CEO of PPC Flexible, said in a statement.
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