Gulf expansion of Eni has just started

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Italian major Eni said it intends to expand in the Middle East after a spree of deals in the Gulf last year, pressing ahead with plans to reduce its reliance on Africa and oil and gas exploration, reported Reuters.

Since last March Eni has secured nine deals in the United Arab Emirates, gained a foothold in Bahrain and expanded in Oman to underpin its future growth.

Last month it pledged USD3.3 billion to buy part of the world’s fourth-biggest refinery in the UAE, increasing its own refining capacity overnight by more than a third.

Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi said on Friday there were huge opportunities to grow in the Gulf area and rebalance the group’s operational portfolio.

"It’s not finished, we’ve just started," he told analysts on a conference call after its fourth-quarter results, adding long-term the group aimed to produce 100,000 barrels per day in the area.

Eni, which generates more than half its output in Africa, produced a record 1.851 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2018, lifted by operations in Egypt, Indonesia and Kazakhstan.

Giant gas discoveries in Mozambique and, more recently, Egypt have given the energy major the strongest discovery record in the industry, boosting its credentials with oil-producing nations.

"We’ll be able to enter new markets thanks to our technology and know-how," Descalzi said.

The 63-year-old said that besides the Gulf Eni is also looking to Asia to boost its gas prospects as well as Alaska to increase its oil production.

"That’s a main oil target for us," he said.

Eni said it had made a 470 million euro (USD529.50 million) writedown on reserves in Venezuela where it has a 50 percent stake in the giant Perla gas field and 40 percent of the Junin 5 oilfield.

"Outstanding arrears with the country amount to about USD700 million," said CFO Massimo Monduzzi.

A deep economic and social crisis in Venezuela has seen output plummet and the recent move by Venezuela’s opposition to oust president Nicolas Maduro has made matters critical.

In the fourth quarter Eni’s adjusted net profit jumped 55 percent to 1.459 billion euros (USD1.65 billion), above an analyst consensus forecast of 1.19 billion euros.

Free cash flow after dividends was the highest since 2006, with excess cash for the year of 3.8 billion euros.

Massimo Bonisoli, oil analyst at Milan-based broker Equita, said that the strong set of results showed the improvement in the group’s asset portfolio.

“The improvement of shareholders’ remuneration is likely through buy-back and some dividend increase in 2019,” he said in a note.

As MRC informed previously, in February 2018, Italy’s Eni and France’s Total discovered a promising natural gas field off Cyprus. Eny said then that the find looked geologically similar to the mammoth Zohr field off Egypt.

Eni is an Italian multinational oil and gas company headquartered in Rome. It has operations in in 79 countries, and is currently Italy's largest industrial company with a market capitalization of EUR68 billion (USD 90 billion), as of August 14, 2013. The Italian government owns a 30.3% golden share in the company, 3.93% held through the state Treasury and 26.37% held through the Cassa depositi e prestiti. Another 39.40% of the shares are held by BNP Paribas.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Washington-based Plastics Industry Association has hired an executive search firm to help it find a new president and CEO to replace Bill Carteaux, its former leader who died of leukemia in December, as per Canplastics.

In a statement, the Washington, D.C.-based Plastics Industry Association – or PLASTICS for short – has said it has engaged the firm of Heidrick & Struggles International Inc., which is headquartered in Chicago, to lead the search for its next leader, and that Heidrick & Struggles "are working to develop a rigorous and in-depth protocol that will be used in the search and selection" of the right individual.

Since Carteaux’s death on Dec. 10, PLASTICS has been led by Interim president and CEO Patty Long, who had been the association’s second-ranking executive.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Specialty chemical maker Clariant announced full year 2018 sales of CHF 6.6 billion (Cdn8.7 billion) compared to CHF 6.3 billion in 2017, which represents a 5% growth driven by higher sales in all business areas, as per Canplastics.

In a statement, Swiss-based Clariant – which reports in Swiss francs (CHF) – said that sales in Latin America grew the strongest, by 12%. "Sales in Asia increased by 7%, bolstered by a particularly positive development in China and India,” Clariant said. “In North America, sales rose by 5%. Both Europe and the Middle East and Africa increased sales by 2%. The absolute profitability improvement was attributable to the positive contributions from Care Chemicals, and Catalysis. In Plastics & Coatings, sales rose by 1% in local currency with particularly strong regional expansion in Latin America."

In the fourth quarter of 2018, meanwhile, Clariant’s sales rose by 3% in local currency to CHF 1.629 billion (CdnD2.1 billion). "This represents a decrease of 3% in Swiss francs year-on-year due to unfavorable currency fluctuations. The sales growth in local currency was mainly driven by Catalysis and Natural Resources,” Clariant said. “Sales in Plastics & Coatings were 3% lower in local currency due to the softening demand in Asia and Europe in particular."

Almost all regions contributed to Clariant’s Q4 2018 growth. "In the Middle East & Africa, sales in local currency grew by a robust 15% driven mainly by Catalysis,” Clariant said. “Sales in Latin America increased by 9% in local currency supported by Oil & Mining Services, in North America by a solid 3% and in Asia by 2 % with a slowing in China. Only sales in Europe had a negative growth of 2% largely due to the particularly challenging comparison base."
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Global commodities firm Trafigura has decided to stop trading oil with Venezuela due to US sanctions on the OPEC nation’s energy sector, reported Reuters with reference to a source with direct knowledge of the matter.

The decision will come as a blow to Caracas as Swiss-based Trafigura has a long-standing arrangement with state-run PDVSA to take Venezuelan crude and, in exchange, supply the Latin American country with refined products.

Washington imposed fresh sanctions on PDVSA last month to cut off a key source of revenue for President Nicolas Maduro. The move came after Congress head Juan Guaido invoked constitutional provisions to become interim president, arguing that socialist Maduro’s re-election last year was a sham.

Last year, trading company Trafigura directly took 34,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Venezuelan crude and products, which were mostly resold to US and Chinese refineries, according to internal PDVSA trade documents seen by Reuters.

Trafigura will stop business with PDVSA after completing a small number of already-concluded trades, the source said.

Due to the size of Venezuela’s oil-for-loan agreements with China and Russia and the weight of previous U.S. sanctions, cash-strapped PDVSA has become increasingly reliant on intermediaries to export its crude and import refined products.

PDVSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trafigura is due to load two cargoes of Venezuelan crude before the end of February, the source with direct knowledge and a shipping source said.

It was not immediately clear whether these two tankers were the last of the already-concluded trades, or how many - if any - product tankers would be sent in return.

For the trading firm, the decision means giving up a source of crude supply for Russia-backed Indian refiner Nayara Energy, in which Trafigura holds a near 25 percent stake.

Nayara would still be able to buy Venezuelan crude through Russia’s Rosneft and other intermediaries.

The US sanctions limit US refiners to paying for Venezuelan oil by using escrow accounts that cannot be accessed by Maduro’s government. Foreign firms that use the US financial system for oil trading or US. units are similarly restricted, cutting off avenues for PDVSA to collect revenue.

In an effort to ease domestic fuel shortages, PDVSA’s imports skyrocketed last year. Its own refining system is hobbled by a technical failure, a lack of investment, delayed maintenance and insufficient crude supply.

In the last three months of 2018, Venezuela exported about 1.45 million bpd of crude and products. Trading houses lifted 225,000 bpd of that, according to the PDVSA documents and Refinitiv Eikon data.

Exports to the United States, Venezuela’s primary export customer, have since dried up, as well as those to other destinations, with loaded tankers left stranded off Venezuelan ports.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PolyOne Corporation, a premier provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions, has announced that Robert Bindner is being promoted to the position of President of Performance Products & Solutions (PP&S), said the producer on its site.

He replaces Don Wiseman who is taking a leadership opportunity with another company.

Mr. Bindner joined PolyOne's predecessor company BF Goodrich in 1988 and thereafter ascended in his career through various sales and commercial roles of increasing responsibility - in PP&S; Color, Additives & Inks; and Distribution. For two years he served as Vice President of Asia, where he helped to improve collaboration among PolyOne businesses and functions, thus accelerating growth in the region that continues today. Most recently he served as Vice President and General Manager for Color and Additives in the Americas.

"Rob is a proven and inspirational leader whose career at PolyOne has been defined by his ability to lead teams that serve customers with excellence," said Robert M. Patterson, Chairman, President and CEO, PolyOne Corporation. "He has played an instrumental role in the transformation of our Color segment, and I am excited to have him now lead PP&S."

Mr. Patterson added, "I'd also like to thank Don for his time and contributions at PolyOne, as he helped to build our PP&S team and further refine the segment's strategy toward specialty. We wish him all the best in his new role outside of PolyOne."

As MRC wrote before, in January 2018, PolyOne Corporation announced the acquisition of IQAP Masterbatch Group S.L., a privately owned and innovative provider of specialty colorants and additives based in Spain with customers throughout Europe.

PolyOne Corporation, with 2018 revenues of USD3.5 billion, is a premier provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions with operations in specialty polymer formulations, color and additive systems, polymer distribution and specialty vinyl resins.
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