European PVC prices remained steady for CIS markets in August

MOSOCW (MRC) - Negotiations on European polyvinyl chloride (PVC) prices for August delivery into the CIS markets were actively conducted last week. Despite a slight increase in ethylene prices, European producers did not proportionally increase in PVC export prices, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

August contract price of ethylene was agreed up by EUR10/tonne from July, which theoretically should lead to an increase of EUR5/tonne in PVC production costs.

Nevertheless, despite a slight increase in the cost of the main raw material, ethylene, European producers rolled over the August export prices of PVC for deliveries to the markets of the CIS countries in August.

Demand for PVC increased from the main consumers in the CIS countries in July-August under the pressure of seasonal factor and tight supply from domestic producers. But due to planned and unscheduled shutdowns of some plants, some producers limited export quotas, in particular K70.

Deals for August shipments of suspension PVC (SPVC) to the CIS markets were held in the range of EUR710-785/tonne FCA.
MRC

Oil majors close landmark strategic partnership agreements

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Eni and ADNOC, Abu Dhabi’s National Oil Company, said they closed their strategic partnership, announced in January, through which Eni acquired a 20 percent equity interest in ADNOC refining, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The partners – which include Austria’s OMV – also set up a new trading joint venture.

ADNOC Refining refines in excess of 922,000 barrels per day of crude at its Ruwais and Abu Dhabi based refineries. The transaction is one of the world’s largest-ever in the refining business and reflects the scale, quality and growth potential of ADNOC Refining’s assets. Ruwais is the 4th biggest single-site refinery in the world and is the focus of further expansion and integration to develop the world’s largest single-site refining and petrochemicals complex. Expanding its refining and petrochemical operations at Ruwais supports ADNOC as it evolves to become a leading global downstream player.

The final cash price is approximately USD3.24 billion.

ADNOC, Eni and OMV have now incorporated a new trading joint venture at Abu Dhabi Global Market, with the same shareholding as in ADNOC Refining. Trading is expected to begin in 2020 when all necessary processes, procedures and systems are in place. Eni and OMV will provide ADNOC with know-how, operational experience and support to accelerate the development of the trading joint venture, enabling ADNOC and its partners to optimize their systems and better manage their international product flows.

These agreements demonstrate the strong partnership between Eni and ADNOC. With this transaction, Eni enters the UAE downstream sector and increases its global refining capacity by 35%. It follows the company’s strategy of making Eni’s overall portfolio more geographically diversified and more balanced along the value chain.

Eni has been present in the UAE upstream sector since March 2018 when it was awarded a 10 percent interest in ADNOC’s Umm Shaif and Nasr concession and a 5 percent interest in the Lower Zakum concession, followed in November 2018 by the award of a 25 percent interest in the Ghasha Concession, ADNOC’s mega offshore sour gas project. On 12 January this year Eni was awarded a 70 percent interest in offshore exploration blocks 1 and 2. In addition to the United Arab Emirates, in the Middle East Eni is also present in Oman, Bahrain, Lebanon and Iraq.
MRC

Oil down more than 1.5% as trade war concerns hit demand

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Oil prices fell on global growth concerns after U.S. President Donald Trump last week threatened China with more tariffs, which could limit crude demand from the world’s two biggest buyers, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Brent crude futures were down USD1.31, or 2.12%, at $60.58 per barrel by 1420 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down USD0.87, or 1.56%, at USD54.79 a barrel.

“The escalation of trade measures only reinforces concerns over global economic growth and hence by extension global oil demand growth,” said Harry Tchilinguirian, global oil strategist at BNP Paribas in London. "(But) supply fundamentals are tightening and are supportive for oil prices."

Both crude benchmarks plummeted by more than 7% last Thursday to their lowest level in about 7 weeks after Trump’s announcement, before recovering somewhat to leave Brent down 2.5% on the week and U.S. crude 1% lower.

The escalation of the trade war pushed global equities lower again on Monday, while safe-haven assets, including the Japanese yen, core government bonds and gold, rallied.

Trump last week said he would impose a 10% tariff on USD300 billion of Chinese imports starting on Sept. 1 and said he could raise duties further if China’s President Xi Jinping failed to move more quickly towards a trade deal.

The announcement extends U.S. tariffs to nearly all imported Chinese products. China on Friday vowed to fight back against Trump’s decision, a move that ended a month-long trade truce.

On Monday, China let the yuan tumble beyond the 7 per dollar level for the first time in more than a decade, in a sign Beijing may tolerate further currency weakness because of the trade dispute.

A lower yuan would raise the cost of dollar-denominated oil imports in China, the world’s biggest crude oil importer. Signs of rising oil exports from the United States also pressured prices on Monday. U.S. shipments surged by 260,000 barrels per day (bpd) in June to a monthly record of 3.16 million bpd, U.S. Census Bureau data showed on Friday.

The U.S. weekly oil rig count, an indicator of future production, fell for a fifth week in a row as most independent producers cut spending even though majors were still pushing ahead with investments in new drilling.

Iran’s seizure of an Iraqi oil tanker raised some concerns about potential Middle East supply disruptions in the Gulf, with Iranian state media reporting on Sunday its Iranian Revolutionary Guards had seized the ship for smuggling fuel.
MRC

Energy firm has no intention of buying stake in Bina oil refinery

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Malaysian state energy firm Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) said that it was not interested in acquiring a stake in India’s Bina oil refinery, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

“While India remains a key market for Petronas, we have no intention of acquiring any stake in the said refinery,” the company said in a statement.

Citing a source close to the matter, Reuters reported last week that Petronas and a consortium led by Japan’s JXTG Holdings Inc were among companies interested in buying a stake in Bina oil refinery, operated by a 50-50 joint venture between Oman Oil Co and state-run Bharat Petroleum Corp.
MRC

Grace licenses process technology to coal mine group

MOSCOW (MRC) -- W. R. Grace & Co., the leading independent supplier of polyolefin catalyst technology and polypropylene (PP) process technology, has licensed its UNIPOL® PP Process Technology to Datong Coal Mine Group Co., Ltd. , said the company.

The UNIPOL® PP facility, located in Datong, China, will produce 430 KTA of polypropylene and is scheduled to be completed in 2022.

The process technology along with Grace’s CONSISTA® catalysts enable the Datong Coal Mine Group Co., Ltd. to produce more than 200 resin grades so that they can provide more polypropylene options to their customers.

Grace's all gas-phase UNIPOL® PP Process Technology provides the broadest range of PP homopolymers, random copolymers, and impact copolymers in the industry. This process technology, without any moving parts inside of the reactor and requiring less equipment than any alternative, is a reliable, safe, and stable operation that leads to lower capital, operating, and maintenance costs.

Mr. Kuanqiang Jia, Chairman of Olefin Branch Company said, “We are excited to partner with Grace and invest in the UNIPOL® PP Process Technology. This technology enables us to efficiently produce a broad range of products for our customers and keep up with increasing demands for non-phthalate resins in the region."

Laura Schwinn, President of Grace’s Specialty Catalysts business, said, “Grace is excited to be the PP process technology choice for Datong Coal Mine Group Co., Ltd. Our UNIPOL® PP Process Technology provides Datong with the most advanced PP product capabilities available, enabling them to produce world-class products that will help them meet the growing demands of the Chinese market."
MRC