PP imports to Ukraine increased by 7% in January-July

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Ukraine's polypropylene (PP) imports totalled about 79,000 tonnes in the first seven months of the year, up 7% year on year. The greatest increase in imports accounted for homopolymer PP, according to MRC DataScope.

July PP imports in Ukraine rose to 12,200 tonnes, compared with 10,200 tonnes in June; the main increase accounted for the supply of homopolymer PP from Russia. Overall imports of propylene polymers reached 79,000 tonnes in January-July 2019, compared to 74,000 tonnes a year earlier. Homopolymer PP accounted for the main growth in imports, whereas demand for propylene copolymers subsided.

The structure of PP imports by grades looked the following way over the stated period.

July imports of propylene homopolymers to the Ukrainian market grew due to growth in supplies from Russia and amounted to about 9,300 tonnes against 8,100 tonnes a month earlier. Overall shipments of homopolymer PP reached 61,400 tonnes in the first seven months of 2019 versus 54,800 tonnes a year earlier.

Last month's imports of block propylene copolymers (PP block copolymers) were 1,100 tonnes, compared to 1,000 tonnes in June. Imports of PP block copolymers into the country were about 7,500 tonnes in January-July , compared with 7,700 tonnes year on year.


July imports of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymer) were 1,600 tonnes from 1,000 tonnes a month earlier, local companies significantly reduced their purchasing of pipe and injection moulding PP random copolymer. Overall imports of PP random copolymers exceeded 9,000 tonnes in January-July 2019, whereas this figure was about 10,200 tonnes a year earlier.

Ukraine's imports of other propylene copolymers for the period were about 1,100 tonnes in the first seven months of the year.

MRC

W.R.Grace licenses PP process technology to PetroChina Guangdong Petrochemical

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 PetroChina Guangdong Petrochemical Company Limited, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Located in Jieyang, Guangdong province, China, the new facility is slated to be completed in 2023 and will produce 500 KTA of polypropylene. This will be the largest single-line UNIPOL PP unit in China and will produce homopolymer, random copolymer, and impact copolymer resins.

Grace's all gas-phase UNIPOL PP Process Technology provides the broadest range of 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 which leads to lower capital, operating, and maintenance costs.

PetroChina’s decision to choose the UNIPOL PP technology was based on the ease of operation, the low-cost investment, the mature technology, and Grace’s catalysts portfolio. The UNIPOL PP process technology also will provide an efficient way to produce a broad range of products and deliver significant value to customers throughout China.

Laura Schwinn, President of Grace’s Specialty Catalysts business, said, “This is the fourth UNIPOL PP line licensed by the PetroChina Company Ltd. and we are excited to be the technology choice once again for their subsidiary in Guangdongprovince. The UNIPOL® PP Process Technology coupled with Grace’s 6th generation non-phthalate CONSISTA catalysts and leading technical support will enable PetroChina Guangdong to meet the complex needs of their customers.”

As MRC wrote before, in April 2019, LyondellBasell (Rotterdam, the Netherlands) announced that PetroChina will use the LyondellBasell Hostalen "Advanced Cascade Process" (Hostalen ACP) technology to produce 1,100,000 metric tons per year (m.t./yr) of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) capacity.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estmated PP consumption was 796,120 tonnes in January-July 2019, up by 11% year on year. Shipments of PP block copolymer and homopolymer PP increased.

PetroChina Company Limited, is a Chinese oil and gas company and is the listed arm of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation, headquartered in Dongcheng District, Beijing. It is China's biggest oil producer.
MRC

Nizhnekamskneftekhim raises September PS prices for Ukraine

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Nizhnekamskneftekhim (part of TAIF group) has announced an increase in its polystyrene (PS) prices for September shipments to Ukraine, according to the ICIS-MRC Price report.

Ukrainian buyers and traders said to MRC that quantities of Russian producer's material would be limited next month.

In August, Nizhnekamskneftekhim shipped general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) to the region at USD1,100/tonne FCA Nizhnekamsk, including VAT, and high impact polystyrene (HIPS) - at USD1,160/tonne FCA Nizhnekamsk, including VAT.

PJSC "Nizhnekamskneftekhim" (NKNK) - one of the largest Russian manufacturers of petrochemical products. The industrial complex of the company includes ten major production plants and ten departments (Railway Transport, Ethylene trunk, etc.). NKNKh produces more than 120 types of chemical products, including synthetic rubber, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, surfactants. Nizhnekamskneftekhim is a member of TAIF Group of Companies.
MRC

Thai PTT to take off-stream LDPE plant in Thailand for maintenance

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Thailand’s PTTGC is planning to shut its LDPE unit in Map Ta Phut, Thailand for a planned turnaround from October 1 to 30, 2019, according to NCT with reference to sources close to the company.

The unit is able to produce 300,000 tons/year of LDPE.

PTT currently has a total capacity of 800,000 mt/year of high density polyethylene (HDPE), 300,000 mt/year of low density polyethylene and 800,000 mt/year of LLDPE at the same site.

As MRC informed earlier, PTT started commercial operations at its new 400,000 mt/year metallocene C6 linear low density polyethylene plant at Map Ta Phut, Thailand, in the first quarter of 2018.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated LDPE consumption totalled 338,390 tonnes in the first seven months of 2019, up by 3% year on year. Some producers' LDPE output decreased, exports also subsided. Excessive supply of LDPE vanished in the market in August because of the shutdowns at two plants at once. And there was even a slight shortage already in the second half of the month.

PTT Global Chemical is a leading player in the petrochemical industry and owns several petrochemical facilities with a combined capacity of 8.45 million tonnes a year.
MRC

GTM ONE selected Haldor Topsoe technology for methanol plant


MOSCOW (MRC) -- Haldor Topsoe, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, and GTM ONE have signed a licence agreement for the design, construction, and operation of a 3000 tpd methanol plant based on Topsoe’s SynCOR MethanolTM technology. The plant will be erected at the Khimprom site in Volgograd, Russia.

Topsoe will provide the licence, basic engineering, catalysts and proprietary hardware for methanol production. In the first stage, Topsoe will provide basic engineering for the process unit, and MHI Engineering will develop the front end engineering design (FEED) package for the site. At a later stage, the parties expect to sign an EPC contract. Construction is slated to begin in the second half of 2020.

“All technology customers are looking for well-proven and advanced technologies, high performance and low environmental impacts, high energy efficiency, and low CAPEX. In most cases, customers face a difficult choice of how to reach a compromise between these interests. We have selected Topsoe as the Topsoe SynCOR Methanol process is the ultimate uncompromised choice. We have found everything we need,” commented Osipov Alexander, Technical Director, GTM ONE.

“We are very pleased to offer a solution that not only helps our customers comply with environmental regulations, but also stands out as the most cost-effective in large-scale methanol production. We see increasing demand for this technology both in Russia and in other markets. We are also very content to continue our well-established cooperation with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering in Russia,” said Peter Vang Christensen, Managing Director of Haldor Topsoe's Moscow office.

SynCORTM solutions are industrially proven to deliver exceptional cost-efficiency, high availability, and low environmental impact in large-scale single train methanol production.
MRC