Nizhnekamskneftekhim raised October PS prices for Ukraine

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Nizhnekamskneftekhim (part of TAIF group) has increased its polystyrene (PS) prices for October shipments to Ukraine, according to the ICIS-MRC Price report.

The rise in PS prices was USD30/tonnes for Ukrainian buyers.

Thus, Nizhnekamskneftekhim has shipped general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) to the region at USD1,160/tonne FCA Nizhnekamsk, including VAT, and high impact polystyrene (HIPS) - at USD1,220/tonne FCA Nizhnekamsk, including VAT, this month.

Customers' October orders either remained the same, or were reduced slightly by the plant.

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

October prices of European PP rose by EUR10-30/tonne for CIS markets

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The October contract price of propylene was settled in Europe up by EUR10/tonne from the previous month. Therefore, all European producers announced an increase in export polypropylene (PP) prices for October shipments to the CIS countries, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

Negotiations over October prices of European PP began at the end of last week. All market participants said European producers raised their export prices of propylene polymers for this month's shipments, but in some cases, the price increase was EUR30/tonnes, which is higher than the rise in prices of European propylene.

Deals for Octber shipments of propylene homopolymers (homopolymer PP) were discussed in the range of EUR1,015-1,065/tonne FCA, up by EUR10/tonne from September. Deals for block copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) were negotiated in the range of EUR1,120-1,160/tonne FCA, up by EUR10-30/tonne from the previous month.

Some European producers still had restrictions for export shipments, but they were not critical for most buyers. Consumers partially met their needs in PP due to cheaper shipments from the Middle East.
MRC

Zhejiang Petroleum Trading set to secure China's crude import license

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Zhejiang Petroleum Trading Co. is set to become the first company with a foreign investment to win a crude oil import license in China, signaling the country further opening up its oil industry, reported S&P Global.

The Ministry of Commerce, or MOFCOM, said in a statement late Tuesday that Zhejiang Petroleum Trading in eastern China's Zhejiang Free Trade Zone meets the requirements to apply a license for importing crude oil.
The final approval will come after a public review, which could last until October 17.

With the license, Zhejiang Petroleum Trading will become the first company with a foreign investment to be allowed to import crude oil into China directly for refineries having permission to process imported barrels, Chinese policy observers said.

Zhejiang Petroleum Trading is a joint venture set up in April last year between Zhejiang Petroleum Co. Ltd., with a 71% stake, and the Singapore-based commodities trading house Glencore Asian Holding Pte. Ltd., owning the remaining 29%.

The company would also be the second non-state-owned trading firm to win the license in the Zhejiang Free Trade Zone, following China granting it to Zhejiang Material Industrial Zhongda Petroleum Ltd. in March.

Separately, MOFCOM is set to award a crude oil import license to the new greenfield independent refinery Zhejiang Petrochemical & Chemical Co. Ltd. in the same region after a public review ending on October 14, the ministry said in a second statement late Tuesday.

The license will enable the 400,00 b/d refinery to import crude directly, rather than asking a license holder -- either a trading company or a refinery -- to import on its behalf.

Without the license, the refinery is more likely to import through its indirect subsidiary Zhejiang Petroleum Trading. ZPC is a stakeholder of Zhejiang Petroleum, Zhejiang Petroleum Trading's parent company.

Taking into account a pending approval for ZPC, the ministry has granted a total of 33 refineries the crude import license since August 2015, when China began allowing independent refineries to directly import crude.

ZPC has been approved with a crude quota of 20 million mt/year by the country's top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission.

The refinery is expected to start full operations in Q4.

As MRC wrote previously, China's greenfield Zhejiang Petrochemical will use a range of process technology from Honeywell UOP for the second phase of its integrated refining and petrochemical complex in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province. The second phase of the complex by itself will process 20 million tons per year of crude oil and produce another six million tons per year of aromatics when completed. With an overall project cost of Yuan 160 billion (USD25.8 billion), Zhejiang Petrochemical plans to ultimately build up 40 million mt/year of crude processing capacity on Yushan Island of Zhoushan city in eastern China's Zhejiang province.

Phase I, revolving around 20 million mt/year of primarily crude processing capacity, will be able to produce 4 million mt/year of paraxylene, along with 8.5 million mt/year of gasoline, gasoil and jet fuel. Zhejiang Petrochemical has plans to start trial operations in February on its crude distillation unit and vacuum distillation unit at the phase I project, a source close to the company said this week. Construction of the second phase will begin after the full start-up of phase I.

Paraxylene is a raw material for the synthesis of terephthalic acid (PTA) - an intermediate for the production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall estimated PET consumption reached 62,540 tonnes in August, up by 9% year on year. The estimated PET consumption increased to 493,240 tonnes in Russia in January - August 2019, up by 12% year on year.
MRC

Chambroad to expand rubber material facility

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chambroad Zhongju New Materials is to add new facilities with the capacity to produce 150 kilotonne per annum (ktpa) of bromobutyl rubber (BIIR) at its plant in Binzhou, Shandong, said European-rubber-journal.

The project’s phase 1, with a nameplate capacity of 70ktpa for BIIR production, passed environmental regulatory approval in July, said the company’s website.

Spanning 63,000 square metres and also featuring a 100ktpa plant for isbutene production, the first phase is slated to come on stream in October 2020.

Chambroad Zhongju currently has a 50ktpa capacity for butyl rubber (IIR).

It is also planning a €55 million (430 million yuan) project for modified catonic styrene-butadiene latex used as an emulsifying agent for asphalt. The project will make 5ktpa of liquid emulsifyer and 3ktpa of powder emulsifier each year.

“High performance modified emulsifier has great market prospects with the development of China’s highway construction and maintenance markets,” said the project’s environmental filing.

In September 2019, LyondellBasell announced that Shandong Chambroad Petrochemicals Co. Ltd., (Shandong Chambroad), has selected the LyondellBasell Hostalen "Advance Cascade Process" (Hostalen ACP) technology. The low-pressure slurry process technology will be used for a 350KTA high-density polyethylene (HDPE) unit to be built in their petrochemical complex in Binzhou city, Shandong province, P.R. China.

As MRC informed earlier, Chambroad Zhongju New Material plans to invest USD490 mln to construct a 600,000 tonne/year polypropylene (PP) plant at Binzhou in Shandong province.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, the estimated consumption of PP in the Russian market totalled 694,210 tonnes in January-June 2019, up by 14% year on year. The supply of propylene block copolymers (PP-block) and propylene homopolymers (PP-homo) increased.

Chambroad Zhongju was set up in 2016 in Binzhou’s Boxing Economic Devleopment Zone. It is a fully owned subsidiary of privately held Chambroad Petrochemicals.
MRC

Hengyi Petrochemical inks crude oil supply, products distribution deals with local companies

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Hengyi Industries Sdn Bhd, a joint petrochemical venture between China and Brunei, on Wednesday inked commercial agreements with Brunei Shell Petroleum Company (BSP) and Brunei Shell Marketing Company (BSM) for the supply of crude oil to Hengyi and selling of fuel products in Brunei market, said Xinhuanet.

Hengyi Industries is a joint venture between China's Zhejiang Hengyi Group and Damai Holdings, a wholly-owned subsidiary under the Brunei government's Strategic Development Capital Fund. They own 70 percent and 30 percent of the shares respectively.

Farida Talib, BSP's commercial director, said in her speech at the signing ceremony that the new commercial agreements would allow for improvements within the domestic oil and gas value chain with BSP supplying crude oil to Hengyi's oil refinery and petrochemical project at Pulau Muara Besar (PMB), a 955-hectare industrial park on an island at the Brunei Bay.

Hengyi in return will supply refined fuel products to BSM for distribution to the local market. BSM said this will meet domestic product demand, support downstream retail and industrial development in Brunei and enable significant associated economic benefits.

Chen Liancai, CEO of Hengyi Industries, also highlighted that the agreements serve another milestone for Hengyi Industries' petrochemical project.

Chen said that Hengyi will purchase part of its needed crude oil from BSP, and supply petroleum products to BSM including gasoline, diesel and jet oil. Hengyi will also work closely with BSJV (Brunei Shell Joint Ventures) companies to ensure smooth transition and supply of petroleum products to the domestic market from the current refinery to its new refinery at PMB.

As MRC informed earlier, in September Hengyi Industries produced qualified petrochemical (PC) products at its new refinery and petrochemical complex at Pulau Muara Besar in Brunei. The project includes a 160,000 barrels/d crude oil refinery, a 1 M tonnes/y aromatics facility and a 500,000 tonnes/y benzene unit.

Hengyi Petrochemicals is targeting to start up its new 1.5m tonne/year PX unit in late October.

Paraxylene is a raw material for the synthesis of terephthalic acid (TFA) - an intermediate for the production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

As per ICIS-MRC PRice Report, Plant of New Polymers Senege, one of the Russian producers of PET chips, shut production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) for scheduled repairs on 1 October. According to a source in the company, the shutdown will take about a month. The exact date of the completion of the turnaround was not reported. Senege cut the spot prices to the level of Rb87,000-89,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT this week. Spot prices of PET from the producer in September were at the level of Rb87,000-89,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT.

Hengyi Industries is a joint venture of Zhejiang Hengyi Group (70%) and Damai Holdings, a subsidiary of the Brunei government's Strategic Development Capital Fund (30%).
MRC