A shortage registered in the Russian PS market in October

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Participants of the Russian polystyrene (PS) market continued to report a shortage of domestic PS in October, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

The shortage was not as acute in the general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) segment, as in the high impact polystyrene (HIPS) market.

Converters reported other market participants' requests to resell HIPS. A major XPS boards producer also reported strong demand for GPPS in the market and absence of available quantities of material.

On the other hand, large converters were provided with material according to their needs, and the fact that demand exceeded supply was not critical for the market as a whole. On the back of this, small-sized buyers were forced to search for free quantities of material and to pay a higher price for them.

As reported earlier, October is traditionally a season of stronger demand for PS and finished products in Russia. In mid-October, Penoplex and Gazprom neftekhim Salavat did not have available quantities for shipping material to the market.
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China to add almost 5 mln tonnes per year new PP capacity in Q4

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Some 4.7 million tons/year of new polyethylene (PP) capacity is due to come on stream in China in the fourth quarter, to add to supply from plant restarts after maintenance while the market battles weak demand, reported NCT.

At least 10 new plants are due to start production during the quarter in the country, with the biggest being 800,000 tons/year coal-to-olefins unit built by Ningbo Fuji, according to the ChemOrbis Production database. Other major projects are three 600,000 tons/year plants built by Bao Lai Petrochemical, Tianjin Bohai and Donghua Energy respectively.

The new capacities coming onstream in the fourth quarter constitute for more than half of around 8 million tons of PP capacity built in China in 2019, compared to only two plants with a combined capacity of 650,000 tons in 2018.

Another 6 plants with a combined capacity of 2.9 million tons/year are due in 2020, with the biggest being 700,000 tons/year unit by SK.

As MRC informed earlier, due to an unspecified technical issue at the upstream propane dehydrogenation (PDH) unit, Ningbo Fortune Petrochemical Co Ltd (Fuji) was forced to take both the PDH and the downstream PP plants offline on 5 October 2019. Repair works are taking place, however, sources said that both plants might need to remain shut for at least 30 days. Ningbo Fortune Petrochemical Co Ltd (Fuji) is a subsidiary of Oriental Energy Co Ltd (Dong Hua). Its plant in Ningbo houses a PDH unit with an annual capacity of 660,000 tons of propylene/year. Meanwhile, the PP unit produces 400,000 tons/year.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, the PP consumption in the Russian market was 909,260 tonnes in January-August 2019, up by 10% year on year. Shipments of PP block copolymer and homopolymer PP increased.
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Dow confirms plans to halt PE expansion in Europe

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Dow is not planning to proceed with the polyethylene (PE) expansion project in Europe, reported NCT with reference to the company’s CEO Jim Fitterling, who was quoted as saying in the earnings call transcript.

The CEO pointed to the current state of demand and the market outlook in Europe and said that they didn’t see a reason to push the project forward to any final investment decisions.

Dow first announced plans to construction of a world-scale 450,000 tons/year PE facility in Europe in May 2017. The additional capacity was intended to maximize the value of Dow’s ethylene integration in Europe and serve the growing demand for high-performance pressure pipes, fittings, caps and closures applications.

Meanwhile, the company reported a total quarterly net income of USD347 million versus USD714 million in the year-ago period. The company’s third-quarter net sales were USD10.8 billion, down 15% from the year-ago period, driven by lower local prices primarily due to declines in global energy prices.

The company’s packaging and specialty plastics segment also reported lower net sales for the third quarter. The segment’s net sales were USD5.1 billion, down USD1.1 billion versus the year-ago period, while volume declined and local price declined 4% and 13%, respectively, on a yearly basis.

As MRC informed before, Dow Chemical's propylene dehydrogenation (PDH) unit in Freeport, Texas, is offline for a turnaround. The PDH unit went offline for scheduled maintenance September 26, and the work is expected to last 45-60 days. Originally, sources expected the turnaround to begin in early September, but then learned it had been delayed.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,436,390 tonnes in the first eight months of 2019, up by 9% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation. Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber.
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China lifts antidumping duties on PVC imports from four countries

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China lifted antidumping tariffs on PVC imports from the US, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan on September 28, 2019, reported NCT with reference to a statement published by the country’s Ministry of Commerce.

Chinese authorities decided to maintain the antidumping levies on PVC originating from the four countries on September 28, 2018, as they believed the removal of dumping duties could materially injure Chinese economy.

However, the anti-dumping measures on PVC imports originating in the US, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan were terminated in September 28, 2019 and no anti-dumping duties have been imposed since then, the Ministry of Commerce said.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall PVC production exceeded 720,500 tonnes in the first nine months of 2019, up by 3% year on year. At the same time, not all Russian producers raised their output.
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McDermott signs MoU with Darwin Clean Fuels

MOSCOW (MRC) -- McDermott International, Inc. announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Darwin Clean Fuels Pty Ltd. The MOU is for the feasibility study, technology, front-end engineering design (FEED) and engineering procurement and construction (EPC) for a Clean Fuels Condensate Processing Plant in Darwin, in the Northern Territory, Australia, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

"The refinery would leverage our proprietary technologies, including alkylation and sulfur recovery, and is evidence of McDermott's technology-led EPC capabilities," said Ian Prescott, Senior Vice President of Asia Pacific. "Our engineering feasibility studies often serve as the essential underpinning of client decisions about moving forward with major investments."

Condensate is a cleaner fuel; it is a light petroleum liquid that condenses from natural gas, requiring less processing to create quality transport fuels. Australia is a major producer of condensate which is forecast to export 260,000 barrels per day by 2020 growing to 305,000 bpd by 2030. Darwin Clean Fuels plans to design, build and operate the condensate plant which has 75 percent lower CO? emissions than crude oil refineries. Australia consumes some 1,000,000 barrels a day of transport fuels and currently imports 600,000 barrels per day to meet its transport fuel needs.

"Darwin Clean Fuels looks forward to the next phase of the project with McDermott to move it toward a final investment decision," said Tony Debenham, Darwin Clean Fuels, Managing Director. "The Clean Fuels Condensate Refinery is a great, long-term investment in Australia, creating jobs and contributing to the economy by reducing the reliance on fuel imports. It also creates an opportunity to maximize both the output and use of this great resource by refining condensate onshore in Australia rather than exporting it overseas for processing it into petrochemicals or refinery blendstock, helping to address the long-term fuel security issues that Australia faces."

As part of the initial contract, McDermott will undertake the feasibility study and FEED through to final investment decision. Upon final investment decision, McDermott will be the lead EPC contractor for the refinery. Early phase engineering work will commence immediately and be completed by quarter one in 2020.

As MRC informed earlier, McDermott International has announced that it has been awarded a contract by Saudi Aramco and Total Raffinage Chimie (Total) for their joint venture (JV) Amiral steam cracker project at Jubail, Saudi Arabia.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,436,390 tonnes in the first eight months of 2019, up by 9% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, the PP consumption in the Russian market was 909,260 tonnes in January-August 2019, up by 10% year on year. Shipments of PP block copolymer and homopolymer PP increased.
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