PP imports to Russia dropped by 4% in January - October 2019

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Polypropylene (PP) imports into Russia slumped by 4% year on year to 152,100 tonnes in the first ten months of 2019.
The greatest decrease in imports accounted for homopolymer PP, according to MRC DataScope.

October PP imports into the Russian market decreased to 14,900 tonnes from 17,100 tonnes a month earlier, supply of PP block copolymers from Europe dropped. In general, total PP imports into the country decreased to about 152,100 tonnes in January - October compared with 158,500 tonnes year on year. The volume of external purchases for all grades of polymers of propylene decreased, with the exception of PP block copolymers, with the most noticeably reduced imports of homopolymer PP.

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

October imports of homopolymer PP into the country were 5,000 tonnes, which practically the same as in September. Thus, overall imports of homopolymer PP to Russia totalled 48,200 tonnes in the ten months of 2019, compared to 55,200 tonnes a year earlier.

October imports of PP block copolymers in Russia were about 3,700 tonnes against 6,000 tonnes in September on decreased demand for extrusion PP. Imports of PP block copolymers into Russia reached 46,900 tonnes in January-October 2019, compared to 39,900 tonnes a year earlier.

October imports of PP random copolymers remained in the level of September at about 3,000 tonnes. Total imports of PP random copolymers in Russia were 26,900 tonnes in January - October 2019, compared with 29,600 tonnes year on year.

Russia's imports of other polymers of propylene for the period were about 30,000 tonnes in the first ten months of the year, compared with 33,900 tonnes year on year.

MRC

Aramco starts IPO pricing with valuation of as much as USD1.706 trillion

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Aramco said Sunday it started pricing of its initial public offering in a range of 30 SAR to 32 SAR (USD8 to USD8.53) per share, indicating a company valuation of as much as USD1.706 trillion, as per S&P Global.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had been seeking a valuation for the world's biggest oil and gas company of USD2 trillion. Saudi Arabia's government currently owns all of Saudi Aramco's 200 billion shares outstanding.

The IPO will sell a 1.5% stake, Aramco said in an emailed statement. The listing will raise USD25.6 billion for the kingdom, if it ends up with a final price of 32 SAR.

Individual investors will subscribe based on the 32 SAR price, and if the final price is below that, they can get a refund in cash or get additional shares, according to the statement. Bid forms by institutional subscribers need to be sent in by December 4, it said.

Individual investors must submit their forms by November 28 and the final offer price will be announced on December 5.

The IPO is the centerpiece of the crown prince's Vision 2030 to diversify the Saudi economy away from oil.

S&P Global Ratings said in a report on Thursday that the revenue raised by the IPO, most of which will go into the Saudi Public Investment Fund, could "help maintain growth potential through our three-year ratings horizon."

S&P Global Ratings forecasts Saudi Arabia's GDP to grow 1.6% on average per year from 2019 to 2022.

As MRC informed earlier, last week, Saudi Aramco approached Malaysian state energy company Petronas to participate in Aramco’s IPO, Petronas said, as the Middle Eastern oil giant seeks cornerstone investors for the listing.

Besides, we remind that Saudi Aramco, which temporarily lost half of its oil production following the September 14 attacks on two key oil facilities, is running its local refineries at full capacity and is forging ahead with plans to start up new refineries. The company is also starting up a joint venture refinery in Malaysia next year. According to Aramco's bond prospectus released in April, the refining and petrochemical joint venture with Petronas - the Malaysian national oil company - collectively known as PRefChem, was supposed to start this year.

The PRefChem joint venture includes a 300,000 b/d refinery, an integrated steam cracker with capacity to produce 1.3 million mt of ethylene located in Johor, Malaysia. Aramco was supposed to provide a significant portion of PRefChem's crude supply under a long-term supply agreement. Jazan and PrefChem will help Aramco reach a gross refining capacity of 5.6 million b/d, it said in the prospectus. The company currently owns and has stakes in four refineries abroad with a total refining capacity exceeding 2 million b/d.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,589,580 tonnes in the first nine months of 2019, up by 7% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. The estimated PP consumption in the Russian market was 976,790 tonnes in January-September 2019, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of PP block copolymer and homopolymer PP increased.

Saudi Aramco is an integrated oil and chemicals company, a global leader in hydrocarbon production, refining processes and distribution, as well as one of the largest global oil exporters. It manages proven reserves of crude oil and condensate estimated at 261.1bn barrels, and produces 9.54 million bbl daily. Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the company employs over 61,000 staff in 77 countries.
MRC

ABB to digitalize SABIC chemical plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ABB has won a project to install its renowned extended automation system at a greenfield pilot plant for SABIC in Jubail, Saudi Arabia, supporting SABIC’s broader vision to digitalize its operations, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Leveraging ABB Ability System 800xA, SABIC will apply ABB’s integrated automation, control and safety solutions to the company's Utilities Park and Pilot project. The park is part of the SABIC Technology Centre (STC), which marks the company’s biggest global investment in innovation, and the largest of its 21 technology centers worldwide.

Combining the functionality of a distributed control system (DCS), electrical control system and safety instrumented system (SIS), ABB’s 800xA platform will provide big data, delivered in real-time, alongside predictive analytics that support SABIC making accurate and timely decisions to enhance the productivity and performance of the pilot plant.

This is in addition to SABIC’s efforts to enable Saudi Vision 2030[i], with the collaboration showing local content impact through ABB’s participation in SABIC’s Home of Innovation™ Program.

Collaboration between ABB and Wison Engineering, the largest non-state-owned engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) service provider in China, was integral to the selection of ABB’s system. Wison Engineering secured a US$150 million EPC order from SABIC for the project last year.

Work on the pilot is due to commence in early 2020.

ABB is a market leader in delivering distributed control systems (DCS) to industry, with an installed base of over 70 million connected devices and 70,000 control systems, and an annual investment of USD1.5 billion in research and development. Since its introduction in 2004, ABB Ability System 800xA has been sold to more than 10,000 systems, including over 45,000 controllers, and 40,000 + operator stations in over 100 countries.

SABIC is a market leader in products such as ethylene, methanol, MTBE, engineering plastics and its derivatives, and is the third largest diversified chemical company in the world.

As MRC reported earlier, in early October 2019, Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), one of the world’s largest petrochemical producers, announced that it had successfully merged two of its wholly owned affiliates, Saudi Petrochemical Company (Sadaf) and Arabian Petrochemical Company (Petrokemya). "The merger was driven by SABIC’s strategy to increase efficiency and competitiveness of its operations.

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, Russia's estimated PC consumption rose in in the first three quarters of 2019 by 11% year on year to 61,000 tonnes (54,800 tonnes a year earlier). Consumption in the injection moulding sector grew in the first nine months of 2019 by 10% year on year to 7,900 tonnes from 7,200 tonnes a year earlier.

Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) ranks among the world's top petrochemical companies. The company is among the worldпїЅs market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.
MRC

City and union officials to consult on Philadelphia refinery sale process

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A US bankruptcy judge approved a process for the sale of the Philadelphia Energy Solutions oil refinery, the largest and oldest on East Coast, under which city officials and a trade union will consult on the matter, reported Reuters.

The plan resolves earlier objections by giving the United Steelworkers union and Philadelphia city officials access to the identities of bidders and, in some cases, the ability to speak with potential buyers, according to the order signed by Judge Kevin Gross of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

An auction date for the PES refinery was set for Jan. 17 in New York.

PES collapsed into bankruptcy on July 21 and put its 335,000 barrel-per-day refinery up for sale after a fire tore through an alkylation unit at the Girard Point section of the plant a month earlier. Most of the 1,100 PES workers, including more than 600 members of the United Steelworkers local union, were laid off without severance or benefits.

About a dozen parties have shown interest in buying the plant, pitching various uses for the facility, including a biofuels operation and restoring the oil refinery back to its full capacity.

The city, community activists and workers advocates have called for more transparency in the sale process of the fire-damaged plant, which could require city-issued zoning and other permits for approval.

Gross on Thursday also signed off on an additional $35 million in debtor-in-possession financing for PES, giving the refiner more time to pay legal fees and other bills as it fights for insurance coverage tied to the fire.

PES has already received USD65 million in bankruptcy financing and a USD50 million advance on future insurance proceeds. However, it has been unable to receive any of the |USD1.25 billion in property damage and business interruption insurance coverage.

To secure the debtor-in-possession deal, PES reached an agreement with ICBC Standard Bank, allowing the bank to retrieve crude oil and product that has been stranded at the facility since it closed. ICBC Standard will have 125 days to remove the oil, which it owns under an intermediation agreement with PES.

At the time of the fire, ICBC Standard said it had USD1.6 billion worth of crude and products stored at the refinery.
MRC

India to invite foreign firms to invest in state-owned oil companies

MOSCOW (MRC) -- International energy firms will be invited to participate in India’s privatization of state-owned oil companies, the country’s Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Pradhan said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently met with the chief executives of energy firms in Houston, including those from Exxon Mobil Corp, BP Plc, Royal Dutch Shell, Rosneft Oil Co, Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (Adnoc).

This is the first time Pradhan has signaled the government’s intent bring foreign investment into the country’s state-owned oil companies.

“We are inviting oil majors,” Dharmendra Pradhan told reporters at an energy conference in Abu Dhabi. “They are all towards India’s energy market,” he said. Asked if the response was positive, he said “I am very enthusiastic.”

The minister said a planned oil refinery on India’s west coast in partnership with Aramco and Adnoc is on the right track. There will be more clarity once the a new government is formed in the state of Maharastra, where the project is planned, which is deadlocked after the recent elections, he said.

Asked if a firm deal with Aramco and Adnoc could be sealed soon, he said “I think so,” declining to give a timeline.

India is also open to crude oil imports from Russia, he said. “We are open to source our requirements from all over the world whoever gives us responsible and reasonable price. Russia is a very important partner for us.” On Monday, the chairman of Indian Oil Corp said the company was looking at buying Russian oil.

As MRC wrote previously, Indian Oil Corp conducted turnaround at its naphtha cracker in India from early September 2019 to early October 2019. Located in Panipat, in the northern Indian state of Haryana, the cracker has an ethylene production capacity of 857,000 mt/year and propylene capacity of 425,000 mt/year.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,589,580 tonnes in the first nine months of 2019, up by 7% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. The estimated PP consumption in the Russian market was 976,790 tonnes in January-September 2019, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of PP block copolymer and homopolymer PP increased.

Indian Oil Corporation Limited, or IndianOil, is an Indian state-owned oil and gas corporation with its headquarters in New Delhi, India.
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