Maintenance work complete at ExxonMobil Singapore chemical plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil Corp said that it has completed maintenance work at its Singapore chemical plant, reported Reuters.

A company spokesman declined to provide further details of the affected units, saying that it was not the company’s practice to discuss operational details of its units.

The company said last week that the plant was undergoing maintenance, which had caused flaring at the plant.

ExxonMobil’s petrochemical complex located on Jurong Island is integrated with its refinery there and produces a range of feedstock and products such as polymers and aromatics.

As MRC informed earlier, on 12 November, 2019, Exxon Mobil Corp’s Baytown, Texas, chemical plant returned to normal operations after a malfunction in the polypropylene (PP) production area. Exxon’s adjoining 560,500-barrel-per-day (bpd) Baytown refinery was unaffected by a transformer malfunction in the chemical plant.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, the estimated PP consumption in the Russian market in January-October 2019 totalled 1,066,520 tonnes, up by 7% year on year. Supply of block copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymer) and homopolymer of propylene (homopolymer PP) increased, demand for statistical copolymers (PP random copolymer) decreased.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world's oil and about 2% of the world's energy.
MRC

Taiyo Vinyl to shut PVC plant for maintenance

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Taiyo Vinyl is likely to take its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant off-stream for a maintenance turnaround, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Japan informed that the plant is planned to be shut in early-March 2020. The planned maintenance is expected to be remain in force for around two months.

Located in Yokkaichi in Japan, the PVC plant has a production capacity of 310,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed earlier, Taiyo Vinyl conducted maintenance turnaround at its PVC plant in Yokkaichi from early-March to end-April, 2018.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated consumption of unmixed PVC was 779,900 tonnes in January-October 2019, up by 3% year on year. Emulsion and suspension PVC markets showed an increase in supplies.

Taiyo Vinyl Corporation, a subsidiary of Tosoh Group, is one of Japan's largest manufacturers of polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The plant in Chiba is one of the company's key assests, which supplies 50% of its products to the domestic market. The company also produces PVC at the plants in Yokkaichi and Osaka with the annual capacity of 310,000 and 150,000 tonnes, respectively.
MRC

TPC chemical plant that caught fire to close for extended period

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A Texas TPC Group petrochemical plant, still burning on Monday after a series of explosions last week that injured three and prompted thousands of evacuations, will be out of operation for an extended period, according to a letter to workers viewed by Reuters.

TPC Group Chief Executive Edward Dineen told the plant’s about 175 workers they would be paid through year-end but the facility which makes chemicals used in synthetic rubber and gasoline, would close "for an extended period," the Friday letter to staff said.

A TPC spokeswoman was not immediately available to discuss Dineen’s message.

The Port Neches, Texas, site has been burning for six days after an explosion that injured three workers and prompted the evacuation of about 60,000 residents over worries storage tanks could ignite and explode. The fire was contained and officials allowed residents to return to their homes on Friday.

By end of the year, "if not sooner, we hope to have a better handle on the situation at (Port Neches), including recovery team needs and potential rebuild team needs," Dineen said in his letter to workers.

Federal and state investigators have began probing the blasts and ensuing blaze.

Dineen wrote the Houston-based company has just begun the process of working with its insurance carriers on claims from the explosions and fire. The cause remains unknown, he wrote.

Records from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the state’s pollution regulator, show it began investigations of the plant in September 2014 after the company failed to meet carbon monoxide limits between 2011 and 2013. Those investigations have remained open into this year.

TPC received citations from the commission for failure to meet pollution limits on units, failure to maintain required equipment and maintain proper records between 2014 and 2019.

But the regulator rated the company’s performance at the Port Neches site as "satisfactory," according to a compliance history report provided by the agency on Monday.

The company and fire officials said on Monday there have been no new injuries, air monitoring continues to show no health hazards, and the fire "continues to be contained."

Workers are checking nearby properties for fallout from the fire and TPC insurance representatives are visiting properties damaged by the initial explosion, which could be felt miles away.

In addition to the company’s staff, another 50 people work at the plant, but are employed by other companies who contract with TPC to provide services such as maintenance of equipment.

Located adjacent to the Sabine Neches River, which is part of the Sabine Neches Waterway, TPC's Port Neches plant can produce more than 900 million lb (426,000 mt) of butadiene and raffinate a year, according to the company's website. The source familiar with company operations said the site has two butadiene lines with capacities of 166,000 mt/year and 260,000 mt/year. The MTBE unit at this site produces up to 400,000 mt/year.

Butadiene is one of the feedstocks for the production of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS).

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, in Asia, the falling prices of feedstocks for ABS production have been pushing prices of material down in the Russian market. LG Chem's import prices for November quantities were as follows for Russian buyers: natural ABS - at USD1,400-1,420/tonne FOB Korea, black ABS - at USD1,610-1,630/tonne FOB Korea, white ABS - at USD1,640-1,660/tonne FOB Korea. December prices may drop by another USD30-50/tonn.
Natural grades of Korean ABS went down to Rb138,000-143,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT, in the domestic market in mid-November, whereas black ABS was offered at Rb156,000-160,000/tonne and white ABS - at Rb158,000-163,000/tonne CPT Moscow , including VAT.

Headquartered in Houston, TPC was acquired in 2012 by private equity groups First Reserve and SK Capital.
MRC

US Conventus Polymers opens Mexican subsidiary in Guadalajara

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US-based Conventus Polymers said on Monday that it has opened a Mexican subsidiary based in Guadalajara, said Plasticstoday.

It will offer the company’s product portfolio, including specialty nylons, polycarbonates, polysulfones, PEEK, thermoplastic vulcanizates and custom compounds, to processors and end users throughout the Mexican market.

Conventus has been doing business in Mexico for several years, the company noted. Establishing a legal entity strengthens its position in the Mexican market and allows the company to offer world-class service to both local plastic converters as well as U.S.-based OEMs that it currently supports. “Mexico makes strategic sense for several reasons, including our further commitment to key multinational OEMs,” said John Jorgensen, President of Conventus Polymers.

The Mexican initiative will expand Conventus’ reach into existing strategic markets such as automotive, electrical, industrial and consumer, according to Jorgensen. With a legal operating entity in Mexico, Conventus can offer its international customers import and export capabilities, local inventory and warehousing and local currency transactions, among other services. Conventus will handle all exporting, importing, insurance, customs clearance, duty costs, and freight from port to warehouse to the customer.

Conventus has established warehouses in Guadalajara and Queretaro in addition to its warehouses on the border. A compounding partner performs toll compounding of Conventus-branded products in Queretaro. This tolling arrangement allows Conventus to offer local production with quick turnaround times and minimal freight costs, the company said, adding that it will benefit from lower compounding conversion costs, which will make its products more competitive in the region.

Conventus is selling its same global portfolio of products in Mexico including specialty nylons, polycarbonates, polysulfones, polyetheretherketone (PEEK), thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs), and custom compounds.

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, Russia's estimated consumption of polycarbonate (PC) 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.
MRC

LANXESS acquires Brazilian biocide manufacturer

MOSCOW (MRC) -- LANXESS has acquired Brazilian biocide manufacturer Itibanyl Produtos Especiais Ltda (IPEL) to further expand its global biocide production network, said the company.

Both companies signed an agreement to this effect on Thursday November 28, 2019. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. The transaction is still subject to the approval of the responsible antitrust authorities and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2020.

IPEL, with about 100 employees, had sales in the lower double-digit million euro range in 2018. Financial details were not disclosed.

IPEL is focused on biocides and specialty chemicals for the paint and coating industry. Biocides protect materials from infestation, destruction and decay caused by microorganisms. With the acquisition, LANXESS’ material protection products business is reinforcing its global presence and will be in a position to serve its South American customers from a local production facility, the company said. The business was previously represented with production facilities in Europe, the US and Asia.

As MRC informed earlier, LANXESS envisages an extensive range of potential applications for blow-molded components made from technical plastics in automobiles.

LANXESS is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 7.2 billion in 2018. The company currently has about 15,500 employees in 33 countries and is represented at 60 production sites worldwide. The core business of LANXESS is the development, manufacturing and marketing of chemical intermediates, additives, specialty chemicals and plastics. LANXESS is listed in the leading sustainability indices Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI World and Europe) and FTSE4Good.
MRC