PTTGC to shut No. 1 cracker in Thailand for maintenance in late Jan 2020

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PTT Global Chemical (PTTGC) is likely to take its No.1 cracker off-stream for a maintenance turnaround, as per CommoPlast.

This cracker is expected to be taken off-line in late January 2020. The planned maintenance is likely to remain in force for around 40 days.

Located at Map Ta Phut in Thailand, the cracker has an ethylene production capacity of 515,000 mt/year and a propylene production capacity of 310,000 mt/year.

As MRC wrote earlier, in 2018, PTTGC conducted a 40-day turnaround at its No. 1 cracker in Map Ta Phut from early September.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,724,670 tonnes in the first ten months of 2019, up by 7% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. 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.

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

Gazprom neftekhim Salavat reduces December GPPS prices for Russian market by Rb3,000/tonne

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Gazprom neftekhim Salavat, one of Russia's largest production complexes for oil refining and petrochemicals, reduces its December selling general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) prices for Russian buyers, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

Thus, the decrease in this month's prices of Gazprom neftekhim Salavat's material was Rb3,000/tonne.

There were no available quantities of Gazprom neftekhim Salavat's polystyrene (PS) last week.

As reported earlier, Penoplex, Russia's largest producer of foaming PS, reduced its December selling GPPS Stairovit prices for the Russian market by Rb1,500/tonne from last month.

And Nizhnekamskneftekhim adopted a non-traditional approach to next month's pricing amid lower prices of material in foreign markets. Thus, its December PS prices decreased by Rb3,000/tonne and they will roll over for January for those buyers that will contract PS quantities for two months in advance. For those buyers that will contract only December quantities, this month's prices will be reduced by only Rb1,000/tonne.

OAO "Gazprom neftekhim Salavat" (formerly OAO "Salavatnefteorgsintez") is one of the leading petrochemical companies in Russia, carrying out a full cycle of processing hydrocarbon material. The list of products manufactured by the plant includes more than 140 items, including 76 grades of the main products: gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene, fuel oil, toluene, solvent, liquefied gases, benzene, styrene, ethylbenzene, butyl alcohols, phthalic anhydride and plasticizers, polyethylene, polystyrenes, silica gels and zeolite catalysts, corrosion inhibitors, elemental sulfur, ammonia and urea, glycols and amines, a wide range of household products made of plastics, surfactants and much more.
MRC

US propane, propylene inventories drop in line with forecast

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US propane and propylene stocks decreased by 1.7 million barrels (bbl) during the week ended November 29, yielding a total combined inventory of 91.8 million bbl, reported Chemweek with reference to the US Department of Energy.

An OPIS survey of analysts and traders had forecast an average propane and propylene stock draw of 1.73 million bbl.

Combined propane and propylene stocks in Gulf Coast (PADD 3) region decreased by 500,000 bbl to 58.1 million bbl week over week. The Midwest (PADD 2) dropped by 800,000 million bbl to 22.1 million bbl. PADD 1 inventories slid by 700,000 bbl to 7.7 million bbl while PADDs 4 and 5 increased by 200,000 bbl to 3.9 million bbl.

Products supplied for propane and propylene increased this week by 534,000 b/d on the week to 1,773,000 b/d.

Propane and propylene imports week over week saw a decrease of 89,000 b/d to 104,000 b/d, and exports decreased by 471,000 b/d to 839,000 b/d.

US inventories are up 15% from the year-ago period.

Propylene is the main feedstock for the production of polypropylene (PP).

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.
MRC

Trinseo reduces December PS prices in Europe

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Trinseo, a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex binders and synthetic rubber, and its affiliate companies in Europe have announced a price decrease for all polystyrene (PS) grades in Europe, according to the company's press release.

Effective December 1, 2019, or as existing contract terms allow, the contract and spot prices for the products listed below went down as follows:

-- STYRON general purpose polystyrene grades (GPPS) -- by EUR20 per metric ton;
-- STYRON and STYRON A-Tech and STYRON X- Tech high impact polystyrene grades (HIPS) - by EUR20 per metric ton.

As MRC informed before, Trinseo also reduced its prices for all PS grades on 1 November 2019, as stated below:

- STYRON GPPS grades - by EUR45 per metric ton;
- STYRON and STYRON A-Tech HIPS grades - by EUR45 per metric ton.

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, last week, Russian market participants were waiting for information from Nizhnekamskneftekhim on next month's prices. Amid lower prices of material in foreign markets, Nizhnekamskneftekhim took a non-traditional approach to this month's pricing. December prices will decrease by Rb3,000/tonne and will roll over for January for those buyers that will contract PS quantities for two months in advance. For those buyers that will contract only December quantities, next month's prices will be reduced by only Rb1,000/tonne.

Trinseo is a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex and rubber. Trinseo's technology is used by customers in industries such as home appliances, automotive, building & construction, carpet, consumer electronics, consumer goods, electrical & lighting, medical, packaging, paper & paperboard, rubber goods and tires. Formerly known as Styron, Trinseo completed its renaming process in 1Q 2015. Trinseo had approximately USD4.6 billion in net sales in 2018, with 16 manufacturing sites around the world, and approximately 2,500 employees.
MRC

Mogilevkhimvolokno signed a contract for the supply of products to Serbia

MOSCOW (MRC) - The Belarusian petrochemical company Mogilevkhimvolvokno has entered into an agreement with a Serbian partner for USD50 mln, BElTA informs.

In general, Belarusian enterprises entered into contracts for USD120 mln in Serbia.

As per ICS-MRC Price Report, homopolymer PET produced by Mogilevkhimvolokno with delivery in December was offered to Russian customers at Rb72,000-73,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT. Test batches of PET copolymer based on dimethyl terephthalate with a lower melting point in comparison with a homopolymer were successfully achieved at the plant in November. Perhaps next year this material will be offered to a wide range of buyers.

It was previously reported that Mogilevkhimvolokno launched a production facility for the production of polyester fiber by direct moulding with a capacity of 50,000 tonnes per year in January 2019. The launch of a new production is the first phase of the implementation of the large investment project "Polyester Production Complex".

Mogilevkhimvolokno OJSC is the only major producer of dimethyl terephthalate, polyester granulate PET, including food grade, polyester fibers and threads, and the main supplier of raw materials for light industry in the Republic of Belarus. The state share is 90.53%.
MRC