Fuel shortages mount as strikes continue at French refineries

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Shortages of oil products have started mounting as strikes at most French refineries entered their fourth week resulting in increased imports of diesel and gasoil, reported S&P Global with reference to sources' statement on Friday.

Gasoil traders noted increased demand for fuel imports in Northwest Europe as a result of the industrial action in France.

"I have seen some French demand for diesel in ARA," one regional fuel trader said, adding he expected the impact of the strikes to be felt later when strategic stocks have to be replenished.

French labor unions, including the CGT, FO and FSU, have called on employees in all sectors to take part in industrial action against the government's pension reforms. The strike, which started December 5, has been extended several times.

As the industrial action has also affected the ports, which have halted operations on multiple days and tug assistance has also been disrupted, imports have been facing difficulties and France has had to use some of its strategic stocks, traders said.

France held 106 days worth net imports in crude and product stocks at the end of September, well above the 90-day requirement of the International Energy Agency.

Deliveries were still intermittent in the Mediterranean. Nonetheless, imports have been rising with traders shifting flows between ports, depending on their status.

Elsewhere, staff at Petroineos' Lavera refinery started halting units last weekend, marking an escalation in the impact from the rolling industrial action.

Staff at Total's Grandpuits refinery has voted to block expeditions of products until Monday which, if extended, could result in the refinery also halting units, according to CGT sources.

Total said the refinery was operating, albeit at reduced rates. Total's Donges refinery is also operating at reduced rates, with expeditions blocked, a union source said. Product deliveries from La Mede biofuels plant have been blocked on and off.

Operations and deliveries have returned to normal at Total's Feyzin and the strike has been suspended at Total's Gonfreville refinery after a fire led to the shutdown of the crude distillation unit mid-December. The refinery was operating partially, using its own stock and imports.

Operations and deliveries were back to normal at ExxonMbil's Fos-sur-Mer, where staff have been joining the strike on and off. There has been no strike action at ExxonMobil's Gravenchon refinery in Normandy.

The French ecology ministry said in a statement Friday, after meeting representatives of the oil industry, that difficulties with product deliveries were affecting only two refineries and said there was good level of product supply. Of the 200 oil terminals, just two have faced temporary difficulties, with the remaining receiving products by pipe, sea or rail, and over 98% of the 11,000 retail stations were receiving normal supplies. 1.7% of the retail stations were having temporary difficulties on December 27, down from 2.6% on December 23, the ministry said.

Several unions have called for a wide-ranging strike and demonstrations on January 9, as well as demonstrations on Saturday, December 28. In addition, the CGT union has submitted a strike notice from January 6 until February 6.

Port and dockworkers have also been asked to stop work for a few hours next Monday, organize protests on January 6-7 at the ports of Dunkirk, Le Havre, Rouen, St Nazaire, La Rochelle, Bordeaux and Marseille, and to halt operations for 24 hours on January 9.

French ports have been working intermittently since the start of the industrial actions, with loadings disrupted on several occasions. As a result, tankers have faced delays at the Fluxel-operated Fos and Lavera oil terminals in the Mediterranean and Le Havre in the north.

As MRC informed before, ExxonMobil's cracker at Notre Dame de Gravenchon, France, had an "unexpected stoppage" on Friday, 6 December, following a technical failure this October. Thus, an electric fire Saturday morning, 19 October, 2019, on the ExxonMobil facilities in Notre-Dame-de-Gravenchon (Seine Maritime) resulted in a plume of smoke, below the regulatory thresholds, which could remain visible for several days.

Besides, ExxonMobil halted polyethylene (PE) production at its site in Notre Dame de Gravenchon, France, at the end of the 2nd week of December 2019, due to commercial reasons, without providing further details. The site houses 500,000 tons/year of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) plant, including metallocene linear low density polyethylene (MLLDPE). PE plant resumed production in the 3rd week of December.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing 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.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chevron said it would go ahead with its Anchor project in the Green Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico, sanctioning the industry's first deepwater high-pressure development, reported S&P Global.

Use of this new technology, which is able to handle pressures of 20,000 psi, opens the door to other high-pressure opportunities in the Gulf of Mexico for Chevron and other industry players, the company said in a statement.

"This decision reinforces Chevron's commitment to the deepwater asset class," said Jay Johnson, executive vice president of Chevron's upstream segment.

"We expect to continue creating value for shareholders by delivering stand-alone development projects and sub-sea tie backs at a competitive cost," he added.

The Anchor Field is located in the Green Canyon area, approximately 140 miles off the coast of Louisiana, in water depths of approximately 5,000 feet.

Initial development costs are expected to be about USD$5.7 billion. Stage 1 development is expected to have seven-well subsea development and a semi-submersible floating production unit.

First oil is anticipated in 2024.

The planned facility has a design capacity of 75,000 b/d of crude and 28 MMcf/d of natural gas. Total recoverable reserves are estimated to exceed 440 million barrels.

Chevron is operator and holds a 62.86 % stake with TOTAL E&P USA holding a 37.14 % working interest.

The Anchor field is near Total's Tahiti field, as well as Chevron's Big Foot, St. Malo and Jack concessions all of which are served by Shell Midstream's Amberjack pipeline.

Third quarter 2019 flows on the Amberjack system, which carries medium sour crudes like Poseidon and Southern Green Canyon, averaged 358,000 b/d, according to Shell Midstream company data.

Amberjack then feeds the Mars system, which Shell Midstream is looking to expand by 65,000 b/d due to increased demand for pipeline space. Mars pipeline capacity has been running at an average capacity over 90% in the 2019.

Third quarter 2019 flows on the Mars line were lower than normal at 519,000 b/d due in part to the production impact of Hurricane Barry. However, third quarter 2018 flows on the Mars system were at 580,000 b/d.

Crude flowing on the Amberjack and Mars systems gives easy access to the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, presently the only terminal to load in one shot VLCCs used to carry crude across the global. It also will have easy access to Eastern Louisiana refineries.

The Energy Information Administration expects US Gulf of Mexico production to rise to an average 1.9 million b/d in 2019 and 2.0 million b/d in 2020, up from the 1.7 million b/d in 2018 as demand growth for medium sours like Mars is expected to grow. Asian refiners have been seen importing the crude and the widening of the sweet-sour spread has made Mars more competitively globally.

As MRC informed previously, in March 2018, Chevron Phillips Chemical, part of Chevron Corp, Chevron successfully introduced feedstock and commenced operations of a new ethane cracker at its Cedar Bayou facility in Baytown, Texas,. At peak production, the unit will produce 1.5 million metric tons/3.3 billion lbs. per year. This unit is one of the largest and most energy efficient crackers in the world. In September 2017, the company announced the successful commissioning and start-up of two new Marlex polyethylene units in Old Ocean, Texas, based on the company’s proprietary MarTech technologies. Together, these assets form the bulk of the company’s US Gulf Coast Petrochemicals Project (USGCPP), which was first announced in 2011.

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

ding 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.

Headquartered in San Ramon, California, Chevron Corporation is the the second-largest integrated energy company in the United States and among the largest corporations in the world. Chevron is involved in upstream activities including exploration and production, downstream activities including refining, marketing and transportation, and advanced energy technology. Chevron is also invested in power generation and gasification processes.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Ontario’s Ford government will invest USD3 million to support the province’s automotive and advanced manufacturing industries, in training to help workers upskill to ensure they keep pace with innovations in those sectors, said Canplastics.

The province’s new “Rapid Skills" pilot will provide high-quality, short duration training. The program is designed to help workers who are unemployed, underutilized, or at-risk of being laid off. Rapid skills, also known as micro-credentials, are short-term, industry-recognized certifications that help people quickly gain the specific skills they need to succeed in a particular sector.

"Ontario’s businesses are evolving at a faster pace than our training system,” said Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development. “[This] announcement is a sign that our government is committed to the auto and advanced manufacturing sectors. We’re listening to industry’s best advice on how we can quickly adapt to meet their needs."

As part of the program, the government has issued a call for proposals to organizations interested in developing and delivering this training. Funding will support a diverse range of training projects that address the needs of auto industries and employers, equip participants with in-demand skills and are recognized with a credential.

"Ontario auto workers are among the most productive anywhere, with the province’s assembly plants excelling in industry awards for new vehicle quality manufacturing. The Rapid Skills micro-credentials pilot takes a smart, nimble and collaborative approach to meeting the evolving training requirements of a fast-changing industry,” said Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.

Organizations that apply to develop and deliver training through the Rapid Skills call for proposals will be selected before the end of this year.

Job seekers and employers: visit ontario.ca/jobs as a one-stop resource and to connect to the Ontario Job Bank to find and post job opportunities.

As MRC informed earlier, Ford is looking to partner with McDonald's to recycle coffee chaff, the husk of coffee beans that peels off during roasting.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) announced that it has entered into a strategic alliance framework agreement to accelerate collaboration with Yokogawa Electric Corporation, according to Kemicalinfo.

The agreement includes selection of Yokogawa as a preferred supplier of control systems.

Under this alliance agreement, Yokogawa will promote localization in Saudi Arabia, and its integrated control systems and safety instrumented systems will be preferentially selected for plants operated by SABIC in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific regions. Additionally, Yokogawa will promote manufacturing excellence by collaborating with SABIC on innovative digitalization technologies, as well as energy optimization programs.

As MRC wrote before, SABIC took off-stream its Olefins 4 cracker owing to technical issues on May 10, 2019. Further details on duration of the shutdown could not be ascertained. Located in beek, the Netherlands, the cracker has an ethylene production capacity of 690,000 mt/year and a propylene production capacity of 360,000 mt/year.

Besides, SABIC Europe, an affiliate of SABIC, conducted maintenance works at its cracker No.3 at Geleen site in the Netherlands this autumn. The planned maintenance started in September and lasted around 2 months. The company operates two steam crackers in Geleen which are capable of producing 1,250,000 tons/year of ethylene and 675,000 tons/year of propylene in total.

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.

Yokogawa established Yokogawa Saudi Arabia in 2006 and Yokogawa Service Saudi Arabia in 2007. Yokogawa engages in broad-ranging activities in the areas of measurement, control, and information. The industrial automation business provides vital products, services, and solutions to a diverse range of process industries including oil, chemicals, natural gas, power, iron and steel, and pulp and paper.

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

MOSCOW (MRC) -- In a move that makes it compliant with the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive, the French Parliament’s lower chamber has passed a law to ban all single-use plastic products and packaging after 2040, said Canplastics.

The proposed ban – which still needs to be definitively adopted by the French parliament – targets the use of single-use plastic items like food containers and bottles.

The ban is an amendment to France’s anti-waste law and targets “all food packaging, bottles and everything in our cupboards to do with domestic and industrial consumption," said Laurence Maillart-Mehaignerie, a lawmaker with President Emmanuel Macron’s Republic on the Move party, behind the measure.

The legislation makes France compliant with the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive adopted a year ago that banned a range of items — from cotton buds to balloon sticks, straws and plates — from 2021. Under the directive, member countries also have to collect 77 per cent of their plastic bottles by 2025 and 90 per cent by 2029. In addition, by 2030, all new bottles will have to include 30 per cent of recycled plastics, with an intermediate target of 25 per cent by 2025.

The final text of France’s proposed law says that municipalities that wish to include plastic bottles in the deposit-return scheme can do so if they wish, but mandatory inclusion of plastic bottles will happen in 2023 only if local governments are falling short of their collection targets.

Critics of the legislation are saying that the ban takes too long to come into effect. “We cannot wait until 2040 to ban plastic bags, bottles or other disposable plastics in public administrations and at events,” the World Wildlife Fund said in a press release.

French lawmakers from the Parliament’s two chambers are expected to come to agreement on the final version of the law in January.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's HDPE production totalled 729,500 tonnes in the first ten months of 2019, down by 8% year on year. Two producers out of three reduced their output.

MRC