Wesseling MMA plant to be shut for maintenance by Roehm

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Roehm has planned to take off-stream its Methyl methacrylate (MMA) plant in June 2020, according to Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Germany informed that the company is likely to start turnaround at the plant on June 5, 2020. The plant is expected to remain under maintenance for about 10 days.

Located in Wesseling, Germany, the plant has a production capacity of 95,000 mt/year.

The principal application, consuming approximately 75% of the MMA, is the manufacture of polymethyl methacrylate acrylic plastics (PMMA). Methyl methacrylate is also used for the production of the co-polymer methyl methacrylate-butadiene-styrene (MBS), used as a modifier for polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

According to MRC's DataScope report, exports of suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) from Russia totalled 193,700 tonnes in 2019, up by 11% year on year. Imports increased more significantly - by 217% year on year - to 50,900 tonnes.
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PDVSA, Chevron turn Venezuela crude blending plant back into upgrader

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Venezuela’s Petropiar facility, a joint venture between state oil company PDVSA and Chevron Corp, is once again operating this month as a crude upgrader after several months working as a less complex blending facility, according to a document seen by Reuters and a source with knowledge of the matter.

The facility will once again produce Hamaca-grade synthetic crude for export at the plant, according to the document. Petropiar stopped producing Hamaca last year and had been making heavier Merey crude, mostly for the Asian market, since July.

Neither PDVSA nor Chevron immediately responded to requests for comment.

Petropiar once made up to 210,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) of Hamaca out of tar-like oil from the OPEC nation’s Orinoco belt, one of the world’s largest oil reserves. The extra-heavy crude must be upgraded or blended with lighter grades at facilities near the Jose terminal before being exported.

But PDVSA struggled to find markets for that grade after the United States, previously Venezuela’s largest customer, slapped sanctions on the company last year as part of Washington’s push to oust socialist President Nicolas Maduro, who has overseen a dramatic economic collapse along with a freefall in crude output.

It was not immediately clear if PDVSA had a client lined up for the Hamaca crude.

We remind that in March 2018, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP 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.

As MRC wrote before, US-based Phillips 66 remains open to developing another ethane cracker for its Chevron Phillips Chemical (CP Chem) joint venture, the refiner's CEO said in March 2018.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,904,410 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2019, up by 6% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. PE shipments increased from both domestic producers and foreign suppliers. The PP consumption in the Russian market was 1,161,830 tonnes in January-November 2019, up by 7% year on year. Deliveries of all grades of propylene polymers increased, with the homopolymer PP segment accounting for the largest increase.

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.
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Coca-Cola says it will not break free from plastic bottles

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Coca-Cola will not ditch single-use plastic bottles because consumers still want them, the firm's head of sustainability has told the BBC.

Customers like them because they reseal and are lightweight, said Bea Perez. The firm, which is one of the biggest producers of plastic waste, has pledged to recycle as many plastic bottles as it uses by 2030.

But environmental campaigners argue many Coke bottles would still go uncollected and end up in landfill.
The drinks giant produces about three million tonnes of plastic packaging a year - equivalent to 200,000 bottles a minute.

In 2019, it was found to be the most polluting brand in a global audit of plastic waste by the charity Break Free from Plastic. But speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Ms Perez said the firm recognised it now had to be "part of the solution".

Coke has pledged to use at least 50% recycled material in its packaging by 2030. It is also partnering with NGOs around the world to help improve collection.

However, Ms Perez said the firm could not ditch plastic outright, as some campaigners wanted, saying this could alienate customers and hit sales. She also said using only aluminium and glass packaging could push up the firm's carbon footprint. "Business won't be in business if we don't accommodate consumers," she said.

"So as we change our bottling infrastructure, move into recycling and innovate, we also have to show the consumer what the opportunities are. They will change with us."

Ms Perez said she respected the idealism of youth activists, such as 19-year-old campaigner Melati Wijsen, who with her sister Isabel, convinced the island of Bali to ban single-use plastic bags, straws and styrofoam last year.

As per MRC's DataScope, imports of PET chips into Russia increased by 13% in 2019 compared to the same time a year ago and reached 144,800 tonnes compared to 128,500 tonnes (excluding supplies from Belarus over the past two months). Russia's PET imports increased by 10% in December to 13,600 tonnes against 12,300 tonnes in November; last December material imports amounted to 12,400 tonnes. The share of Chinese material was 82% (11,200 tonnes) in December versus 78% (9,600 tonnes) a month earlier. The share of Chinese material in total imports amounted to 91% (11,300 tonnes) in December last year.
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Dow slips to Q4 loss on margin pressure

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chemicals maker Dow Inc reported better-than-expected quarterly profit and revenue on Wednesday, helped by higher volumes in Asia as well as cost cuts, and pointed to a recovery in demand this year on the back of easing trade tensions, said Reuters.

Dow has been cutting costs to offset a drop in demand for chemicals used in plastics, building materials and paints, amid a global slowdown. The company said it had reduced costs by USD35 million in the quarter and would make further cuts this year.

An oversupplied market and uncertainties stemming from a prolonged U.S.-China trade war have also hit prices for polyethylene, the main ingredient used in making most plastics. The company’s overall prices declined 12% in the quarter.

Volumes fell 2%, primarily due to weakness in its hydrocarbon and energy unit, which sells by-products of oil refining. The drop was largely due to planned maintenance activity in Europe. Sales fell across all its three businesses, with its biggest unit that makes chemicals used in packaging and specialty plastics posting an 18% drop.

However, Dow’s results were boosted by double-digit growth in China. Leading into the Chinese New Year, Dow saw strong demand, with many customers either maintaining or buying additional inventory, Ungerleider said.

Commenting on the coronavirus outbreak, Ungerleider said it was “too soon to tell” the impact, but added it may be a positive for Dow’s business as it supplies to the medical and health sectors.

Dow, spun off in April after chemical conglomerate DowDuPont split into three, posted operating earnings of 78 cents per share, excluding certain items.

As MRC informed earlier, Dow Chemical, the world's petrochemical major, has put order controls in place for vinyl acetate monomer (VAM). The letter dated January 8 said, effective immediately, volumes will be based on previous monthly averages of purchased volumes, or limited to monthly maximum volumes specified in contracts. The letter does not provide details about how long the order control will be in place.

VAM is the main feedstock for the production of ethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA).

According to MRC's DataScope report, November EVA imports to Russia dropped by 8,9% year on year to 3,440 tonnes from 3,780 tonnes in November 2018, and overall imports of this grade of ethylene copolymer into the Russian Federation decreased in January-November 2019 by 18,9% year on year to 35,95 tonnes (44,330 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2018).

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene (PS), polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber.

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Pertamina ends deal with Italian Eni for palm oil fuel project

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indonesia state energy company PT Pertamina has ended a partnership with Italian oil, gas and power firm Eni SpA to process palm oil into fuel, reported Reuters with reference to Pertamina’s chief executive, who addressed a parliamentary committee.

Pertamina’s Nicke Widyawati said during the hearing that Eni required internationally recognised certification for palm oil, in line with European Union moves to curb the use of palm oil as a transport fuel, even though the oil would have been processed in facilities located in Indonesia.

Pertamina and Eni signed a head joint venture agreement last year to build a refinery in Indonesia that would produce fuel completely derived from crude palm oil.

"We have decided to terminate this partnership and replace it with partnership with UOP from the United States for support in technology," Widyawati said, referring to an oil and gas engineering arm of US conglomerate Honeywell International Inc .

She didn’t disclose technical or financial details of the dissolution of the Eni partnership, nor of the new accord with UOP.

Eni and Honeywell UOP didn’t immediately respond to Reuters e-mails requesting comment sent outside usual business hours.

The European Commission concluded in March that palm oil causes excessive deforestation and should not count as a renewable source of energy, and will effectively be phased out as fuel for transport between 2023 and 2030.

Pertamina is building its new "green diesel" refinery in Plaju, in South Sumatra province, with planned output capacity of 1 million kilolitres (KL) per year and a target of commencing operations in 2024.

Indonesia is the world’s top palm oil producer and President Joko Widodo wants the country to optimise the use of palm-based fuel to curb energy imports, while increasing the consumption of the vegetable oil.

As MRC wrote previously, in November 2018, CPC Corp. of Taiwan and Indonesia's PT Pertamina signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to set up a new naphtha cracker in Indonesia. The project, expected to cost USD6.47-billion, would in-volve the production of almost 1-million t/y of ethylene, meeting local demand.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,904,410 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2019, up by 6% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. PE shipments increased from both domestic producers and foreign suppliers. The PP consumption in the Russian market was 1,161,830 tonnes in January-November 2019, up by 7% year on year. Deliveries of all grades of propylene polymers increased, with the homopolymer PP segment accounting for the largest increase.

Pertamina is an Indonesian state-owned oil and natural gas corporation based in Jakarta. It was created in August 1968 by the merger of Pertamin (established 1961) and Permina (established 1957). Pertamina is the world's largest producer and exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Eni is an Italian multinational oil and gas company headquartered in Rome. It has operations in in 79 countries, and is currently Italy's largest industrial company with a market capitalization of 68 billion euros (USD 90 billion), as of August 14, 2013. The Italian government owns a 30.3% golden share in the company, 3.93% held through the state Treasury and 26.37% held through the Cassa depositi e prestiti. Another 39.40% of the shares are held by BNP Paribas.
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