ABS imports in Belarus rises by 1% in 2019

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Overall imports of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) to the Belarusian market grew in 2019 by 1% year on year to 7,150 tonnes, according to MRC's DataScope report.

This figure was at 7,070 tonnes in January-December 2018.

December 2019 ABS imports to Belarus fell by 46% year on year. Thus, imports of material into the country were 457 tonnes over the stated period versus 848 tonnes in December 2018. Imports were at 6560 tonnes in November 2019.

South Korea, Russia and Belgium are the main countries-importers of ABS to Belarus.

Imports of Korean material to the Belarusian market increased last year by 2 times year on year: from 1,400 tonnes in January-December 2018 to 2,800 tonnes. The share of ABS imports from South Korea in the total shipments to the country rose significantly in 2019 to 39% from 20% a year earlier.

December 2019 shipments of Korean ABS into the Republic of Belarus were only 86 tonnes versus 250 tonnes in November 2019, whereas imports of material were 343 tonnes in December 2018.

Deliveries of Russian material into the county decreased in 2019 by 31% year on year: from 2,800 tonnes to 1,900 tonnes. The share of Russian companies' ABS in the overall imports to the country dropped last year to 27% from 39% a year earlier. Shipments of Russian material to Belarus were 158 tonnes in December 2019 versus 153 tonnes in November 2019, whereas imports of Russian material were 286 tonnes in December 2018.

Last year's imports of material from Belgium also decreased. Thus, shipments of Belgian ABS to the country fell by 28% year on year: from 2,300 tonnes to 1,700 tonnes. December 2019 ABS imports from Belgium went down by 25% from November to 132 tonnes.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Xuzhou Haitian has undertaken an unplanned shutdown at its polypropylene (PP) plant, according to Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that, the company started turnaround at the plant on March 4, 2020. The plant is expected to remain off-line for about 10 days.

Located at Xuzhou, in Jiangsu province of China, the plant has a production capacity of 200,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed before, this year, the company already conducted maintenance at its PP plant in Juangsu province from early February to 17 February.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, the estimated PP consumption in the Russian market was 1,260,400 tonnes in January-December 2019, up by 4% year on year. Supply of almost all grades of propylene polymers increased, except for statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- OxyChem, the chemical division of Occidental Petroleum, has a seven-day polyvinyl cloride (PVC) turnaround slated for April at its plant in Pasadena, Texas, USA, reported S&P Global with reference to a source familiar with company operations.

This plant's production capacity is 1 million mt/year.

The company did not respond to a request for comment.

As MRC wrote before, OxyChem's La Porte complex has 1,250,000 tpa of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) production capacity, which suffered a production upset in late June, 2015. VCM is an intermediate material that is later transformed into PVC.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, contrary to seasonal factors, Russian producers of unmixed PVC have maintained a high level of capacity utilisation. Russia's overal PVC output totalled 91,700 tonnes in January 2020, up by 4% year on year. January production of unmixed PVC was 91,700 tonnes versus 87,760 tonnes in January 2019 and 81,400 tonnes in December 2019. Thus, despite relatively weak demand for resin from the domestic market, the average capacity utilisation exceeded 95% last month. Russia's overall PVC production reached 975,000 tonnes in 2019, compared to 958,600 tonnes a year earlier.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OxyChem) is a California-based oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, the Middle East, North Africa, and South America. Oxychem is Oxy"s Texas-based subsidiary which manufacture polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resins, chlorine and caustic soda used in plastics, pharmaceuticals and water treatment chemicals.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Shintech, a subsidiary of Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., is planning a month-long turnaround in April on one of the trains at its 1.4 million mt/year polyvinyl chloride (PVC) facility in Freeport, Texas, reported S&P Global with reference to a source familiar with company operations.

Market sources had expected the turnaround to occur in March, as is typical, but the source said it was planned for April. The upcoming planned work has prompted the company to stockpile PVC to meet domestic and contract demand, limiting export volume availability for March and April, the source said.

The company did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

As MRC informed previously, in July 2018, Shintech began to construct a new integrated plant to PVC from salt. The new plant will be on industrial site developed by Shintech, located next to Shintech's existing plant in Plaquemine, Louisiana.

Shintech obtained permits to build a plant capable of producing 1.9 billion pounds (860 thousand tons) per year of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), the raw material of PVC, and 660 thousand tons per year of caustic soda, and has commenced construction of the first phase of the plan. The first phase will increase production capacity by 640 million pounds (290 thousand tons) of PVC per year and 270 thousand tons of caustic soda per year. The amount of this investment is expected to be $1.49 billion, which Shintech will fund by itself. Completion of the construction is targeted for the end of 2020. Annual production capacity after the completion of the first phase will be 7.14 billion pounds (3,240 thousand tons per year) of PVC and 1,570 thousand tons of caustic soda per year.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, contrary to seasonal factors, Russian producers of unmixed PVC have maintained a high level of capacity utilisation. Russia's overal PVC output totalled 91,700 tonnes in January 2020, up by 4% year on year. January production of unmixed PVC was 91,700 tonnes versus 87,760 tonnes in January 2019 and 81,400 tonnes in December 2019. Thus, despite relatively weak demand for resin from the domestic market, the average capacity utilisation exceeded 95% last month. Russia's overall PVC production reached 975,000 tonnes in 2019, compared to 958,600 tonnes a year earlier.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Formosa Plastics USA, part of Formosa Petrochemical, has two ongoing turnarounds at its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant and an upstream vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) facility at the company's Point Comfort complex, also in Texas, reported S&P Global.

The PVC and VCM plants' production capacities are 798,000 mt/year 753,000 mt/year, respectively.

The PVC work at Point Comfort had been slated to wrap up by the end of February, but was still ongoing this week, according to a source familiar with company operations. The VCM work was scheduled to stretch into mid-March.

The company declined to comment.

All of the work was expected to limit export volume availability in March and April, market sources said.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, contrary to seasonal factors, Russian producers of unmixed PVC have maintained a high level of capacity utilisation. Russia's overal PVC output totalled 91,700 tonnes in January 2020, up by 4% year on year. January production of unmixed PVC was 91,700 tonnes versus 87,760 tonnes in January 2019 and 81,400 tonnes in December 2019. Thus, despite relatively weak demand for resin from the domestic market, the average capacity utilisation exceeded 95% last month. Russia's overall PVC production reached 975,000 tonnes in 2019, compared to 958,600 tonnes a year earlier.

Formosa Petrochemical is involved primarily in the business of refining crude oil, selling refined petroleum products and producing and selling olefins (including ethylene, propylene, butadiene and BTX) from its naphtha cracking operations. Formosa Petrochemical is also the largest olefins producer in Taiwan and its olefins products are mostly sold to companies within the Formosa Group. Among the company's chemical products are paraxylene (PX), phenyl ethylene, acetone and pure terephthalic acid (PTA). The company"s plastic products include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resins, polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP) and panlite (PC).
MRC