Ukrainian EPS imports down by 19% in Jan-Apr 2020

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Overall imports of expandable polystyrene (EPS) to the Ukrainian market fell in the first four months of 2020 by 19% year on year to 7,900 tonnes, according to MRC's DataScope report.

This figure was at 9,800 tonnes in January-April 2019.


Russian material accounted for 60% (4,800 tonnes) of the total shipments in the first four months of 2020, compared to 47% (4,600 tonnes) a year earlier. Chinese EPS shipments slumped over the stated period to 17% (1,340 tonnes) from 46% (4,500 tonnes) in January-April 2019.

April 2020 EPS imports to Ukraine were 2,000 tonnes, as a month earlier, shipments were at 4,000 tonnes in April 2019.

The share of Russian material dropped to 40% (810 tonnes) in April from 46% (930 tonnes) a month earlier. The share of Chinese shipments rose to 44% (900 tonnes) in April 2020 from 7% (150 tonnes) in March.

MRC

Ukraine reduces GPPS and HIPS imports in Jan-Apr 2020 by 5%

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Overall imports of general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) and high impact polystyrene (HIPS) to Ukraine dropped in the first four month of 2020 by 5% year on year to 6,740 tonnes, according to MRC's DataScope report.

This figure was at 7,000 tonnes in January-April 2019.


April GPPS and HIPS imports into the country fell by 16% from March: from 1,920 tonnes to 1,610 tonnes. Imports of these grades of material were at 1,300 tonnes in April 2019.

Imports of Russian GPPS and HIPS of Nizhnekamskneftekhim to Ukraine remained in January-April 2020 at the last year's level, totalling 3,500 tonnes. The share of Nizhnekamskneftekhim's material grew to 53% in the overall structure of imports to the Ukrainian market in the first four months of 2020 from 50% in January-April 2019.

April imports of material from Russia decreased by 13% from March to 800 tonnes. The share of Nizhnekamskneftekhim's GPPS and HIPS was 50% in April versus 71% a year ealrier.

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COVID-19 - News digest as of 03.06.2020

1. Orbia puts on hold plans to divest Vestolit vinyls business

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Orbia Advance Corp., formerly Mexichem (Mexico City) says that in view of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the global economy and capital markets, it has decided to pause its efforts to divest or seek an alternative strategy for its Vestolit vinyls business, reported Chemweek. Orbia says it is "prepared to wait for the right environment to maximize shareholder value in any transaction involving its Vestolit business". The company adds that Vestolit is a "fundamentally strong business, with a unique global footprint and strong cash generation, and will continue to focus on driving sustainable, profitable growth."


MRC

U.S. renewable fuel credits climb as EPA considers ruling on waiver program

MOSCOW (MRC) -- U.S. renewable fuel credits have gained by more than a third over the last month as refiners have bought the credits while the Trump administration decides the future of a program that exempts smaller refineries from blending laws, traders said, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Renewable fuel (D6) credits for 2020 traded at 50 cents each on Monday, up from 37 cents since the start of May, traders said. Under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), refiners must blend billions of gallons of biofuels into the fuel pool or buy credits from those that do.

Small refineries that can prove the requirements would cause financial harm have been able to apply for exemptions from the mandate. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under President Donald Trump has granted a much higher number of waivers than in previous years.

However, in January the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals said the RFS is worded in such a way that any exemption granted to a small refinery after 2010 must take the form of an “extension.” If applied broadly, the decision could effectively end the waiver program.

The EPA has not yet said how it will apply the decision. “EPA continues to deliberate and engage with stakeholders over the broad ranging implications of COVID-19 for the implementation of the RFS program,” an EPA representative said.

Since the court decision in late January, D6 credits have jumped 354% from 11 cents each. Biomass-based (D4) credits traded at 60 cents each, up from 52 cents each a month ago, traders said. They have risen 30% since the court ruling.

As MRC informed earlier, top oil exporter Saudi Arabia is expected to raise its official selling price (OSP) for all grades it sells to Asia in July, to track a jump in Middle East benchmarks although overall weak refining margins could cap price gains, industry sources said.

As MRC wrote earlier, in October 2019, McDermott International announced that it had been awarded a contract by Saudi Aramco and Total Raffinage Chimie (Total) for their joint venture (JV) Amiral steam cracker project at Jubail, Saudi Arabia. Amiral is a JV in which Aramco holds 62.5% and Total the rest. The plant, designed to produce 1.5 million metric tons/year (MMt/y) of ethylene, will be one of the world's largest mixed-feed crackers.

Aramco and Total launched their USD5-billion Amiral JV project in October 2018. The steam cracker will be fed with a mixture of 50% ethane and refinery off-gases. It will supply ethylene to a downstream 1 MMt/y polyethylene manufacturing complex and other petrochemical products. The project aims to fully exploit operational synergies with the adjacent refinery, owned by Satorp, another JV between Aramco and Total. Third-party investors, including Daelim and Ineos, will locate plants at the value park adjacent to Amiral with a combined investment of USD4 billion. A final investment decision is expected in 2021.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 557,060 tonnes in the first three month of 2020, up by 7% year on year. High density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments rose because of the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. Demand for LDPE subsided. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market was 267,630 tonnes in January-March 2020, down 20% year on year. Homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers accounted for the main decrease in imports.
MRC

Shell seeks FERC assistance to squash GreenHat Energy lawsuit in Texas court

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Shell Energy North America has asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to step in to help resolve a breach-of-contract claim GreenHat Energy brought against it in a Texas state court, said S&P Global.

Shell is looking to FERC to interpret PJM Interconnection's rules for bilateral transfers of financial transmission rights to debunk GreenHat's "extraordinary claim that entering data into PJM's platform for reporting FTR transfers created additional separate, binding contracts, which Shell Energy allegedly breached," according to the petition for declaratory order (EL20-49) recently filed with FERC.

The commission, in a June 1 notice, set a June 29 deadline for comments in the proceeding. Shell asserts the matter could put every market participant that has ever entered data into FTR Center, PJM's reporting mechanism for FTR transfers, on the hook for "unknown terms of alleged contracts [they] never agreed to."

Left unresolved, GreenHat's claim could lead to widespread FTR market uncertainty and prompt countless legal disputes against PJM members associated with the 137,000 entries made into the platform at issue over the past six years, Shell said.

Prior to GreenHat's massive June 21, 2018, default in PJM's FTR market, Shell entered into three bilateral agreements with GreenHat between August 2016 and February 2017. Those agreements resulted in a transfer to Shell and back to GreenHat of a portion of the FTR portfolio upon which GreenHat later defaulted.

Shell, in its May 29 petition to FERC, likened the agreements to consignment deals under which Shell would pay a discounted cash value to GreenHat for FTRs that sold at auction, and could return the uncleared FTRs to GreenHat or pay an agreed-upon price based on the auction results for uncleared FTRs it elected.

As MRC wrote before, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp said it will shut down its 110,000-barrel-per-day Tabangao refinery in the Philippines for one month from mid-May as the coronavirus pandemic has hammered oil demand.

We also remind that Shell Singapore restarted its naphtha cracker in Bukom Island this week following a two months maintenance shutdown since the beginning of October 2019. Thus, this cracker was taken off-stream for the turnaround on 1 October 2019. The cracker is able to produce 960,000 tons/year of ethylene and 550,000 tons/year of propylene.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 557,060 tonnes in the first three month of 2020, up by 7% year on year. High density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments rose because of the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. Demand for LDPE subsided. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market was 267,630 tonnes in January-March 2020, down 20% year on year. Homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers accounted for the main decrease in imports.

Royal Dutch Shell plc is an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the biggest company in the world in terms of revenue and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors". Shell is vertically integrated and is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading.
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