Cefic urges EU member states to agree on recovery plan, welcomes EU4Health program

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Cefic has called on EU member states to agree urgently on a recovery plan to restart Europe’s economy and kick off investments toward a green and digital transition, said Chemweek.

The EU chemical industry is seeking investments in building renovation, clean mobility, the development of all forms of clean hydrogen, chemical recycling, and carbon capture and storage as well as carbon capture and utilization, Cefic says.

The main aim of Cefic's call for action, ahead of a European Council meeting on 17 July, is to provide a much-needed solution to the economic uncertainty caused by COVID-19, according to the strategic goals set out by the EU Green Deal, Cefic says. It is in line with the Council’s previous comments and announcements on the need for an EU recovery plan, in which the chemical industry should play a key role.

"Our priority is to go through the green transition while strengthening our production capacity in Europe. This will only be possible if the EU keeps its industries competitive throughout the transition. This is why the EU recovery plan must be accompanied by a strong industrial strategy based on the European Green Deal vision. This will ensure that the recovery funding supports a resilient industrial transformation. It also means the upcoming chemical strategy for sustainability needs to be assessed in full on its impact on the EU chemical industry," says Marco Mensink, director general at Cefic.

The Council has welcomed the new EU4Health program that supports the relaunch of the EU's production of active pharmaceutical ingredients and strengthens procurement of vital medicines, medical devices, and personal protective equipment, Cefic says.

EU4Health is a dedicated funding program for 2021-27 to build resilient health systems in the EU to equip it better for the future, the EU Commission says. The EU will invest EUR9.4 billion in tackling cross-border health threats, making medicines affordable, and strengthening health systems in the EU, the Commission says. It forms part of the EU’s ambition to create a European Health Union.

As it was written earlier, in 2017, SIBUR joined the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC). SIBUR has also become a member of the European Committee of Ethylene Producers and Technology Suppliers (EEPC, part of CEFIC). Membership in the Council allowed SIBUR to take part in the work of 93 sectoral groups on more than 120 petrochemical products, in 90 strategic groups working on issues of sustainable development, innovation, trade, energy and law in the field of petrochemicals.

As MRC informed earlier, Russia's output of chemical products rose by 4.4% year on year in May 2020 . Thus, production of basic chemicals increased year on year by 5.4% in the first five months of 2020. According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, polymers in primary form accounted for the greatest increase in the output in January-May. Production of benzene was 110,000 tonnes in May 2020, which equalled the figure a month earlier. Overall output of this product reached 615,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 1.7% year on year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Meridian Adhesives Group (Dalton, Georgia), owned by private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners, has acquired E-Chem (Albuquerque, New Mexico), a maker of epoxy polymer products for concrete, said Chemweek.

The products are used in the preservation, rehabilitation, repair and structural support of concrete surfaces and structures, including applications for epoxy bridge deck overlays and high-friction surface treatment. End markets include transportation authorities, petrochemical processing, renewable energy, non-residential concrete construction and parking-structure rehabilitation. "We are looking forward to expanding our business more aggressively in the infrastructure market, and I am confident the skilled team at E-Chem will drive value to that endeavor,” said Daniel Pelton, CEO of Meridian Adhesives Group. E-Chem will become part of Meridian’s infrastructure division, which also includes Adhesives Technology Corp., a maker of construction and industrial-related adhesives in epoxies, urethanes, acrylics, ester blends and polyureas.

"Joining Meridian’s expert technology team is an exciting step for E-Chem,” said James High, president of E-Chem, who founded the firm 2012. "Our continuous pattern of growth will be bolstered even further by the group’s extensive distributor network."

As MRC informed earlier, Russia's output of chemical products rose by 4.4% year on year in May 2020 . Thus, production of basic chemicals increased year on year by 5.4% in the first five months of 2020. According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, polymers in primary form accounted for the greatest increase in the output in January-May. Production of benzene was 110,000 tonnes in May 2020, which equalled the figure a month earlier. Overall output of this product reached 615,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 1.7% year on year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Lotte Chemical and Hanwha General Chemical have entered into an agreement, in which Hanwha will supply 450,000 t/y of purified terephthalic acid (PTA) to Lotte, effective July, as per Apic-online.

In order to meet its supply obligation, Hanwha will restart PTA production at its No. 2 plant in Ulsan, S. Korea, which has been idle. Hanwha owns Korea's "largest" PTA facility with a capacity of 2-million t/y, Lotte noted.

Lotte will transform its 600,000-t/y PTA facility in Ulsan to produce purified isophthalic acid (PIA), beginning this July. It has 520,000 t/y of PIA production capacity.

"This agreement is a case to expand profitability and business competitiveness through the voluntary cooperation of the two companies, who are competitors in the petrochemical industry, and it is meaningful in that they came together for the bigger goal of developing the domestic chemical industry," said Lotte.

As MRC reported earlier, on 4 March, 2020, Lotte Chemcial shut its naphtha cracker after an explosion at the plant in the southwestern city of Seosan, which injured 31 people. The explosion, which was triggered by a fire at a compressor in Lotte Chemical’s naphtha cracker at around 3 a.m. local time (1800 GMT), was soon contained and under control, the company said then in a statement. The cracker may resume production this October, although initially the restart was planned in a couple of weeks after the accident.

PTA is used to produce polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is used in the manufacturing of plastic bottles, films, packaging containers, in the textile and food industries.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, May estimated PET consumption in Russia amounted to 70,170 tonnes, which corresponds to the level of consumption last year (70,450 tonnes). In total for the period January - May of this year, the estimated PET consumption in the Russian Federation amounted to 304,310 tonnes of material. This is 3% lower than the same indicator in 2019.

South Korean Lotte Chemical is a global petrochemical company, established in 1976. It produces low density polyethylene (LDPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE), linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), polypropylene (PP), functional resins, styrene monomer (SM), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), etc.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China has added polypropylene (PP), along with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), as a trading option on the Dalian Commodity Exchange in the country's northeastern province of Liaoning, said Technicaltextile.

With this, the number of options listed for trading on the Exchange has increased to seven, according to Chinese media reports.

The seven options and 20 futures listed for trading on the Exchange cover several fields including chemicals, energy and agriculture. The inclusion of PP, PVC and LLDPE will boost the risk management ability of petrochemical enterprises, the reports said.

China is a major producer and consumer of all three plastic chemical products—PP, PVC and LLDPE—and their listing will support the sound and stable development of the country's petrochemical industry.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 595,170 tonnes in the first five month of 2020, up by 10% year on year. Deliveries of all ethylene polymers, except for linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), rose partially because of an increase in capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market was 457,930 tonnes in January-May 2020 (calculated by the formula production minus export plus import). Deliveris of exclusively PP random copolymer increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The International Energy Agency (IEA) bumped up its 2020 oil demand forecast on Friday but warned that the spread of COVID-19 posed a risk to the outlook. But oil refining activity in 2020 is set to fall by more than the IEA anticipated last month and to grow less in 2021, reported Reuters with reference to its statement.

The Paris-based IEA raised its forecast to 92.1 million barrels per day (bpd), up 400,000 bpd from its outlook last month, citing a smaller-than-expected second-quarter decline.

"While the oil market has undoubtedly made progress ... the large, and in some countries, accelerating number of COVID-19 cases is a disturbing reminder that the pandemic is not under control and the risk to our market outlook is almost certainly to the downside," the IEA said in its monthly report.

The easing of lockdown measures in many countries caused a strong rebound to fuel deliveries in May, June and likely also July, the IEA said.

But oil refining activity in 2020 is set to fall by more than the IEA anticipated last month and to grow less in 2021, it said.

Demand in 2021 will likely be 2.6 million bpd below 2019 levels, with kerosene and jet fuel due to a drop in air travel accounting for three-quarters of the shortfall.

"For refiners, any benefit from improving demand is likely to be offset by expectations of much tighter feedstock markets ahead. Refining margins will also be challenged by a major product stocks overhang from the very weak second quarter of 2020," the IEA said.

On the supply front, the IEA said the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers including Russia, a grouping known as OPEC+, had shown 108% compliance with their pact to rein in output.

Market driven cuts had also affected other producers, especially the United States, though US supply was expected to slowly recover in the second half of 2020 while the lifting of force majeure on exports of Libyan crude could add another 900,000 bpd to global markets by the end of the year.

As MRC wrote before, global oil consumption cut by up to a third in Q1 2020. What happens next in the oil market depends on how quickly and completely the global economy emerges from lockdown, and whether the recessionary hit lingers through the rest of this year and into 2021.

Earlier this year, BP said the deadly coronavirus outbreak could cut global oil demand growth by 40 per cent in 2020, putting pressure on Opec producers and Russia to curb supplies to keep prices in check.

We remind that in September 2019, six world's major petrochemical companies in Flanders, Belgium, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and the Netherlands (Trilateral Region) announced the creation of a consortium to jointly investigate how naphtha or gas steam crackers could be operated using renewable electricity instead of fossil fuels. The Cracker of the Future consortium, which includes BASF, Borealis, BP, LyondellBasell, SABIC and Total, aims to produce base chemicals while also significantly reducing carbon emissions. The companies agreed to invest in R&D and knowledge sharing as they assess the possibility of transitioning their base chemical production to renewable electricity.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 595,170 tonnes in the first five month of 2020, up by 10% year on year. Deliveries of all ethylene polymers, except for linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), rose partially because of an increase in capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market was 457,930 tonnes in January-May 2020 (calculated by the formula production minus export plus import). Deliveris of exclusively PP random copolymer increased.
MRC