Maruzen completes maintenance at naphtha cracker in Chiba

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Japan's Maruzen Petrochemical, a subsidiary of Cosmo Energy Holdings, has restarted its naphtha cracker following a maintenance turnaround, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Japan informed that, the company resumed operations at the cracker on July 12, 2020. The cracker was shut for maintenance on May 11, 2020.

Located at Chiba in Japan, the cracker has an ethylene production capacity of 525,000 mt/year and propylene capacity of 280,000 mt/year.

As MRC reported earlier, Maruzen Petrochemical said in August, 2018, it would replace naphtha cracking furnaces at its 525,000 tonnes-per-year naphtha cracker in 2020 for an undisclosed sum. Two new bigger furnaces will be installed during a planned maintenance shutdown in around May-June 2020, a company spokesman said then.

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

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.
MRC

Sichuan Petrochemical shuts HDPE plant in China for unscheduled turnaround

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sichuan Petrochemical, part of PetroChina Company, has taken off-stream its high density polyethylene (HDPE) unit in Pengzhou, Sichuan, according to Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the company has undertaken an unplanned shutdown at the unit on July 16, 2020. Further details on duration of the shutdown could not be ascertained.

Located at Sichuan province of China, the HDPE unit has a production capacity of 300,000 mt/year.

Sichuan Petrochemical also operates a cracker with an ethylene capacity of 800,000 mt/year at the same site.

As MRC reported earlier, the company undertook an emergency shutdown at its naphtha cracker in Sichuan province of China on July 11, 2018 owing to a gas leak at its natural gas supply pipeline. Further details on duration of the outage could not be ascertained.

According to MRC's DataScope report, June HDPE imports to Russia decreased to 19,300 tonnes from 22,100 tonnes a month earlier, shipments from Uzbekistan and Europe fell down. Overall HDPE imports into the country totalled 147,400 tonnes in the first six months of 2020, down by 14% year on year. Film grade and pipe grade HDPE accounted for the greatest decrease in shipments.

PetroChina Company Limited, is a Chinese oil and gas company and is the listed arm of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation, headquartered in Dongcheng District, Beijing. It is China's biggest oil producer.
MRC

Shell submits plan for Norway Knarr oil field closure

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Shell is to cease production from Norway's Knarr oil field, which has been producing at over 10,000 b/d, after an in-fill development well was drilled to maximize recovery, reported S&P Global with reference to the Anglo-Dutch oil and gas major's statement on July 17.

Knarr produces from a floating production storage and offloading vessel in the northern part of the North Sea and came on stream in 2015. Production last year averaged 13,000 b/d of liquids, mainly crude oil, falling in the first five months of this year to 11,000 b/d, data from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate shows.

Shell has scaled back its presence in Norway and unlike BP and Total does not hold a stake, direct or indirect, in the Johan Sverdrup field, which has been replenishing production in Europe's highest-producing country.

However, it operates the Ormen Lange gas field, with a stake of just 17.8%, and holds minority stakes in other fields, and is also a partner in the Northern Lights carbon capture and storage project.

In an email, Shell noted it is obliged by Norwegian regulations to submit a decommissioning plan to the authorities at least two years before closing down a field, which it did earlier this year. "A final end of field life timing has not been set," it said.

It added that an in-fill well had been drilled in the second quarter "as part of the strategy of maximizing value from Knarr."

The NPD in a separate statement listed the field as one of three for which cessation of production plans have been submitted this year, the others - Heimdal and Vale - already having production under 1,000 b/d.

Shell has announced a 20% capital expenditure cut this year and said it expects to take a post-tax impairment of between USD15-USD22 billion in the second quarter, while also slashing its dividend for the first time since World War II.

As MRC wrote previously, Royal Dutch Shell Plc plans to idle a sulfur recovery unit (SRU) at the joint-venture Deer Park, Texas, refinery in 2021, said Shell spokesman Curtis Smith in July 2020. Currently, the refinery is operating at about 75% of its 318,000 barrel-per-day capacity because of reduced demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

We remind that in May 2020, CNOOC Oil & Petrochemicals Co. Ltd (CNOOC), Shell Nanhai B.V (Shell) and the Huizhou Government announced a strategic cooperation agreement to further expand the CNOOC and Shell Petrochemical Company (CSPC) 50:50 joint venture in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China.

The expansion is planned to serve the growing number of intermediate and performance chemicals customers in the key market of China, supplying products including SMPO, polyols, ethylene glycol, polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). These chemicals are used in a wide range of end products, in healthcare, construction, fabrics, packaging, transport and electronics. For the first time in Asia, Shell would apply its advanced technology for linear alpha olefins. The project is intended to include construction of a new 1.5 million-tonnes-per-year ethylene cracker, with the mega-site bringing economies of scale and enhanced competitiveness.

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

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase 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.
MRC

Brent edges lower but hovers just above USD43/b on mild optimism

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude prices edged mildly lower at midday during European trade July 17, as market participants digested OPEC+'s supply boost announced earlier this week and awaited more clarity on the demand picture as several countries ease out of lockdowns, reported S&P Global.

At 1138 GMT, ICE Brent September crude futures were 34 cents lower than the previous settle at USD43.03/b while the NYMEX light sweet August crude contract was down 21 cents at USD40.54/b.

OPEC+ confirmed at its key July 15 Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee meeting that it would begin tapering production cuts by 2 million b/d over August to December. However, over-compensation by past laggards means that the actual taper is expected to be about 1.1 million b/d.

The rolling back of the cut was unlikely to result in an immediate rise in crude throughput and oil products output due to the fragility of the global fuel demand recovery, market sources said.

"After initiating a gradual withdrawal of the production cuts on Wednesday, the alliance is letting go of the reins to some extent and relying more on external factors again," Eugen Weinberg at Commerzbank said.

Fears of a second-wave of the global pandemic have sparked again, after the US recorded 138,358 fatalities along with 3,576,221 cases of COVID-19, according to data from Johns Hopkins University's Coronavirus Resource Center.

"Risks remain on the demand side because renewed lockdowns are possible and demand may rise more slowly than anticipated as a result of the recession and changed consumer behaviour. OPEC expressed concern yesterday that a second corona wave could destroy its efforts to rebalance the oil market." Weinberg said.

Some remain bullish on the recent production cuts, however.

Monica Malik, chief economist at Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank said, "We do expect the supply-demand mismatch to reverse in July, where demand outstrips supply, thanks to the (OPEC+) supply cuts."

Despite the challenges presented by the rising cases of infections, the overall picture looked mildly optimistic for oil, analysts say.

In its closely watched Monthly Oil Market Report released July 14, OPEC boosted its forecast of 2020 oil demand by 130,000 b/d to 90.72 million b/d.

And in its first 2021 market outlook, OPEC projected oil demand would surge to 97.72 million b/d, still below pre-pandemic levels but an acute recovery from the hard-hit second quarter of 2020.

As MRC informed 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 DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.
MRC

Formosa shut Mailiao No. 2 cracker in Taiwan after fire at refinery unit

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Formosa Petrochemical Corporation Company (FPCC) has to shut its No. 2 naphtha cracker in Mailiao, Taiwan until further notice, reported CommoPlast.

Thus, this cracker was taken off-stream on 15 July after a fire broke out at a residue desulphurizer (RDS) unit belong to FPCC at the same site earlier that day.

The number.2 RDS unit is designed to process 80,000 barrels per day, which is a part of 540,000 barrel per day oil refinery complex. The No. 2 cracker has an annual capacity of 1.03 million tons/year of ethylene, 515,000 tons/year of propylene, and 162,000 tons/year of butadiene.

It is unclear at the moment if the production at downstream production would be affected.

As MRC informed earlier, Formosa Petrochemical plans to shut down its No.3 cracker in Taiwan for maintenance in mid-August, 2020. The 1.2-MMt/y No. 3 cracker is due to be offline until end-September.

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

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.

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