Ineos to idle Grangemouth petchem complex in October

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Grangemouth, UK, petrochemicals plant operated by Ineos will shut down at the beginning of October, reported Chemweek with reference to sources with links to the plant Tuesday.

The shutdown of the petchems facility in Scotland is planned to last between five and six weeks and has been pushed back from a provisional mid-September start date, those local sources say.

Turnarounds at the nearby 210,000-b/d Petronineos-operated refinery as well as the petchem plant were originally scheduled for April this year, but the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic scotched those plans. One source told OPIS that a short period of maintenance work on a 110,000-b/d crude distillation unit at the refinery was about to end, and so many workers engaged in that project will be redeployed to work on the forthcoming petchems plant shutdown.

A spokesman for Ineos said that the company does not comment on its day-to-day operations at Grangemouth.

OPIS is an IHS Markit company.

As MRC informed previously, Ineos, one of the world’s largest manufacturing companies, has undertaken an unplanned shutdown at its No. 1 olefins unit at Texas cracker. The company halted operations at the cracker for maintenance on September 18, 2020 owing to technical issues. Further details on duration of the shutdown could not be ascertained. Located at Chocolate Bayou in Texas, the No. 1 Olefins unit has an ethylene production capacity of 1.07 million mt/year and propylene production capacity of 235,000 mt/year.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall PE production totalled 1,712,400 tonnes in the first seven months of 2020, up by 58% year on year. Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) accounted for the greatest increase in the output. At the same time, overall PP production in Russia increased in January-July 2020 by 24% year on year to 1,063,700 tonne. ZapSibNeftekhim accounted for the main increase in the output.

Ineos is a global manufacturer of petrochemicals, specialty chemicals and oil products employing 22,000 people. It has 34 businesses, with a production network spanning 183 manufacturing facilities in 26 countries.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Celanese Corporation, a global technology and specialty materials company, and a global leader in vinyl acetate ethylene (EVA) emulsions, has announced an increase in its September EVA prices in China, as per the company's press release.

Thus, the company's EVA prices rose by CNY700/mt for China, effective September 15, 2020, or as contracts otherwise allow.

The price increases above are for orders shipped on or after September 15, or as contracts otherwise allow, and are incremental to any previously announced rises.

As MRC reported earlier, Celanese has also raised its September prices of EVA emulsions by CNY300/mt.

According to MRC's DataScope report, June EVA imports to Russia fell by 22,5% year on year to 2,940 tonnes from 3,800 tonnes a year earlier, and overall imports of this grade of ethylene copolymer into the Russian Federation dropped in January-June 2020 by 8,16% year on year to 17,440 tonnes (18,980 tonnes a year earlier).

Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications. Based in Dallas, Celanese employs approximately 7,700 employees worldwide and had 2019 net sales of USD6.3 billion.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical (NSRP) has restarted the polypropylene (PP) unit in Vietnam late last week following a 10 days unscheduled shutdown starting 7 September 2020 due to a persistent technical issue, reported CommoPlast.

The 370,000 tons/year line has been able to stabilize the operating rates at the time of this report.

On another note, Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical is planning a major overhaul at the PP unit in June 2021 and the entire complex would be shut in 2023 for maintenance.

As MRC wrote previously, in late June, 2020, NSRP was operating its PP plant in Vietnam at about 70% capacity following a change in the catalyst used in the production processes. The unit restored the normal rates in ten days.

We remind that NSRP shut its PP unit on 21 June, 2019, owing to technical issues. The exact duration of the shutdown could not be ascertained. Besides, the company conducted a scheduled maitenance at this unit from 22 October, 2019, to end-November, 2019.

We also remind that Vietnam’s Nghi Son oil refinery officially began commercial production from 14 November 2018, following months of tests. The USD9 billion refinery is 35.1 percent owned by Japan’s Idemitsu Kosan Co, 35.1 percent by Kuwait Petroleum, 25.1 percent by PetroVietnam and 4.7 percent by Mitsui Chemicals Inc.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, overall PP production in Russia increased in January-July 2020 by 24% year on year to 1,063,700 tonne. ZapSibNeftekhim accounted for the main increase in the output.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The joint Vestas and Hempel ambition is to reduce surface treatment costs and support sustainable coating solutions, said the company.

At the same time, Hempel continues to assist Vestas in remaining competitive throughout the entire process of becoming CO2 neutral by 2030.

In Colorado, USA, Vestas is operating one of the world’s largest facilities of wind tower manufacturing. Here Vestas and Hempel take the first step of the partnership, as they will closely collabo-rate on bringing down costs and exploring new digital solutions to improve quality control and the CO2 footprint of the production of wind turbines. Initial calculations demonstrate that changing the processes surrounding the surface treatment application will potentially generate a 60 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions equal to 1,100 tonnes CO2e per year.

"We are pleased to extend our long-term relationship with Hempel with this partnership. It is a great example of how we make sustainability part of everything we do and how we strive to engage in close and mutually beneficial partnerships across our value chain to improve both our operational efficiency and sustainability performance," says Vestas COO Tommy Rahbek Nielsen.

"At Hempel, we help our customers reach their sustainability targets. We have a long-term relationship with Vestas and are excited to take it one step further with a shared ambition of developing more innovative and sustainable coating solutions to help reduce our customers’ CO2 footprint. This strategic partnership will allow Vestas and Hempel to elevate each other’s strengths with the aim of innovating and unlocking future value together," says Hempel CCO Michael Hansen.

As MRC informed earlier, Hempel has broken ground on a new 200,000 tonne/year plant at the Yangtze International Chemical Industrial Park in Zhangjiagang, China. Production is due to start in 2022, when the plant will replace an existing facility at Kunshan. It will produce various coating types, including: high-solids, solvent-free, waterborne, antifouling. Together with another coatings project at Yantai, Hempel expects to invest a combined USD270m to expand its production capacities in China.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall PE production totalled 1,712,400 tonnes in the first seven months of 2020, up by 58% year on year. Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) accounted for the greatest increase in the output. At the same time, overall PP production in Russia increased in January-July 2020 by 24% year on year to 1,063,700 tonne. ZapSibNeftekhim accounted for the main increase in the output.

Hempel is a global company with strong values, working with customers in the protective, marine, decorative, container and yacht industries. Hempel factories, R&D centres and stock points are established in every region. Across the globe, Hempel’s coatings protect surfaces, structures and equipment. They extend asset lifetimes, reduce maintenance costs and make homes and workplaces safer and more colourful. Hempel was founded in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1915. It is proudly owned by the Hempel Foundation, which ensures a solid economic base for the Hempel Group and supports cultural, social, humanitarian and scientific purposes around the world.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indorama has begun a two-week restart of its Port Neches, Texas, propylene oxide/Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) facility, which was shut down in late August because of Hurricane Laura, reported Chemweek.

The restart process began late Thursday evening, according to a Friday regulatory filing.

The plant's outage has been cited as a contributor to recent upward pressure on US Gulf Coast MTBE prices.

The Port Neches MTBE plant, formerly owned by Huntsman, has a listed capacity of 260 million gallon/y (17,000 b/d).

The US Gulf Coast MTBE market tends to be illiquid, with limited production and domestic use effectively banned. US MTBE volumes are exported, primarily to Latin America, where it is used to oxygenate fuel supplies.

Mexico typically ranks as the largest export destination for US MTBE, with Chile also receiving volumes.

Mexico imported 13,982 b/d of MTBE in July, with 10,009 b/d from the US, according to data from PIERS by IHS Markit.

Mexico has averaged 15,150 b/d of MTBE imports for the first seven months of the year, according to the PIERS data.

As MRC informed before, Indorama Ventures expects repairs to its 440,000 mt/year Louisiana cracker could take several months, according to the company's statement August 13 in its second-quarter 2020 earnings release. Lightning struck the cracker Aug. 2, prompting its shutdown. Indorama initially started up the revamped cracker in May 2019, but shut it down several months later for repairs and technical improvements after repeated flaring. The company restarted it in December, and it reached commercial production in February.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall PE production totalled 1,712,400 tonnes in the first seven months of 2020, up by 58% year on year. Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) accounted for the greatest increase in the output. At the same time, overall PP production in Russia increased in January-July 2020 by 24% year on year to 1,063,700 tonne. ZapSibNeftekhim accounted for the main increase in the output.

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, listed in Thailand, is one of the world's leading petrochemicals producers, a global manufacturing footprint with 59 sites in 20 countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. The company's portfolio is comprises necessities and high value-added (HVA) categories of polymers, fibers, and packaging. Indorama Ventures has approx. 24,000 employees worldwide and consolidated revenue of USD 11.4 billion in 2019.
MRC