COVID-19 - News digest as of 07.10.2020

1. ExxonMobil to cut 1,600 jobs across Europe as oil rout weighs

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US oil giant ExxonMobil announced it plans to reduce its European workforce by up to 1,600 across the company"s affiliates by the end of 2021 as part of its global review, reported Reuters. Exxon said country-specific cuts will depend on the oil major"s local business footprint and market conditions, after the COVID-19 pandemic hammered demand for its products and crude prices tanked. Oil majors are axing jobs, lowering spending and curbing dividends in order to save cash amid a dismal outlook over energy prices which are expected to remain lackluster for years.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Trinseo, a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex binders and synthetic rubber, and its affiliate companies in Europe have announced a price increase for all polycarbonate (PC) grades in Europe, as per the company's press release.

Effective October 1, 2020, or as existing contract terms allow, the contract and spot prices for the products listed below increased as follows:

- CALIBRE PC resins - by EUR300 per metric ton.

As MRC informed earlier, Trinseo last raised its prices for all PC grades in Europe on 1 September 2020 by EUR200 per metric ton.

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, demand for PC in the Russian market has been recovering. Domestic PC prices increased in September. The rise in prices will continue in the domestic market this month.

Trinseo is a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex and rubber. Trinseo's technology is used by customers in industries such as home appliances, automotive, building & construction, carpet, consumer electronics, consumer goods, electrical & lighting, medical, packaging, paper & paperboard, rubber goods and tires. Formerly known as Styron, Trinseo completed its renaming process in 1Q 2015. Trinseo had approximately USD3.8 billion in net sales in 2019, with 17 manufacturing sites around the world, and approximately 2,700 employees.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Celanese (Dallas, Texas) is to increase its prices by up to 5% worldwide for all acetate tow product grades, saying the rise is to help secure the sustainability of the business segment, reported Chemweek with reference to the company's statement.

The price hike is effective for orders shipped on or after 1 January 2021 or as contracts otherwise allow.

“To aid in securing sustainability of the Celanese acetate tow business, it is paramount that we increase prices and offset declines,” says Marcel van Amerongen, vice president/acetate tow at Celanese. The company is committed to its acetate tow business “as we continue to invest in manufacturing assets, innovation, and service,” he says. This is being done to position Celanese as the strategic partner of choice for its customers, he adds.

In July the company’s acetate tow segment reported sales of USD127 million in the second quarter of this year, down 23% year on year (YOY) from USD164 million. Adjusted EBIT was USD64 million, down 10% YOY from USD71 million.

Last year it also said it had taken steps to strengthen its competitive position in the acetate tow market by lowering raw materials cost, reducing fixed costs, and aligning with anticipated industry demand trends, such as optimizing production across all acetate tow manufacturing locations, as well as investing in manufacturing operations.

Acetate tow is used mainly in the manufacturing of cigarette filters, as well as for insulation, packaging, and nonwovens applications.

As MRC informed earlier, Celanese Corporation has announced an increase in its September prices of vinyl acetate-based emulsions sold in the Americas. The price increases below are effective for orders shipped on or after 15 September 2020, or as contracts otherwise allow, and are incremental to any previously announced increases. Thus, prices of EVA emulsions rose, as follows:

- by USD0.03/lb - for the USA and Canada;
- by USD66/mt - for Mexico & South America.

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) -- Monthly chlorine production in Europe fell 7.5% year on year (YOY) in August to 768,719 metric tons, with daily output of 24,797 metric tons also down 3.5% compared to July’s equivalent figure of 25,686 metric tons, according to Chemweek with reference to the latest figures from Euro Chlor, the European chlor-alkali industry association.

The August daily figure is 7.5% lower than the 26,798 metric tons/day produced in the prior-year period. Production capacity utilization in August fell to 78.1% from 85.4% a year earlier, and was 2.8% lower than in July, it says. For the first six months of 2020, chlorine production totaled 4.54 million metric tons, down 4.5% YOY, with capacity utilization 5.2% lower YOY at 78.6% for the half-year.

Caustic soda stocks in Europe for the month of August were 8.4% higher than in July at 262,649 metric tons, and almost flat YOY at 262,649 metric tons, according to the association.

Euro Chlor’s figures are drawn from the EU-27 countries plus Norway, Switzerland, and the UK. The association represents 38 companies producing chlorine in 19 countries.

As MRC reported earlier, August production of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) in Russia were 99,200 tonnes (100% of the basic substance) versus 89,400 tonnes a month earlier, said MRC analysts. Russia's overall output of caustic soda totalled 837,600 tonnes in the first eight months of 2020, down by only 2% year on year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Covestro has launched a new production line for polycarbonate (PC) films in the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate in Thailand, according to German major's statement on Wednesday.

With the new capacity, the company aims to meet the rapidly growing demand in the Asia-Pacific region and to strengthen its own position as a market leader in this field. The films are mainly used in the automotive, telecommunications, medical technology and ID document sectors. The project is the first step in a global expansion of Covestro's plastic film production. The total investment of more than 100 million euros also includes an expansion of the associated infrastructure and logistics to shorten delivery times. More than 100 new jobs will be created worldwide.

“With this additional production line using state-of-the-art technology, we are investing in future growth in the Asia-Pacific markets, which are very important to us," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Covestro. "At the same time, we are responding to the rapidly growing demand for specialty films in this region and are supporting the expansion of promising technologies and industries.”

Dr. Thorsten Dreier, Global Head of Specialty Films, sees advantages in customer service: "The new production line is important to us because it enables faster market launches and at the same time expands our market access in Asia-Pacific. Our most important goal is to intensify our cooperation with customers in the region and to increase our efficiency. We intend to drive growth in the plastic film business with innovations and a stronger customer focus.”

Covestro has been operating a production facility for specialty films in Thailand since 2007. The range comprises polycarbonate films from the Makrofol® range and Bayfol® products made from polycarbonate blends. The new line is equipped with the latest technology and operates very efficiently.

As a further measure in the investment program to expand film production, Covestro has already converted a coextrusion film plant in Guangzhou, China, for the future. At the South Deerfield site in the USA, the efficiency and quality of film production was also improved. The next milestone will be the expansion of films production in Dormagen, where the company is currently building up new coextrusion capacities. This project is scheduled for completion by the end of 2020.

As MRC reported earlier, Covestro has closed the sale of its European polycarbonates (PC) sheets business to the Munich-based Serafin Group effective January 2, 2020. This includes key management and sales functions throughout Europe as well as production sites in Belgium and Italy.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, overall estimated consumption of PC granules in the Russian market reached 58,000 tonnes in January-July 2020, up by 22% year on year (47,500 tonnes).

Covestro (formerly Bayer MaterialScience) is an independent subgroup within Bayer. It was created as part of the restructuring of Bayer AG from the former business group Bayer Polymers, with certain of its activities being spun off to Lanxess AG. Covestro manufactures and develops materials such as coatings, adhesives and sealants, polycarbonates (CDs, DVDs), polyurethanes (automotive seating, insulation for refrigerating appliances) etc. With 2019 sales of EUR12.4 billion, Covestro has 30 production sites worldwide and employs approximately 17,200 people (calculated as full-time equivalents) at the end of 2019.
MRC