Vinnolit to permanently shut its PVC plant in Schkopau

MOSCOW (MRC) -- European PVC producer Vinnolit has decided to close its 50,000 tons/year polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant in Schkopau, Germany due to the lack of profitability and the lack of long-term competitiveness of the location in the current environment, reported NCT with reference to the company's press release.

Vinnolit expects provisions worth around EUR29 million to be incurred in the third quarter in reference to the closure, the press release said.

Customers will continue to be supplied from the larger plants in Burghausen, Gendorf and Cologne, it added.

As MRC informed earlier, in October 2012, PVC manufacturer Vinnolit officially launched the expansion of its E-PVC plant Burghausen in the "Chemical Triangle" in South-East Bavaria. Thereby, the production capacity of the world"s largest plant for the production of paste PVC increased to 100,000 tons per year. This further strengthened the company's leading market position in specialty PVC.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall PVC production totalled 718,500 tonnes in January-September 2020, down by 0.3% year on year. At the same time, only two producers managed to increase their PVC output.

Vinnolit company is a key player in the Russian market of emulsion.
MRC

Arkema has successfully placed its inaugural Green Bond

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Arkema has successfully placed its first ever Green Bond fully dedicated to the financing of its new world-scale plant in Singapore to manufacture 100% bio-based Rilsan polyamide 11, according to the company's press release.

For a total amount of EUR300 million, this Green Bond has a maturity of 6 years and an annual coupon of 0.125%. The offering was more than 10 times oversubscribed.

By offering innovative solutions to its customers, notably in the field of lightweight materials, new energies and bio-based products, Arkema aims to generate responsible growth contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals defined by the United Nations.

With this unprecedented Green Bond, fully aligned with Arkema’s CSR policy, the Group is financing its new world-scale plant in Singapore, a major innovative and sustainable project at the heart of its organic growth strategy. This plant, scheduled to come on stream in 2022, is designed with state-of-the-art technology in order to maximize its efficiency and minimize its environmental impact, and will be dedicated to producing 100% bio-based amino 11 monomer and Rilsan® polyamide 11 from castor oil, a renewable and sustainable feedstock.

Rilsan polyamide 11 is recognized worldwide for its superior properties and performance in very demanding applications, significantly contributing to the development of sustainable solutions in fast growing sectors, such as mobility and in particular new energy vehicles, 3D printing as well as consumer goods.

As MRC reported earlier, Arkema said in June, 2020, that it had finalized the divestment of its functional polyolefins business to SK Global Chemical. The divestment was announced last year. Arkema says the sale forms part of its strategy to refocus the group’s activities on specialty materials.

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.

Arkema is a global manufacturer in specialty chemicals and advanced materials, with 3 business segments - High Performance Materials, Industrial Specialties, and Coating Solutions - and globally recognized brands. The Group reports annual sales of EUR8.8 billion. Buoyed by the collective energy of its 20,000 employees, Arkema operates in close to 55 countries.
MRC

OMV petchem margin declines, refining margins tank

MOSCOW (MRC) -- OMV (Vienna, Austria) says its petrochemical net margin declined 15% year on year (YOY) in the third quarter ended 30 September, while its refining margin indicator plunged 84% YOY, reported Chemweek.

In a trading update ahead of the company’s third-quarter results, due to be released on 29 October, OMV says its ethylene/propylene net margin fell to EUR375/metric ton (USD441/metric ton) from EUR441/metric ton a year earlier. The third-quarter petchem margin is also down from EUR393/metric ton in the second quarter of this year. The company calculates the petchem net margin based on West European contract prices, with naphtha as the feedstock.

OMV’s refining margin indicator collapsed to USD0.87/barrel (bbl) in the quarter from USD5.46/bbl in the prior-year period, and is also down substantially from the second-quarter figure of USD2.26/bbl. The company’s refinery capacity utilization rate averaged 90% in the third quarter, a decline of 6% from a year earlier but up from 79% in the second quarter of this year.

OMV recorded a “positive contribution” in the third quarter from refining margin hedges in a “mid-double digit million Euros magnitude,” it says.

As MRC informed earlier, Austrian energy group OMV sees hope for a recovery in oil prices in the second half of 2020 helped by increased fuel demand and output cuts by producers such as Saudi Arabia, according to its chief executive's statement in May 2020.

We remind that on 12 March, 2020, Austria’s OMV OMV, the international integrated gas and oil company headquartered in Vienna, and Mubadala Investment Company, the Abu Dhabi-based strategic investment company, signed an agreement that will give OMV a controlling stake in Borealis, one of Europe’s leading petrochemical companies. OMV, which currently owns a 36% stake in Borealis, will acquire an additional 39% from Mubadala, increasing its stake to 75%. Mubadala will retain a 25% interest. The closing of the transaction is expected by the end of 2020 and is subject to regulatory approvals.

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.
MRC

Piovan Group acquires Doteco

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The world leading operator in the development and production of process automation systems for the storage, transport and treatment of plastic and food polymers and powders, listed in the Star segment of the Italian Stock Exchange, Piovan Group, announced the signing of the agreement for the acquisition of 100% of the share capital of Doteco, said the company.

"The acquisition of Doteco strengthens and increases Piovan global technological leadership, consolidating the strategic growth process that has always distinguished the Piovan Group", declared Nicola Piovan, Executive Chairman of the Piovan Group.

"With this integration - continued Filippo Zuppichin, CEO of Piovan Group - we could combine Doteco film dosing technologies with Piovan feeding and storage automations, becoming a leader in the supply of complete plants in this field and acquiring new customers in a sector that, also in light of the increasingly necessary sanitary and hygiene improvements, is becoming strategic in food packaging".

As MRC informed earlier, European petrochemical industry faces short-term and longer-term challenges caused by or exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Speakers on Monday at the European Petrochemical Association’s (EPCA) 54th annual meeting, being held in a virtual format, said the crisis had been a learning experience for the industry.

According to MRC's DataScope report, Russian companies significantly raised their purchasing of PP in foreign markets in August partially because of a major increase in demand, imports were 21,200 tonnes versus 17,200 tonnes a month earlier. Thus, overall PP imports into Russia reached 143,200 tonnes in January-August 2020, compared to 120,100 tonnes a year earlier.

Founded in 1994, Doteco is based in Modena (Italy) and is one of the world leaders in technologies for the dosing of plastic films (for food and non-food packaging) and synthetic fibers. The company closed 2019 with a consolidated turnover of 19.7 million euros and a consolidated Ebitda of 3.4 million euros. Doteco operates internationally and counts, among its partners, the main extrusion producers on a global level.
MRC

KP Engineering performs FCC waste heat boiler replacement

MOSCOW (MRC) -- KP Engineering (KPE), a leader in designing, executing and delivering customized EPC solutions for the refining, specialty chemical and renewable industries, will perform a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) waste heat boiler (WHB) replacement at a refinery in Oklahoma, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The refinery’s existing carbon monoxide (CO) boiler was approaching the end of its useful life. Within the scope of the FCC steam reliability project, KPE will design and install a new WHB (FCC flue gas cooler), orifice chamber and flue gas slide valve with associated refractory lined ductwork, piping, structures and instrumentation. The existing CO boiler will be removed from service and replaced with a WHB.

The project offers a unique set of challenges, requiring sound engineering design of the WHB to minimize erosion due to catalyst carryover and sand blast scoring in the duct to minimize tube failures.

Purva Mehta, senior process engineer, KPE, said, “The WHB is a critical piece of equipment for normal, continuous operation of an FCC unit. It will require in-depth engineering design, including hydraulic sizing, thermal ratings and computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modeling for optimizing the process requirements, while maintaining the mechanical integrity and safety of the system. Successful engineering of key components on the flue gas system will improve the system’s reliability, ensure long uninterrupted runs between shutdowns, maximize profits for the refinery, while maintaining safety as the primary objective.”

Doug Schnittker, vice president of engineering, KPE, said, “This project underscores KPE’s engineering expertise in the technologies behind FCC units, used for waste heat recovery in the refining industry. KPE has already performed several front-end engineering (FEL) 1 & 2 level studies, and completing the detail design on an FCC reliability project such as this further extends KPE’s engineering, procurement and construction capability. Lessons learned from prior FCC flue gas cooler projects will be applied to this project to deliver a highly robust design in this technically challenging project.”

The FEL 3 phase of the project will be completed in November 2020.

We remind that, as MRC reported earlier, Motiva Enterprises has restarted production on the gasoline-producing fluidic catalytic cracker (FCC) at its 607,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) Port Arthur, Texas, refinery. The company also completed a catalyst change on the 105,000-bpd hydrocracker in mid-June 2020.

We also remind that Motiva is evaluating opportunities to build a new polyethylene (PE) line within its proposed steam cracker and aromatics project in Jefferson County, Texas. The new PE capacity will be located at the company’s Port Arthur Refinery Complex in Jefferson County, Texas. The planned capacity of the unit was not specified, while the value of the project is reportedly estimated at around USD3.1 billion.

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.
MRC