Mitsubishi Chemical appoints Belgium-born Gilson as next CEO

MOSCOW (MRC) - Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp said on Friday it has appointed Belgium-born Jean-Marc Gilson as its next chief executive officer and president, effective April 2021, Reuters.

Gilson, currently CEO of French plant-based ingredient maker Roquette Group, will join a short list of foreign CEOs at listed Japanese companies.

As MRC informed earlier, as part of portfolio management reforms based on the Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Group’s medium-term management plan APTSIS 20, Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation has concluded agreements to transfer its polymer flocculant sales business to MT AquaPolymer, Inc. and Hymo Corporation.

As MRC informed earlier, Mitsubishi Chemical, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation, halted methyl methacrylate (MMA) production in Otake, Japan in mid-September for scheduled repairs. This production with a capacity of 110,000/tonne of MMA per year will be closed until mid-November.

The main application, consuming approximately 75% MMA, is in the production of polymethyl methacrylate acrylic plastics (PMMA). Methyl methacrylate is also used to produce methyl methacrylate-butadiene-styrene copolymer (MBS) used as a modifier for polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, September total production of unmixed PVC grew to 86,000 tonnes from 75,500 tonnes a month earlier, SayanskKhimPlast and RusVinyl increased their capacity utilisation. Overall output of polymer were 718,500 tonnes in the first nine months of 2020 versus 720,500 tonnes a year earlier, only two producers raised their production volumes, and RusVinyl cut its output.

Mitsubishi Chemical, a Japanese integrated chemical company, was established on October 1, 1990 through the merger of Mitsubishi Kasei and Mitsubishi Petrochemical Co. Due to its wide range of activities, it is one of the ten leading chemical companies in the world.
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Mitsui hires two crude, condensate traders in Singapore

Mitsui hires two crude, condensate traders in Singapore

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mitsui Energy Trading Singapore, a unit of Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co , has hired two traders to trade crude oil and condensate, reported Reuters with reference to two sources with knowledge of the matter.

Wei Xiyu, previously a crude oil trader and charterer at Petrowin Resources, will join the company in November, according to the sources and Wei’s LinkedIn profile.

Andy Ang, formerly a crude trader with Hengyi Industries International Pte responsible for sourcing feedstock for Hengyi’s Brunei refinery, will join Mitsui in January next year, the sources said.

Mitsui declined to comment on the company’s personnel changes, a spokesman said.

Ang declined to comment. Wei did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

As MRC informed previously, Mitsui Chemicals has operated its naphtha cracker normally following a maintenance turnaround. The company resumed operations at the cracker on July 19, 2020. The cracker was shut for maintenance on June 11, 2020. Located in Osaka, Japan, the cracker has an ethylene capacity of 500,000 mt/year and a propylene capacity of 280,000 mt/year.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,496,500 tonnes in the first eight months of 2020, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of all ethylene polymers increased, except for linear low desnity polyethylene (LLDPE). At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 767,2900 tonnes in the eight months of 2020 (calculated using the formula - production minus exports plus imports - and not counting producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply increased exclusively of PP random copolymer.

Mitsui Chemicals is a leading manufacturer and supplier of value added specialty chemicals, plastics and materials for the automotive, healthcare, packaging, agricultural, building, and semiconductor and electronics markets. Mitsui Chemicals is a Japanese Chemicals company, a part of the Mitsui conglomerate. The company has a turnover of around 15 billion USD and has business interests in Japan, Europe, China, Southeast Asia and the USA. The company mainly deals in performance materials, petro and basic chemicals and functional polymeric materials.
MRC

Lummus wins technology contract for new PP plant in Brunei

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Hengyi Industries Sdn. Bhd. has let a contract to Lummus Novolen Technology GmbH for a large-scale polypropylene unit at its 8-million tonnes/year integrated refining and petrochemical complex on Pulau Muara Besar island in Brunei, said Chemweek.

Lummus' scope includes the technology license for 1,000 kton per year (kta) polypropylene unit as well as basic design engineering, training, and technical services.

Hengyi's unit, at 1,000 kta, is Lummus' largest polypropylene license to date and will be one of the largest polypropylene units in the world, Lummus said.

The contract follows Hengyi’s contract to a division of E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. to license technology for an alkylation at the refining and petrochemical complex in August.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 767,2900 tonnes in the eight months of 2020 (calculated using the formula - production minus exports plus imports - and not counting producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply increased exclusively of PP random copolymer.
MRC

Blast causes fire at petrochemical plant in southwest Iran, fire contained

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Blast causes fire at petrochemical plant in southwest Iran, fire contained, said Reuters.

An explosion caused a blaze in an aromatics unit of a petrochemicals plant in southwestern Iran on Friday and was brought under control, state broadcaster IRIB reported.

Firefighters from the petrochemicals plant near the port of Bandar Imam Khomeini and regional fire teams responded to contain the blaze and there were no injuries, IRIB said on its social media feed.

As MRC informed earlier, Iran will launch 42 petrochemical projects by the end of next year.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,496,500 tonnes in the first eight months of 2020, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of all ethylene polymers increased, except for linear low desnity polyethylene (LLDPE). At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 767,2900 tonnes in the eight months of 2020 (calculated using the formula - production minus exports plus imports - and not counting producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply increased exclusively of PP random copolymer.


MRC

COVID-19 - News digest as of 23.10.2020

1. Sika profits slip on lower sales, confirms 2023 targets

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Construction chemicals company Sika (Baar, Switzerland) says its net profits for the first nine months of 2020 were lower by almost 1% on a year-on-year (YOY) basis, to 561.5 million Swiss francs (USD619.5 million) on sales down 3.4% YOY, to SFr5.81 billion, reported Chemweek. The company says that lower sales in the March-to-May period had a negative impact on profits, with nine-month EBIT slipping by approximately 1% YOY, to SFr797.4 million. However, EBITDA increased 3.1% YOY, to SFr1.07 billion. Third-quarter figures have not been disclosed. “The 2020 financial year to date has been dominated by the coronavirus pandemic. With our decentralized organization, we have been able to adapt swiftly to changed local conditions in all 100 countries and gain market share,” says Paul Schuler, CEO at Sika.



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