OMV shuns further deals as CEO sees bright future in chemicals

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Austria's OMV will not make acquisitions before 2022 while it cements its transition into a chemicals group which increasingly uses less crude oil as feedstock, its chief executive said, diverging from other European oil and gas firms focusing on renewables, reported euters.

OMV in October completed a USD4.7 billion acquisition of a majority stake in Borealis, which makes speciality plastics and materials. Meanwhile, BP in June sold its petrochemicals business for USD5 billion.

While other oil and gas companies like BP or Royal Dutch Shell are turning themselves into broad energy providers and traders buying into renewable power development projects, OMV has shunned such investments.

"Do I understand the power market better than Eon or RWE? Definitely not. When I look into my transformation into chemicals, I can tell you, I have lots of competitive advantages," Chief Executive Rainer Seele told Reuters on Friday.

"Borealis is a technology leader with the Borstar technology (to make polyethylene and polypropylene)... They have the in-house technology, they are not licensing it out."

OMV also aims to lead the market in turning plastic waste into oil and increasing the bio-feedstock content for its refineries.

It sold its German petrol station network this month for around USD590 million as its bigger European rivals doubled down on their retail networks.

"Anti-cyclical decisions are sometimes very brave and successful," Seele said, asking why should he sell products other refiners make given OMV's German refinery focuses on petrochemicals and jet fuel production.

While BP and Royal Dutch Shell had to cut their dividends this year, OMV has kept payouts steady and Seele said he expected operating cash flow, which rose 6% in the first three quarters of 2020 from a year earlier, to rise in the fourth quarter.

As MRC informed before, the 380,000-metric tons/year steam cracker at Porvoo, Finland, operated by Borealis, resumed normal operations in early December after the company declared force majeure following a technical failure on 11 November. The cracker was shut down to allow necessary repair works, according to Borealis. The company began restart operations on 23 November, 2020. The force majeure was also lifted after the cracker reached full capacity utilisation.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,760,950 tonnes in the first ten months of 2020, up by 3% year on year. Only high density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 978,870 tonnes in January-October 2020 (calculated using the formula: production minus exports plus imports minus producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply of exclusively of PP random copolymer increased.

Borealis is a leading provider of innovative solutions in the fields of polyolefins, base chemicals and fertilizers. With headquarters in Vienna, Austria, Borealis currently employs around 6,500 and operates in over 120 countries.

OMV (Osterreichische Mineralolverwaltung AG) is an Austrian oil company, the largest in Central Europe. Headquarters - in Vienna.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A consortium, led by the Dutch Research Institution TNO, has received an exceptional grant of EUR21 MM (USD25.5 MM) from the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 Framework Program, called the INITIATE Project, to investigate and develop the potential of industrial symbiosis to convert residual steel gas emissions into resources for urea production, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Stamicarbon B.V., MET Development S.p.A and NextChem S.p.A. – all subsidiaries of Maire Tecnimont Group – participate in this consortium of steel, chemical and energy transition companies, research institutions, universities and industrial partners active in both the steel and fertilizer industry.

The INITIATE project will demonstrate a novel symbiotic and circular process that transforms residual steel gases into resources for urea production. The core of this process is a modular carbon-capture utilization-and-storage (CCUS) technology, integrating the flexible conditioning of time dependent and carbon-rich steel gases with the synthesis of ammonia.

Throughout the project, these innovative technologies and their optimal integrated operations will be proven in real industrial settings at the facilities of Swerim in Lulea, Sweden, advancing to technology readiness level. The successful demonstration will enable to move forward with the construction of a First-of-a-kind plant at the scale of 150 t(Urea)/d, within a timeframe of 5 years.

The future implementation of the INITIATE process holds enormous potential to reduce primary energy, raw material and Green-House Gases (GHG) emission intensities, compared to current practice in both the steel and fertilizer industry. This potential will consequently translate in significant social, economic and environmental opportunities for society as a whole, as the combined steel and urea sectors are directly responsible for 30% of all industrial carbon emissions1 and >4% of the global annual GDP. Therefore, by coupling these two energy intensive, but also valuable sectors, the INITIATE Project will be a key milestone towards the realization of a carbon neutral and circular process industry.

Stamicarbon, the innovation and licensing company of Maire Tecnimont Group and world market leader in urea technology, is actively participating in the INITIATE project, as this fits perfectly in its innovation program to develop more sustainable technologies for fertilizer production. The project represents one of its key environmental targets to substantially reduce the carbon footprint of the urea fertilizer production by means of a symbiosis between the steel and fertilizer industry for re-using captured carbon dioxide and carbon-rich off-gasses from the steel industry.

Stamicarbon will be responsible for the commercial implementation plan. The main objective of the demonstration plant is to justify the viability and proof the capability to produce ammonia, while in the next phase the commercial implementation plan is focused to establish an industrial scale INITIATE plant reference for the production of urea. Stamicarbon will lead the implementation plan with the support of its sister companies MET Development for the (commercial) development of the project and NextChem for the design and engineering thereof, together with the other consortium partners.

The objectives of this work package are to develop the plans for short-term deployment for the first-of- a kind modular INITIATE plant and to enable long-term roll out by maximizing the replication potential. The short-term plan will be in the form of a site specific pre-FEED for the production of urea grade suitable for AdBlue® (Diesel Exhaust Fluid) and/or liquid fertilizers at a capacity of 150 t(Urea)/d. The long-term plan will take an open view and identify how to scale up the design and also create an inventory of successful symbiotic relationships enabled by STEPWISE between the steel and fertilizer industry.

We remind that Russia's output of chemical products rose in October 2020 by 7.2% year on year. At the same time, production of basic chemicals grew in the first ten months of 2020 by 6.3% year on year, according to Rosstat's data. According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, polymers in primary form accounted for the greatest increase in the January-October output. October production of polymers in primary form grew to 857,000 tonnes from 852,000 tonnes in September. Overall output of polymers in primary form totalled 8,340,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 17% year on year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- BASF has announced that its new Elastollan Soft Touch Feel thermoplastic polyurethane series creates new design possibilities with its exceptional touch, feel, and performance, reported GV.

With Meiban’s laser texturing Innovation Meiban Skin (IMS) technology, Elastollan is making headway in the consumer electronics accessories market.

Meiban’s IMS technology is said to allow a variety of textures and graphics to be embossed on new materials. With the enhanced design versatility made possible by the technology, the Elastollan Soft Touch Feel TPU series is said to be an ideal solution for consumer electronics accessories and products that style and functionality are crucial, such as watch straps, speakers, laptop covers. Fulfilling the ever-demanding requirements for functionality and comfort in consumer electronics, the Elastollan Soft Touch Feel TPU series possesses other mechanical properties suitable for wearables. These include very good adhesion, non-transparent, and anti-slip capabilities on glass.

Additionally, the new series enables ease of processing without any blooming issues compared to traditional TPU. The material also stands apart with a new palette of colour shades, providing different vibrant colour options for brand owners.

“Meiban is consistently innovating in polymer technology and design,” said Helen Ho, R&D Head of Meiban. “Through our partnership with BASF, we are excited to empower consumer electronic brands with high-quality designs, enabled by our IMS technology. This technology provides consumers with a better, stronger, and more versatile design option for their mobile and electronics accessories. It also enhances the look and feel of the products when applying on MedTech applications.”

According to BASF, the collaboration complements its position in providing TPU materials to consumer electronics brands while delivering an ideal lifestyle solution. The comprehensive range of the Elastollan Soft Touch Feel TPU series for consumer electronics accessories will be featured in a toolkit collaboratively developed with Meiban. Brands will have an extensive selection of refined yet versatile accessory options to experiment and feel the materials. The offering includes watch straps crafted with Elastollan TPU material and intricate designs embossed by Meiban’s IMS technology.

“The cooperation with Meiban provides a great opportunity to showcase the design flexibility of Elastollan in wearable devices,” said Minli Zhao, Vice President, Consumer Industry, BASF Performance Materials. “The newly added soft-touch series reinforces our positioning as a total solution provider for consumer electronics brands.”

As MRC wrote previously, BASF has just completed the first phase of its methylene di-para-phenylene diisocyanate (MDI) expansion project in Geismar, Louisiana, starting up a new synthesis unit and shutting down an older unit. The immediate increase in MDI production capacity will be “limited,” the company notes. The second phase of the project, scheduled for completion in the second half of 2021, will expand several upstream units, allowing the Geismar complex to increase its overall MDI output by about one-third, says BASF. A potential final phase, which BASF aims to complete in the mid-2020s, would bring MDI capacity at Geismar to roughly 600,000 metric tons/year, the company says. MDI is a polyurethane feedstock.

We remind that Russia's output of chemical products rose in October 2020 by 7.2% year on year. At the same time, production of basic chemicals grew in the first ten months of 2020 by 6.3% year on year, according to Rosstat's data. According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, polymers in primary form accounted for the greatest increase in the January-October output. October production of polymers in primary form grew to 857,000 tonnes from 852,000 tonnes in September. Overall output of polymers in primary form totalled 8,340,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 17% year on year.

BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Hydrogen plane startup ZeroAvia said on Wednesday it had secured USD37.7 million in new cash via a funding round led by Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Ventures and from the British government to support its bid to develop zero-emission aircraft, as per Reuters.

Backers for California-based startup, which has completed 10 test flights with a six-seater propeller plane powered by hydrogen, now include Amazon and energy giant Royal Dutch Shell, which both joined the funding round. Hydrogen, which produces water when it burns, is seen as a potential alternative for the aviation industry, a major user of fossil fuels. Hydrogen can be made from fossil fuels or from water using electrolysis, although this is an expensive process.

"This is a capital-intensive industry, so having investors to help you through the process is very important," ZeroAvia Chief Executive Val Miftakhov told Reuters, saying a plane was "a power-hungry machine, especially on take off." ZeroAvia, which has been conducting test flights in Britain, aims for commercial flights of up to 500 miles using 10- to 20-seat aircraft by 2023 and commercial jets able to haul up to 200 passengers 3,000 miles by 2030.

Miftakhov said his startup expected to have planes for cargo flights in operation before commercial passenger planes. The funding round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures raised USD21.4 million, while British state support amounted to USD16.3 million.

ZeroAvia has now raised a total of USD49.7 million since its launch and will use the latest cash to scale up its technology for larger aircraft. It has teamed up with British Airways to explore how the carrier could shift to hydrogen-powered planes in future.

Amazon's backing comes from its USD2 billion Climate Pledge Fund. The online retailer, which aims to run a carbon neutral business by 2040, has ordered electric vans from Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz and startup Rivian. Shell's funds came from its Shell Ventures a unit which has been boosting investments in solar and other renewables. Hong Kong-based venture capital firm Horizons Ventures was also among the investors.

We remind that Russia's output of chemical products rose in October 2020 by 7.2% year on year. At the same time, production of basic chemicals grew in the first ten months of 2020 by 6.3% year on year, according to Rosstat's data. According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, polymers in primary form accounted for the greatest increase in the January-October output. October production of polymers in primary form grew to 857,000 tonnes from 852,000 tonnes in September. Overall output of polymers in primary form totalled 8,340,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 17% year on year.
MRC

1. Midwest refiners to ship more fuel to East Coast, pressuring plants

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US Midwest refiners are gearing up to send more gasoline and diesel to East Coast buyers, hoping to fill a void created by refinery closures and cutbacks, but likely to add pressure to regional fuel producers, reported Reuters. Midwest refiners, such as BP and Husky Energy, that process inexpensive Canadian crude are betting on East Coast markets to boost sales and margins. But the move could make it more difficult for PBF Energy to restore production of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel at its Paulsboro, N.J., plant.

MRC