Largest US refinery returns to normal operation after Texas freeze

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The largest US refinery, Motiva Enterprises’ 607,000 barrel-per-day Port Arthur, Texas, plant, returned to normal operations, reported Reuters with reference to sources familiar with plant operations.

The refinery was shut on Feb. 15 when freezing temperatures, rarely seen on the US Gulf Coast, knocked out steam supply.

Motiva began restarting the refinery on Feb. 24.

Motiva did not reply to a request for comment.

As MRC informed earlier, Motiva Chemicals has also resumed operations at its mixed-feed cracker in Port Arthur, USA. The process of restart of this cracker with the capacity of 635,000 mt/year of ethylene and 340,000 mt/year of propylene began on 27 February, 2021, and was expected to finish late last week. The cracker wa shut along with the refinery at the same site on 14 February, 2021, because of the deep freeze.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,220,640 tonnes in 2020, up by 2% year on year. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market reached 1 240,000 tonnes in 2020 (calculated using the formula: production, minus exports, plus imports, excluding producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply of exclusively PP random copolymer increased.

Motiva Enterprises, LLC, is a fully owned affiliate of Saudi Refining Inc. and headquartered in Houston, Texas, United States with revenue of USD24 billion. Previously, it was a 50–50 joint venture between Shell Oil Company (the wholly owned American subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell) and Saudi Refining Inc. (controlled by Saudi Aramco).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PQ Group reported a fourth-quarter net loss of USD216.7 million, compared with a net profit of USD27.2 million in the year-ago quarter, mainly due to goodwill impairment and tax charges, said Chemweek.

Adjusted net income totaled USD82.5 million, or 61 cents/share, easily beating analysts’ consensus estimate of 11 cents/share, as reported by Refinitiv (New York, New York). Sales were down 0.7% year-on-year (YOY), to USD281.5 million.

Refining services segment sales declined 2.3% YOY, to USD103.2 million, while segment adjusted EBITDA was down 2.9%, to USD40.7 million. Lower refinery run rates drove the declines, although North American gasoline demand partly recovered in the second half of 2020 and was about 10% below 2019 levels by the end of the year, PQ says.

Catalysts segment sales fell 10.3% YOY, to USD20.9 million, while Zeolyst joint venture sales fell 38.9%, to USD28.9 million. Segment adjusted EBITDA was down 47.9% YOY, to USD14.8 million. Demand growth was positive for polyolefin catalysts, but this was offset by lower methyl methacrylate sales.

Performance chemicals segment sales were up 1.8% YOY, to USD158.2 million, while segment adjusted EBITDA increased 7.6%, to USD35.5 million. PQ announced a USD1.1-billion deal to sell its performance chemicals business, which produces sodium silicates and related products, to a partnership established by Koch Minerals and Trading and private equity firm Cerberus Capital, on 1 March.

The sale of performance chemicals positions PQ as a catalysts and refining services company. “As the economy begins to turn the corner, we are now positioning to be a high growth pure-play catalyst and services company that enables customer transitions to cleaner fuels and a circular economy for plastics,” says PQ Group chairman and CEO Belgacem Chariag.

As per MRC, PQ Group Holdings Inc., a leading, global provider of specialty catalysts, materials, chemicals and services, announced an agreement with INEOS Polyolefin Catalysts to commercialize certain polyethylene catalysts to customers of selected processes.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,220,640 tonnes in 2020, up by 2% year on year. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market reached 1 240,000 tonnes in 2020 (calculated using the formula: production, minus exports, plus imports, excluding producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply of exclusively PP random copolymer increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- MEGlobal has announced its Asian Contract Price (ACP) for monoethylene glycol (MEG) to be shipped in April 2021, according to the company's press release.

Thus, on 10 March, the company said ACP for MEG would be at USD930/MT CFR Asian main ports for arrival in April 2021, up by USD140/MT from the previous month.

The April 2021 ACP reflects the short term supply/demand situation in the Asian market.

As MRC reported earlier, MEGlobal announced its March ACP for MEG at USD790/MT CFR Asian main ports, up by USD50/tonne from February 2021.

MEG is one of the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, March formular prices of Russian producers were in the range of Rb90,000-105,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT.

MEGlobal is a fully integrated supplier of monoethylene glycol (MEG) and diethylene glycol (DEG), collectively known as ethylene glycol (EG).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Alfa Laval will soon start testing two new types of marine fuels; biofuels (made from waste) and methanol, in its Test & Training Centre in Denmark, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

To make these non-carbon fuels commercially viable can have a big impact on the marine industry in its strive towards zero carbon shipping. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) targets a 50 percent reduction of vessel-related greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. To achieve the long-term target of decarbonization, the industry must shift to new fuel types and technologies.

The Alfa Laval Test & Training Centre in Aalborg, Denmark is taking a key role in testing new types of fuels to adapt and develop equipment for the vessels’ engine rooms and support the industry’s journey towards decarbonization. The 2800 m2 testing space – already equipped for today’s oil and gas fuels – has been readied for testing biofuels and methanol. The tests will begin during the spring.

"A number of fuel pathways are on the table in the transition towards zero carbon shipping but the knowledge about their impact on marine equipment solutions is limited. We want to extend that knowledge through testing,” says Sameer Kalra, President of the Marine Division. “It is our ambition to develop viable technology solutions in cooperation with other marine players, so that our customers can achieve their climate goals irrespective of the selected fuel pathway."

Since ships have a lifetime of 20 years or more, zero-emission vessels must begin entering the global fleet by 2030 for a 50 percent reduction to be achieved by 2050. It is predicted that in 2023 the world’s first carbon neutral liner vessel will be launched and that methanol-fuelled vessel will be ready for delivery in two years’ time.

As MRC wrote before, in 2017, Alfa Laval won an order to supply compact heat exchangers to a refinery in China. The order has a value of approximately USD10.6 MM. It was booked late June in the Gasketed Plate Heat Exchangers unit of the Energy Division, with deliveries scheduled for 2018.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,220,640 tonnes in 2020, up by 2% year on year. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market reached 1 240,000 tonnes in 2020 (calculated using the formula: production, minus exports, plus imports, excluding producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply of exclusively PP random copolymer increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Solvay says it has completed a production facility for high-purity hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) at the company’s Bernburg, Germany, site, according to Chemweek.

Product will be supplied to the electronics industry in Europe for the manufacture of semiconductor chips.

"Developments in society and technology in recent years have reinforced our belief that demand for our product can only grow," says Maik Diederich, business manager/EMEA at Solvay. "What is now obvious to everyone - especially after the recent impact of COVID-19 on our lives - is that our world is heading towards extensive digitalization in all areas: homeschooling, home office, Internet of Things, 5G, cloud computing, smart home, industry 4.0, and electromobility. The European semiconductor industry plays a crucial role in these developments."

The new production line incorporates innovations and benefits from the additional know-how acquired with the several H2O2 purification units that Solvay completed in Asia and Europe in recent years, the company says. Product from the new line has been qualified with Solvay’s main customers, it says.

As MRC informed earlier, in August, 2020, through the acquisition of the Solvay polyamide (PA) business, BASF enhanced its R&D capabilities in Asia Pacific with new technologies, technical expertise, and upgraded material and part testing services. BASF is planning to integrate the R&D centers from Solvay into its R&D existing facilities in Shanghai, China, and Seoul, Korea. The enhanced capabilities will boost BASF’s position as a solution provider to develop advanced material solutions for key industries.

We remind that in mid-February, BASF said it was restarting one of its steam crackers at its Ludwigshafen complex in Germany after operations were halted last Wednesday due to a technical issue. The naphtha cracker produces ethylene and propylene, and is one of two crackers on the site. One has a production capacity of 420,000 metric tons/year, with the other's capacity at 240,000 metric tons/year, according to IHS Markit data.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,220,640 tonnes in 2020, up by 2% year on year. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market reached 1 240,000 tonnes in 2020 (calculated using the formula: production, minus exports, plus imports, excluding producers" inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply of exclusively PP random copolymer increased.

Solvay is a science company whose technologies bring benefits to many aspects of daily life. With more than 24,100 employees in 64 countries, Solvay bonds people, ideas and elements to reinvent progress. The Group seeks to create sustainable shared value for all, notably through its Solvay One Planet plan crafted around three pillars: protecting the climate, preserving resources and fostering better life. The Group’s innovative solutions contribute to safer, cleaner, and more sustainable products found in homes, food and consumer goods, planes, cars, batteries, smart devices, health care applications, water and air purification systems. Founded in 1863, Solvay today ranks among the world’s top three companies for the vast majority of its activities and delivered net sales of EUR10.2 billion in 2019. Solvay is listed on Euronext Brussels (SOLB) and Paris and in the United States, where its shares (SOLVY) are traded through a Level I ADR program.
MRC