Ukrainian PE imports down by 13% in Jan-Feb 2021

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Overall polyethylene (PE) imports into the Ukrainian market totalled 34,900 tonnes in the first two months of 2021, down by 13% year on year. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports, according to MRC DataScope report.

Last month's PE imports to Ukraine were 17,700 tonnes versus 17,200 tonnes in January, local companies increased their purchases of high density polyethylene (HDPE). Thus, overall PE imports reached 34,900 tonnes in January-February 2021, compared to 39,900 tonnes a year earlier. HDPE imports decreased significantly, whereas linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) imports increased.

The structure of PE imports by grades looked the following way over the stated period.

Last month's HDPE imports were 5,800 tonnes, compared to 5,100 tonnes in January, Ukrainian companies increased their purchases of extrusion blow moulding (EBM) PE. Overall HDPE imports totalled 10,900 tonnes in the first two months of 2021 versus 15,900 tonnes a year earlier.

February imports of low density polyethylene (LDPE) into Ukraine were 5,500 tonnes versus 6,100 tonnes a month earlier. Overall LDPE imports totalled 11,600 tonnes over the stated period, compared to 12,500 tonnes a year earlier.

Last month's LLDPE imports were 5,800 tonnes, compared to 4,700 tonnes in January, shipments of film grade LLDPE from the USA decreased. Overall LLDPE imports reached 10,500 tonnes in the first two months of 2021, compared to 9,500 tonnes a year earlier.

Imports of other PE grades, including ethylene-vinyl-acetate (EVA), totalled 1,900 tonnes over the stated period, compared to 2,000 tonnes a year earlier.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China's daily refinery throughput rose 15% in the first two months of the year, from a low base a year earlier, as fuel demand remains solid and refineries rush to hike production ahead of maintenance season, reported Reuters.

Refinery processing reached 114.24 million tonnes in the January-February period, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Monday, equivalent to about 14.13 million barrels per day (bpd). The agency didn't disclose numbers for January and February separately.

The daily rate is about the same level as in December 2020, up from 12.07 mln bpd in Jan-Feb 2020 and also above the 12.68 million bpd recorded in the first two months of 2019.

Chinese refineries slashed output in the first quarter last year as the rapid spread of the coronavirus decimated fuel demand.

Chinese refined fuel consumption has staged a strong rebound from coronavirus-induced weakness as the economy recovered and government stimulus kicked in.

The latest data also showed China's crude oil production in the first two months rose 0.4% from a year earlier to 32.08 million tonnes, or 3.97 million bpd. That compared with an average of 3.89 million bpd for 2020.

Meantime, China's natural gas output expanded 13.5% in January-February from a year earlier to 34.8 billion cubic metres, extending a jump that saw near 10% growth for full-year 2020.

As MRC informed before, in early December 2020, Sinopec’s board approved plans to build a 1.2-million metric tons per annum ethylene plant and downstream units in the Nangang area of the port of Tianjin, China. Sinopec estimates the cost of the project at 28.8 billion renminbi (USD4.4 billion).

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Royal DSM, a global science-based company in Nutrition, Health and Sustainable Living, today announces that it has reached an agreement to sell its Advanced Solar business in backsheet products to Worthen Industries, Inc., a company specializing in polymer technologies for multiple end-markets, said the company.

In September 2020 DSM announced it had reached an agreement to sell the coatings business of DSM Advanced Solar to Covestro AG as part of a broader agreement to sell the Resins & Functional Materials business including DSM Niaga® and DSM Additive Manufacturing. For the remaining solar business, an agreement has now been reached with Worthen Industries that will create a global business which benefits from complementary innovation and enhanced production capability. Completion of the transaction is expected mid-2021. Financial details of the transaction will not be disclosed.

Pascal de Sain, Vice President DSM Advanced Solar, said: “I am proud that this deal, which recognizes the value of DSM’s innovation and the team’s expertise, will create an innovation leader in backsheet products for solar modules. Worthen Industries shares our vision on sustainability and the importance of increasing the positive impact of solar energy through more effective, durable technology that also produces lower waste and emissions. Merging DSM’s next-generation product and technology design capabilities with Worthen’s unrivalled strengths in process design and optimization will drive considerable benefits for customers and the world."

David Worthen, CEO at Worthen Industries, said: “The acquisition of DSM’s business in backsheets and conductive backsheets, along with its excellent team, is a strong next step in Worthen’s strategy to serve the global PV industry with sustainable, high-performance solutions that are VOC-free, zero-waste, and 100% recyclable - enabling a greener, better-performing industry worldwide. This is a great combination of shared values and complementary expertise which will accelerate our ability to support the world’s transition to clean energy."

As MRC informed earlier, in September, 2020, DSM formed a 50/50 joint venture (JV) with VDL Groep (Eindhoven, Netherlands), called Dutch PPE Solutions, to produce medical facemasks and establish the first permanent production of critical facemask components in the Netherlands. The companies are investing several million euros to purchase manufacturing equipment and build manufacturing facilities to produce meltblown polypropylene (PP), the critical material layer in medical facemasks that filters viruses, and make medical masks.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Royal Dutch Shell Plc is preparing to restart the crude distillation units (CDUs) at its 318,000 bpd joint-venture Deer Park, Texas refinery, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing with reference to sources familiar with plant operations.

The restart of the 270,000-bpd DU-2 CDU and the 70,000-bpd DU-1 CDU between Sunday night and Monday, assuming no setbacks, will begin the restart of all other units at the refinery, the sources said.

A Shell spokesman did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Shell began preparing to restart the crude units on Saturday. The CDUs were shut by a pump seal failure on Feb. 14. Other units at the refinery were shut on Feb. 15 because of the effects of severe cold weather.

The Deer Park refinery is last to begin restarting following the severe cold that cascaded across the US Gulf Coast in mid-February.

The Deer Park refinery is a 50-50 joint-venture between Shell and Mexico’s national oil company, Pemex. Shell is the managing partner.

As MRC informed before, Royal Dutch Shell Plc pushed back the restart of its 318,000 bpd joint-venture Deer Park, Texas, refinery to March 13. Shell had planned to restart the 270,000-bpd DU-2 crude distillation unit (CDU), the largest at the refinery, by early last week. Shell is continuing repairs at the refinery to enable it to restart from the Feb. 15 shutdown because of cold weather. Repairs could last until April.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

Royal Dutch Shell plc is an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the biggest company in the world in terms of revenue and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors". Shell is vertically integrated and is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Employees from LyondellBasell and San Jacinto College, along with a small group of elected officials and community partners, gathered on Friday, March 5, for a socially-distant ribbon-cutting ceremony officially opening the new LyondellBasell Glass Distillation Lab at San Jacinto College, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The lab, located in the LyondellBasell Center for Petrochemical, Energy, & Technology (CPET) at San Jacinto College, is a scaled model distillation plant which shows the chemical and physical processes that take place within a chemical plant. It is designed to be a hands-on training tool for the next generation of operators, teaching process technology and instrumentation. San Jacinto College students will have a unique perspective on how a distillation unit operates, since the glass structure of the unit allows them to peek inside and see how it works.

"The LyondellBasell Glass Distillation Lab is an innovative educational tool which gives our future workforce hands-on experience before they step foot on a manufacturing site," said Michael VanDerSnick, Senior Vice President of Americas Manufacturing for LyondellBasell. “Our custom-built Glass Distillation Lab is the most realistic training experience a student can have without actually being at a plant, and it’s the only one of its kind. LyondellBasell employees are personally invested in the workforce of the future, which is evident in the 14,000 hours they dedicated to constructing the lab."

The LyondellBasell Glass Distillation Lab is one of 35 labs at CPET, which opened for classes in Fall 2019. The Center is the largest training facility in the Gulf Coast Region built for and designed by industry. It also includes an 8,000-square-foot glycol distillation unit, 20 interactive classrooms, and conference, training, and assembly spaces designed to accommodate academic, community, and industrial functions. The LyondellBasell Center for Petrochemical, Energy, & Technology was funded in part through a $425 million bond referendum in 2015 and through numerous monetary and in-kind donations from industry partners.

“When we began the process of planning this building several years ago, it was important to have our industry partners at the table from the beginning,” said San Jacinto College Chancellor Dr. Brenda Hellyer. “We are fortunate to have LyondellBasell as one of our many partners, and today we are here to celebrate them and the opening of the Glass Distillation Lab. This lab is going to benefit the next generation of process technology workers by providing them with a real-life, hands-on experience, just as they will use when they enter the workforce. We are thankful and grateful to LyondellBasell for its commitment to our students and our training programs at San Jacinto College."

As MRC wrote previously, LyondellBasell (Houston, Texas), one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world, reports fourth-quarter net income of USD855 million, up 40% year-over-year (YOY) from USD612 million on higher polyolefin volumes and margins. A USD147 million non-cash, lower-of-cost-or-market (LCM) inventory valuation benefit increased net income by USD119 million, or USD0.36 per share. Sales totaled USD7.937 billion, down 3.0% YOY from USD8.179 billion. Adjusted earnings per share of USD2.19 increased 15% YOY from USD1.91 and beat the consensus of USD1.31 as compiled by Zacks Investment Research.

Styrene is the main feedstock for the production of polystyrene (PS).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated consumption of PS and styrene plastics totalled 520,630 tonnes in 2020, which corresponded to the same figure a year earlier. December estimated consumption of PS and styrene plastics grew by 5% year on year to 47,490 tonnes.

LyondellBasell is one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world. Driven by its employees around the globe, LyondellBasell produces materials and products that are key to advancing solutions to modern challenges, like enhancing food safety through lightweight and flexible packaging, protecting the purity of water supplies through stronger and more versatile pipes, improving the safety, comfort and fuel efficiency of many of the cars and trucks on the road, and ensuring the safe and effective functionality in electronics and appliances. LyondellBasell sells products into more than 100 countries and is the world"s largest producer of polymer compounds and the largest licensor of polyolefin technologies. In 2020, LyondellBasell was named to Fortune Magazine"s list of the "World"s Most Admired Companies" for the third consecutive year.
MRC