ExxonMobil and USW fail to find mutual consent, leading to first lockout at Beaumont refinery in 118 years

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Disputes over seniority rights and pay for union workers at ExxonMobil Corp’s Beaumont, Texas, refinery led to Saturday’s first lockout at the 118-year-old plant, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing with reference to people familiar with the matter.

Workers represented by the United Steelworkers union (USW) walked picket lines for a third day outside the gates of the refinery and its lube oil plant. No talks took place and no proposals were swapped on Monday between two sides, the people said.

The oil company on Saturday barred about 650 USW Local 13-243 members from the complex, citing the union's refusal to call for a vote on its contract proposal. Exxon also feared the workers might strike, officials said.

The two sides mostly disagree on Exxon's call for revising seniority rules, the people said. Refinery workers spend their entire careers on one processing unit, gaining seniority preferences for scheduling, hours and job stability, they said.

Exxon has said its contract proposal would maintain "the company's ability to compete over a range of economic conditions, including periods of low industry margins."

The USW separately filed complaints with the US National Labor Relations Board against Exxon, accusing it of refusing to bargain, of repudiating or modifying their agreement, and of coercion.

As MRC reported previously, Sinopec Engineering (Group) and ExxonMobil (Huizhou) Chemical (EMHCC) have just entered into a BEPC (basic design, engineering, procurement and construction) contract for the proposed Huizhou Chemical Complex Project (Phase I). The main units of the project include a 1.6 million tonnes/year ethylene flexible feed steam cracker, downstream polymer and derivative units and utilities. The main product units include two performance polyethylene (PE) lines and two differentiated performance polypropylene (PP) lines.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world"s oil and about 2% of the world"s energy.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude oil output in the U.S. fell by more than 1 MMbpd in February, falling to the lowest levels since October 2017, according to a monthly government report, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

U.S. oil production dropped 1.197 MMbpd in February to 9.862 MMbpd, according to a monthly report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Production fell in top producing states North Dakota and Texas, as well as in the offshore Gulf of Mexico, the report said.

February's data is the first time oil production has dropped below 10 MMbpd since January 2018, according to the agency. The output drop came as a freeze in Texas shut in some production, but declines were also seen in other major oil-producing states.

Meanwhile, monthly gross natural gas production in the U.S. Lower 48 states fell by 7.8 billion cubic feet per day (Bcfd), the biggest monthly decline on record, to 94.8 Bcfd in February, according to data in EIA's 914 production report going back to 2005.

That gas output drop in February was due to severe weather that froze gas wells and pipes in Texas and other states in the central United States. It followed production increases during the prior three months. Gross gas output peaked at 107.1 Bcfd in December 2019.

In top gas producing states, output fell 15.4% in Texas to 23.5 Bcfd in February, the lowest in a month since February 2018, but held steady near a record high of 21.2 Bcfd in Pennsylvania.

As MRC informed earlier, COVID-19 outbreak has led to an unprecedented decline in demand affecting all sections of the Russian economy, which has impacted the demand for petrochemicals in the short-term. However, the pandemic triggered an increase in the demand for polymers in food packaging, and cleaning and hygiene products, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. With Russian petrochemical companies having the advantage of access to low-cost feedstock, and proximity to demand-rich Asian (primarily China) and European markets for the supply of petrochemical products, these companies appear to be well-positioned to derive full benefits from an improving market environment and global economy post-COVID-19, says GlobalData.

We remind that in December 2020, Sibur, Gazprom Neft, and Uzbekneftegaz agreed to cooperate on potential investments in Uzbekistan including a major expansion of Uzbekneftegaz’s existing Shurtan Gas Chemical Complex (SGCC) and the proposed construction of a new gas chemicals facility. The signed cooperation agreement for the projects includes “the creation of a gas chemical complex using methanol-to-olefins (MTO) technology, and the expansion of the production capacity of the Shurtan Gas Chemical Complex”.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - American Westlake Chemical said it will soon sell "green" caustic soda, which emits 30% less carbon dioxide during its production, the company said.

Westlake President and Chief Executive Officer Albert Chao said the company wants to obtain an environmental compliance certificate for the production of caustic soda using this technology in Europe. Green caustic soda has the same properties as regular sodium hydroxide. The difference lies in the use of renewable energy sources in the production process.

“We buy renewable energy in Europe that combines fossil fuels and coal,” said Albert Chao. “The use of renewable energy sources reduces CO2 content,” he said. The company said these efforts are part of its ongoing efforts to ensure sustainability, although the timing of the project's launch has not yet been clear.

Earlier it was reported that Westlake Chemical in the second half of March resumed production at its complex in Calvert City (Calvert City, Kentucky, USA), which was closed due to a winter storm earlier. A Westlake Chemical facility in Calvert City, Kentucky was hit by a winter storm in mid-February. The company's production capacity at this complex is 250,000 tonnes of chlorine, 280, 000 tonnes of caustic soda, 590,000 tonnes of VCM and 592,000 tonnes of PVC.

Earlier it was reported that the March production of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) amounted to 118,000 tonnes (100% of the main substance) against 98.4 thousand tons a month earlier. In the first three months of the year, the total production of caustic soda amounted to 329,400 tonnes, which is 0.7% less than the same indicator of the previous year.

The main caustic soda producers in the United States are Olin, Occidental Chemical, Westlake Chemical, Shintech, and Formosa Plastics.

Westlake Chemical Corporation is an American manufacturer and supplier of petroleum products and polymers headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company's products include ethylene, polyethylene, styrene, propylene, caustic, polyvinyl chloride and plastic products.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US refiner HollyFrontier Corp said on Tuesday it would purchase a 149,000-bpd refinery in Washington from Shell as part of the European company's strategy to reduce its global refinery footprint, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

HollyFrontier will buy the Puget Sound refinery near Anacortes for USD350 million in cash, plus hydrocarbon inventory to be valued at closing with an estimated current value of USD150 MM-USD180 MM, the companies said.

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory clearance, Shell said.

The sale includes Shell's on-site cogeneration facility and associated logistics infrastructure.

Shell has been planning to shrink its refining and chemicals portfolio from 14 to six sites with chemical business synergies including its Deer Park, Norco, Pernis, Pulau Bukom, Rheinland and Scotford sites.

In 2020, it began shutting its 211,146-bpd Convent, Louisiana refinery after failing to find a buyer for the plant.

Earlier that year, Shell sold its 156,400-bpd Martinez, California, refinery and logistics assets to PBF Energy for USD960 million plus the price for oil and refined products on hand.

HollyFrontier currently operates six North American refineries including El Dorado, Navajo, Tulsa, Woods Cross, Mississauga and Cheyenne, which it is converting into a renewable diesel facility.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. 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

1. Indian Reliance becomes largest domestic medical-grade liquid oxygen producer

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Amid a surging second wave of COVID-19 in the country, Reliance Industries (RIL) has increased output of medical oxygen to 1,000 mt/day, making it India's largest producer of medical-grade liquid oxygen from a single location, according to IndiaTV. Reliance ramped up production from near-zero to 1,000 tonnes per day and now produces over 11% of the country's oxygen demand. It has rallied its resources to meet the daily need of over 1 lakh people every day. "RIL ramps up production of medical-grade liquid oxygen from near zero to 1000 mt per day free of charge. (It is producing) 1000 mt of oxygen to meet the needs of over 1 lakh people every day on an average," the company said in a statement.




MRC