W.R. Grace raises July prices of its FCC catalysts on global refining industry recovery from pandemic

MOSCOW (MRC) -- W. R. Grace & Co. stated that it will increase prices for its Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) catalysts by 3 to 9% in 2021 based on product type and specific customer commitments, according to Stockhouse.

This increase will be effective July 1, 2021 or as contracts allow.

As the global refining industry recovers from the pandemic and margins for refined products have strengthened, Grace is seeing significant interest from refiners to rapidly return to using premium catalyst technologies to increase FCC unit profitability. Premium catalysts help relieve operating constraints, facilitate increased operating rates, and maximize product yields, thereby increasing profitability for refineries.

“Our FCC technologies, coupled with industry-leading technical support, have consistently outperformed alternatives, often returning value of more than a dollar per barrel to the refiner,” said Tom Petti, Grace’s President, Refining Technologies.

As Grace continues to deliver increasing value to its customers with premium technology, it also faces rising costs for certain key raw materials and energy, including aluminum-derived chemicals and natural gas, as well as freight and logistics cost increases. Grace remains focused on driving productivity through increased efficiencies; however, these efforts cannot completely offset current inflationary trends. The increase in catalyst prices will partially offset this inflationary trend while sustaining on-going investment in new technology, enhanced technical services, and leading manufacturing capabilities.

As MRC reported previously, earlier this month, Albemarle Corporation, a leader in the global specialty chemicals industry, announced that it had completed the sale of its Fine Chemistry Services business to W. R. Grace & Co. for approximately USD570 million, consisting of USD300 million in cash, and the issuance to Albemarle of preferred equity of a W. R. Grace & Co. subsidiary having an aggregate stated value of USD270 million. The sale includes Albemarle's operations in Tyrone, Pennsylvania and South Haven, Michigan.

We remind that in 2018, W. R. Grace & Co. completed the USD416 million acquisition of the Polyolefin Catalysts business of Albemarle Corporation. The acquired business primarily develops and manufactures proprietary and custom-manufactured single-site catalysts as well as metallocenes and activators used in the production of plastic resins. The transaction also includes a comprehensive series of highly optimized Ziegler-Natta catalysts for polyethylene (PE) production.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.

A leader in polyolefin catalysts and licensing, W. R. Grace has the world’s broadest portfolio of PP and PE catalyst technologies used to produce thermoplastic resins for a variety of applications. A leading innovator and strategic partner to its customers, Grace supplies catalyst solutions for all polyolefin processes, as well as PP process technology and process controls. Grace employs approximately 3,700 people in over 30 countries.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Calgary-based Nova Chemicals Corp. has named Victor Alvarado as its new senior vice president, operations and engineering, effective July 1, said Canplastics.

In a June 10 news release, Nova said that Alvarado – who has over 30 years’ global manufacturing experience – will be responsible for the “safe, reliable and competitive operations of the company’s manufacturing facilities and its support functions.” He will also play a “pivotal role in the safe and successful completion of the company’s significant growth investments in Sarnia, Ont., while providing strategic leadership to ensure world-class competitiveness of Nova’s manufacturing assets."

Alvarado, who will be based out of Calgary, will also become a member of Nova’s senior executive committee. "Victor is a very experienced and well-respected global petrochemicals executive with a proven track record of leading manufacturing organizations to higher levels of reliability and turnaround performance in the U.S., Europe, and Asia," Nova president and CEO Luis Sierra said. “His experience and insight will be a tremendous asset to Nova as we continue to position the company as a leading low-carbon player in the olefins and polymers industry."

A graduate of the University of Illinois with a degree in Chemical Engineering, Alvarado has previously worked at BP and its predecessor company, Amoco, in various engineering, operations and commercial roles, culminating as vice president of global aromatics, before being named as operations director, global aromatics at Ineos.

As per MRC, NOVA plans to increase HDPE prices by 7 cents per pound (USD154 per tonne) and 5 cents per pound (USD110 per tonne) for all other grades of polyethylene from June 1, 2021, according to the company's letter to customers. According to the letter, this is in addition to the company's earlier announced price hike of 6 cents per pound (USD132 per tonne) in May.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- CCEP in Australia has been awarded Gold in the Beverage category, as well as receiving a Special Award in the Sustainability category at The WorldStar Global Packaging Awards, said the company.

The awards are an international packaging design competition that continues to evolve and shape the packaging design community by highlighting the global trends and challenges within the packaging industry. Each year, WorldStar receives more than 300 entries from more than 34 countries around the world.

In 2019, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners Australia was the first beverage manufacturer and Coca-Cola bottler in the world to have all single serve packs produced from 100% rPET. This includes plastic packaging for water, soft drinks, aseptic dairy and warm-fill sensitive beverages, and equates to 7 out of 10 bottles sold in Australia.

By converting all plastic single serve packs to 100% rPET packaging, CCEP in Australia reduced the amount of virgin fossil-based plastic used in our PET bottles by an estimated 10,000 tonnes per year. Marlene Cronje Vermeulen, Future Works Manager for Coca-Cola Europacific Partners in Australia said: “We are so happy that we not only won a WorldStar Packaging general award, but that we have also been awarded the Gold Sustainable Packaging Special Award for 2021. The Gold Sustainable Packaging Special Award truly is the crowning achievement for our team and will form the platform from which our sustainable initiatives will develop”.

CCEP is committed to playing our part in creating a circular economy for the PET packaging we use through increasing collection once our drinks have been consumed, supporting the development of recycling capacity to ensure they are recycled, and by using the recycled plastic, alongside plastic from renewable sources, to make new bottles.

In Western Europe, our markets are also accelerating the reduction of virgin fossil-based plastic, working towards using 100% recycled or renewable content in our PET bottles by 2030, to help create a low carbon circular economy for PET bottles.

As per MRC, Coca-Cola HBC launched two new production lines at a plant in Novosibirsk, which will produce juices and iced teas. The volume of investments in the project amounted to about 500 million rubles.

As per ICIS-MRC Price Report, demand for PET chips in the spot domestic market was not high this week.
Contract prices from Russian producers were in the range of Rb100,000-110,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT in June. Export prices for Chinese bottle grade PET were heard in the range of $900-940/tonne FOB China.

Coca-Cola HBC operated Russian factories for the production of drinks under the Coca-Cola Corporation brands since 2001. The company includes 11 factories located, in particular, in Moscow, the Moscow region, St. Petersburg, Samara, Yekaterinburg and Vladivostok.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil has rejected proposals by the United Steelworkers union to end a seven-week lockout at the company's Beaumont, Texas, refinery, reported Reuters.

Exxon locked out about 650 union workers on May 1 after a prior labor contract expired. It cited a risk of a strike by the USW-represented employees. The plant, which makes gasoline and Mobil 1 motor oil, has continued to operate using managers and replacement staff.

A union official confirmed the two sides met for about two hours on Thursday, but declined to discuss any proposals. No date for another negotiation session has been set.

In a statement posted online, Exxon said the company and union remain far apart based on Thursday's meeting.

"The union provided five partial proposals which included items that significantly increase cost and do not meet the objectives we informed the union of in January," Exxon said.

The company also said its lead negotiator was prepared to meet with the union's lead negotiator next week.

The USW proposals were offers on specific issues the union was willing to make changes to if Exxon reciprocated on its issues, sources familiar with the matter said. The company has insisted the union call a vote on its last proposal, which was made in April. Exxon said its proposal is needed to ensure flexibility to compete in low-margin environments. The USW has refused to call a vote, saying Exxon's proposal would eliminate seniority and create two separate contracts for the refinery and lubricant plant.

As MRC informed previously, Gov. John Bel Edwards and ExxonMobil Baton Rouge Refinery Manager David Oldreive have announced the company’s final investment decision for more than USD240 million in capital improvements at the ExxonMobil Baton Rouge Refinery.

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 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.

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) -- Operations returned to normal at LyondellBasell Industries 263,776 barrel-per-day (bpd) Houston refinery following an upset in a waste gas system, said sources familiar with plant operations, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The system takes waste gases from production units and uses them to power operations at the refinery, the sources said.

As per MRC, LyondellBasell (LBI), the world's largest producer of polyolefins, has announced force majeure for the supply of linear polyethylene (LLDPE) from its La Porte, TX plant due to an equipment malfunction at the Q1 reactor. According to the letter, the company is currently in the process of assessing the impact of this event on the production process of this enterprise with a capacity of 272,000 tonnes of LLDPE per year.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.

LyondellBasell is one of the world's largest polypropylene producers, a leading supplier of polyethylene and catalysts, and a developer of polyethylene and polypropylene technologies. The company manufactures products at 58 production sites in 18 countries around the world. In addition, LyondellBasell is the developer of the Spheripol process, which is the basis for polypropylene production at Omsk Poliom and Nizhnekamskneftekhim.
MRC