Pembina, Inter Pipeline mull petchem project prospects

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Canadian midstream energy companies Pembina Pipeline and Inter Pipeline (IPL) are mulling the prospects of dehydrogenation/polypropylene (PDH/PP) production in Alberta province, said the company.

On May 31, 2021, Pembina and Inter Pipeline entered into an agreement (the "Strategic Combination") to create one of the largest and best positioned energy infrastructure companies in Canada. Together the companies' diversified and integrated asset base can support and grow an extensive value chain for natural gas, natural gas liquids and crude oil, from wellhead to end user, that far exceeds anything either company can do separately.

Under the Strategic Combination, Inter Pipeline shareholders will receive 0.5 of a common share of Pembina for each common share of Inter Pipeline. This represents immediate value of USD20.06 per share based on the closing price of Pembina's common shares on June 25, 2021, as detailed in the Joint Circular.

Once completed, the highly complementary asset base is expected to lead to opportunities for significant expansion, customer benefits, material efficiencies and ultimately enhanced value for the combined companies' shareholders. With Pembina and Inter Pipeline shareholders expected to own 72% and 28%, respectively, of the combined company, the significant benefits of the Strategic Combination outlined below will accrue to the shareholders of both companies.

Brookfield’s offer is due to expire on 13 July, if it is not extended again. The IPL shareholder vote on the combination with Pembina is scheduled for 29 July.

As per MRC, the Canadian company Inter Pipeline Ltd will complete the construction of a polypropylene (PP) plant in Alberta province, Canada by the end of the year, and the polypropylene production itself will begin in early 2022. In addition, the construction of a propane dehydrogenation unit is due to be completed next month. The polypropylene production capacity will be 525,000 tonnes.

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.

Inter Pipeline Ltd is a multinational oil transportation and infrastructure limited company that ranks among North America's leading natural gas production and processing companies. It is one of the top 100 companies in Alberta in terms of earnings and assets.

Pembina Pipeline has been a gas supplier to the North American power system for over 60 years. Pembina owns and operates pipelines that transport a variety of hydrocarbon fluids, including conventional and synthetic crude oil and others, produced in Western Canada and North Dakota.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Roehm intends to begin construction of its 250,000 tonnes per year methyl methacrylate (MMA) plant on the US Gulf Coast, with completion scheduled for 2023, the manufacturer said.

Integrated into the OQ Chemicals manufacturing facility in Bay City, Texas, the plant will be the first to commercialize Roehm's low energy and wastewater LiMA MMA technology on an industrial scale.

Separated from its former parent company Evonik and acquired by private equity firm Advent International in early 2019, Roehm has already hired Wood to provide engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for the project.

OQ, formerly Oxea, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the project firm in February 2021, including agreements to integrate the plant into its existing site and provide raw materials, utilities and services at Roehm's site.

When the market first spoke about the project in question in 2019, sources said the Baytown plant could replace the company's manufacturing facility in Fortier, Louisiana.

Mitsubishi Chemical Corp (MCC) is also considering building an MMA facility from economically viable US ethylene instead of using acetone as a feedstock. Construction of a 350,000 tonnes per year plant in Geismar, Louisiana is under consideration. The final investment decision should be made in mid-2022.

The main sector consuming approximately 75% of MMA is the production of polymethyl methacrylate acrylic plastics (PMMA). Methyl methacrylate is also used to produce methyl methacrylate-butadiene-styrene copolymer (MBS), used as a modifier for polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

According to ICIS-MRC Price Report, global polyvinyl chloride (PVC) prices are no longer putting pressure on the Russian market. During the summer months, an acute shortage is the main factor behind the price rise in Russia. At the same time, the shortage of resin intensified in July due to scheduled shutdowns for maintenance at the two largest plants. An acute shortage led to another wave of price increases, and July PVC prices increased by Rb5,000-47,000/tonne, reaching new record levels.


MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- After slightly more than two years of construction, Gabriel-Chemie is announcing the completion of its state-of-the-art production facility in Russia, said the company.

The Austrian family business has been operating successfully with its own subsidiary in Russia for more than 14 years now. The high degree of technical expertise of the Gabriel-Chemie Group in terms of the range of colour masterbatch has always been highly appreciated by Russian customers.

Due to the steadily growing demand for masterbatch in the Russian market as well as in the neighbouring countries like Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Belarus, the third-generation company decided to expand its production capacity. Therefore, Gabriel-Chemie is investing around EUR6 million in the construction of a state-of-the-art production facility in Russia.

The expansion project was built on a 27,500 square meter property in the Vorsino industrial park, 90 kilometres of Moscow, and can thus expand its production capacity to 2,000 tons per year. Gradually and after further construction phases, it can be increased to up to 20,000 tons per year if necessary. In addition to production, there are also departments such as the technical support team and sales on site.

The construction of the Russian plant began in June 2018. The enterprise is located in the Vorsino industrial park on an area of ??27.5 thousand m2, 90 kilometers from Moscow.

Gabriel-Chemie has offices in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Spain and the UK, with a total of about 600 employees. The subsidiary company "Gabriel-Chemi" has been operating in Russia for over 14 years.

Industrial park "Vorsino" is the largest industrial site in the region - 1610 hectares. More than 40 leading Russian and international companies, including Samsung, L'Oreal, Nestle, AstraZeneca Industries, NLMK, have become residents of the park. The Freight Village Vorsino multimodal transport and logistics complex located in the Vorsino industrial park has become a part of the New Silk Road international logistics project, which unites the economic interests of Russia, China, South Korea and Eastern Europe.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Arkema has announced its ambition to build on its battery strategy by becoming a shareholder and technological partner of start-up Verkor, said the company.

Arkema becomes a shareholder and technological partner of Verkor, a French start-up specialized in the production of high performance batteries. Arkema, a key player thanks to its cutting-edge materials and innovative solutions that it provides in batteries, in particular for electric vehicles, is thus strengthening its development in batteries and clean mobility.

Arkema contributed several million euros to Verkor’s recent EUR100 million round of fundraising, which will enable the construction of the Verkor Innovation Center near Grenoble, then the launch of the first Gigafactory dedicated to battery production whose construction is expected to start in 2023. The Verkor Innovation Center, which should be operational in 2022, will provide a collaborative space to optimize smart industrial processes and create new generations of batteries.

As er MRC, Arkema is further increasing its fluoropolymer production capacities in Changshu, China, by 35% in 2022. The increase in capacity is scheduled to come on stream before the end of 2022, the company said in a statement. Financial and overall capacity details of the expansion project were not disclosed.

Trinseo completed the acquisition of Arkema's PMMA business for EUR1.14 billion. The EUR1.14 billion deal was announced in December and was expected to be completed by mid-2021. The company has seven PMMA plants, four in Europe and three in North America. Products are marketed under the Plexiglas brands in the Americas and Altuglas in the rest of the world.

Arkema's PMMA Manufacturing is an integrated business from methyl methacrylate (MMA) to PMMA, marketed under the Plexiglas brands in the Americas and Altuglas in the rest of the world.

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, global polyvinyl chloride (PVC) prices are no longer putting pressure on the Russian market. During the summer months, an acute shortage is the main factor behind the price rise in Russia. At the same time, the shortage of resin intensified in July due to scheduled shutdowns for maintenance at the two largest plants. An acute shortage led to another wave of price increases, and July PVC prices increased by Rb5,000-47,000/tonne, reaching new record levels.

Arkema is one of the world's leading chemical manufacturers headquartered in Colombes (near Paris, France). Founded in 2004 as a result of the restructuring of the French oil company Total, Arkema, with a turnover of EUR6.5 billion, has operations in 40 countries, 10 research centers around the world, and 85 factories in Europe, North America and Asia.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. announced that a consortium composed of its subsidiaries Tecnimont S.p.A. and Mumbaibased Tecnimont Private Limited has been awarded an EPCC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning) Lump Sum contract by Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), for the implementation of a new polypropylene plant and the related product logistics facilities, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The plant will be located in Barauni, in the State of Bihar, in North-Eastern India. The overall value of the contract is about USD170 million. The scope of work entails Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning activities up to the Performance Guarantees Test Run. The polypropylene plant will have a capacity of 200,000 tons per year and the time schedule is 30 months from the award date up to Mechanical Completion.

The new polypropylene plant will be part of IOCL’s Barauni Refinery capacity expansion project, which entails the installation of large grassroots units as well as revamps and upgrades to increase the capacity of current units. The Barauni Refinery Expansion project is part of IOCL’s plan to meet the growing domestic demand for added-value products needed to boost the Country’s manufacturing industry.

Pierroberto Folgiero, Maire Tecnimont Group Chief Executive Officer, commented: “This is our sixth strategic EPC contract with a market leader such as IOCL, along with our recent joint initiatives in the green energy arena: we are really honoured to be IOCL’s partner of choice to contribute to the sustainable development of India’s energy transformation industry. We continue to expand the Group’s industrial footprint thanks to our unparalleled technological know-how, a deep knowledge of the local market through our Indian entity Tecnimont Private Limited, as well as our strong commitment to ensure environmentally best performing products and processes".

As MRC informed earlier, Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. announced that its subsidiary Tecnimont SpA, through its Indian entity Tecnimont Private Limited, has been awarded an EPCC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning) contract by Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), for the implementation of new Acrylic Acid and Butyl Acrylate Units, for the production of relevant high added value products for the chemical market.

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.
MRC