Fire extinguished at Iranian petrochemicals plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A fire broke out at a storage tank in a petrochemicals plant on Iran's Gulf island of Kharg, but the blaze was extinguished and there were no casualties, reported Reuters with reference to the state news agency IRNA.

"The fire was completely put out after four hours by the island's firemen," Nasser Ebrahimi, Kharg's district governor, told IRNA.

The blaze did not cause any casualties and its cause is being investigated," Ebrahimi said.

Mohammad Ali Kazemipour, spokesman for the Kharg Petrochemical Company, earlier said the incident did not affect production, the semi-official news agency ILNA reported.

As MRC informed before, Mobin Petrochemical Company reportedly shut down its refinery complex in Asaluyeh, Iran on 26 May 2021 after a flare occurred at the natural gas pipeline.

We remind that Mehr Petrochemical Company (MHPC), a major petrochemical producer in Iran, resumed operations at its high density polyethylene (HDPE) plant in Assaluyeh, Iran in late March, 2021. This HDPE line with an annual capacity of 300,000 tons/year was shut unexpectedly in the third week of March after a technical glitch.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, June estimated HDPE consumption in Russia decreased to 125,900 tonnes from 128,300 tonnes a month earlier. Domestic producers raised their exports, while some producers' output decreased. Overall HDPE shipments to the Russian market totalled 675,670 tonnes in the first six months of 2021, down by 6% year on year. Production increased by 12%, whereas imports fell by 33%.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Eni and BASF have signed a strategic agreement on a joint R&D initiative to reduce the CO2 footprint of the transportation sector, as per BASF's press release.

The cooperation aims to develop a new technology to produce advanced bio-propanol from glycerin, a side stream of the production of industrial biodiesel (FAME, fatty acid methyl ester), that Eni will purchase from European producers. The technology under development involves the conversion of glycerin to propanol via an innovative, catalytic hydrotreatment process.

The new approach consists of a process of applying a high-pressure hydrogenation reaction over a BASF catalyst, ensuring that the bio-propanol is produced with a high yield and purity while minimizing by-products. The bio-propanol offers the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 65 to 75% compared to fossil fuels.

Propanol obtained via this innovative method can be easily added as a drop-in bio-fuel component to gasoline. Thanks to its better physicochemical properties compared to bioethanol and its very high-octane number, bio-propanol is a valuable component for the preparation of premium gasoline.

As MRC reported earlier, in June, 2021, Trinseo, a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex binders, and synthetic rubber, and BASF, the world's petrochemical major, announced the intention to expand their businesses with the production of styrene monomer (SM) based on circular feedstock. Trinseo has procured first supplies of SM based on circular feedstock from BASF for use in its Solution-Styrene Butadiene Rubber (S-SBR) and polystyrene (PS) products. Trinseo supplies S-SBR to major tyre manufacturers while its PS products are used in applications such as food packaging and appliances. The first few customers have already processed the material, said the company.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated consumption of PS and styrene plastics totalled 236,110 tonnes in the first five months of 2021, up by 27% year on year (172,360 tonnes). May estimated consumption was 48,880 tonnes, up by 66% year on year.

BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries.

Eni, abbreviation of Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi, in full Eni SpA, Italian energy company operating primarily in petroleum, natural gas, and petrochemicals. Established in 1953, it is one of Europe's largest oil companies in terms of sales.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Luxembourg-based Ravago, a leader in polymer recycling and distribution, has acquired an equity interest in Alterra Energy, headquartered in Akron, Ohio, according to Recycling Today.

The companies say they plan to combine forces to provide integrated recycling solutions that support the transition toward decarbonization, decreasing virgin fossil resource dependency and increasing circularity for petrochemical and chemical partners. Additionally, Ravago will be a strategic partner in supplying preprocessed plastic scrap to Alterra Energy's Akron plant.

A spokesperson for the companies says they decline to provide figures on the stake Ravago is taking in Alterra or on the volume of scrap that will be supplied.

Alterra Energy says its Akron plant, which was commissioned last year, can liquefy up to 60 tons per day of mixed plastic scrap for use as a feedstock for the manufacturing of plastics and chemicals.

This is the second strategic partnership this year for Alterra Energy. In January, the company announced that Neste, a provider of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel that also helps deliver drop-in renewable and circular chemical solutions, acquired a minority stake in the company.

Alterra Energy, which has developed and commercialized a continuous, advanced recycling technology that uses pyrolysis to transform end-of-life plastics into petrochemical feedstock, will process the Ravago-supplied plastic scrap into ISCC PLUS certified material. Alterra will then market this material for further refining and conversion into circular building blocks for the plastics and chemicals producing industry.

As MRC reported earlier, The Ravago Group has carried out routine maintenance at its expandable polystyrene (EPS) plant in Schkopau, Germany. Thus, the turnaround at this plant with a capacity of 70,000/tonnes of EPS per year began on April 20, 2021, and was completed on April 28. Thus, the maintenance works at this plant lasted for one week.

Ravago represents more than 6.6 million metric tons of annual polymer sales, serving more than 50,000 active customers through more than 325 locations across more than 55 countries worldwide. Ravago's production capability consists of more than 45 manufacturing facilities, 19 of which are recycling and compounding plants in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa with a combined annual capacity of more than 775,000 metric tons; 13 of which are production plants in Europe that offer finished product solutions for the building sector; and seven of which are chemicals plants and 6 are application laboratories for its chemicals business.
MRC

1. Saudi Aramco Q2 profit surges almost 4 times

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil company, said Aug. 8 that its hydrocarbons production fell 8% to 11.7 million boe/d in the second quarter from the year-earlier period due to OPEC+ cuts, but its profit surged almost four times thanks to higher oil prices and a recovery in worldwide demand, reported S&P Global. Net income soared to USD25.5 billion in the second quarter from USD6.6 billion a year earlier, the company said in an earnings statement. Aramco's total hydrocarbon production, which averaged 12.7 million boe/d in the second quarter of 2020, fell mainly due to OPEC+ cuts this year, CEO Amin Nasser said in a media call with journalists.


MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude oil futures ticked higher during mid-morning trade in Asia Aug. 10 on bargain hunting following an overnight plunge, but rising COVID-19 case numbers continued to sap market sentiment, reported S&P Global.

At 11:18 am Singapore time (0318 GMT), the ICE October Brent futures contract was up 18 cents/b (0.26%) from the previous close at USD69.22/b, while the NYMEX September light sweet crude contract was 36 cents/b (0.54%) higher at USD66.84/b.

The markers had settled 2.35% and 2.63% lower Aug. 10 as the rapid spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus raised fears of further demand destruction.

An uptrend in COVID-19 infection numbers in oil-consuming behemoths China and the US were of particular concern to the market. China is battling its biggest outbreak of the coronavirus since it emerged in Wuhan in 2019.

Analysts at St. George Economics said in an Aug. 10 note that the pandemic resurgence has exacerbated concerns over China's economy that had arisen earlier due to global supply bottlenecks and higher raw material costs, and cautioned that lower domestic economic activity could weigh on oil and energy demand.

Crude oil prices were also pressured overnight by a stronger dollar buoyed by a rise in Treasury yields after the release of a better-than-expected US non-farm payrolls report and hawkish comments from some members of the Federal Reserve. At 11:06 am, the ICE Dollar Index was trading at 92.98, up 0.194% from the Aug. 6 close.

We remind that as MRC informed earlier, Saudi Arabia, the world's top crude oil exporter, will supply full contractual volumes of August-loading crude to at least five Asian customers. However, Saudi Aramco has turned down two of the buyers' requests for extra barrels.

We also remind that Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), said in June he expects the company's deal with Saudi Aramco to materialise this year. Meanwhile, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, chairman of Saudi Aramco and the Governor of the Public Investment Fund, joined the board of Reliance as an independent director.

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 1,176,860 tonnes in the first half of 2021, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 727,160 tonnes in the first six months of 2021, up by 31% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased. Supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.
MRC