Kazanorgsintez launched the Ethylene-100 unit after an unscheduled compressor shutdown

MOSCOW (MRC) - Kazanorgsintez, one of the largest producers of polyethylene and polyethylene pipes in Russia, has returned the Ethylene-100 unit to normal operation after an unscheduled compressor shutdown in the afternoon on 25 August, Interfax reports.

"Late in the evening of August 25, the normal operation of the installation was restored. The incident will not affect the supply of products to customers. All obligations of Kazanorgsintez PJSC will fulfill on time and in full," a company representative told the publication.

Earlier it was reported that in the afternoon of August 25, an unscheduled shutdown of one of the compressors of the Ethylene-100 unit took place. The automated industrial safety systems of the enterprise worked normally. The ethylene plant is the first in the technological chain of Kazanorgsintez, it consists of four stages for the production of ethylene.

It was also reported earlier that on 21 August, there was a failure in the unified power supply system of the Republic of Tatarstan. This led to an unscheduled shutdown of production at Kazanorgsintez. The automated industrial safety systems of the enterprise worked in the normal mode, and the product immediately went to the torch at the moment of production stoppage. a large-scale power surge occurred due to forest fires in the Volga region. The regular work of most of Kazanorgsintez's production facilities was restored on 21 August.

Earlier it was reported that the subsidiaries of the Italian engineering company Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. received a contract for the construction of a new Kazanorgsintez plant (KOS, part of TAIF) for the production of high-pressure polyethylene (LDPE) / ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) at the existing KOS complex in Kazan (Tatarstan, Russia). The capacity of the new enterprise will be 100,000 tonnes of LDPE / EVA per year.

According to MRC's ScanPlast, in June the estimated consumption of LDPE in Russia fell to 45,190 tonnes against 47,780 tonnes a month earlier. Russian manufacturers have increased export sales of polyethylene (PE). In the first six months of the year, the estimated consumption of LDPE in Russia amounted to 280,850 tonnes, which is 2% less than a year earlier. PE output decreased, while export volumes increased.

Kazanorgsintez PJSC is one of the largest enterprises in the Russian Federation (TAIF Group of Companies). It produces 40% of all Russian polyethylene and is its largest exporter. Currently, PE, polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene pipes, phenol, acetone, bisphenol A are produced. KOS is the only Russian PC manufacturer. There are 170 types of products in total. The annual production volume is 1.6 million tonnes. The enterprise is the largest Russian manufacturer of low-pressure polyethylene (HDPE) pipes. The annual production capacity of HDPE is 540,000 tonnes, and LDPE - 225,000 tonnes.
MRC

JSC Kaustik increased the share of exports of its products last year

MOSCOW (MRC) - The export share of Volgograd-based Kaustik , the fourth largest producer of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in Russia, accounted for 26.5% of the company's total revenue last year, the company said.

It is reported that this indicator is increasing from year to year due to the expansion of the range of products manufactured at the enterprise, diversification of the sales network, the creation of a system of technical support for consumers and a quality management system. At the end of last year, the company exported 18 types of products to 52 countries of the world.

In particular, the volume of supplies outside Russia of granulated caustic soda last year increased by 3.7%, household chemicals by 41.9%, magnesium hydroxide - by 83.7%. At the end of the first half of 2021, bischofite supplies to foreign markets increased by 35.5%, magnesium hydroxide by 12.8% and granulated caustic soda by 12.4%.

According to the MRC's ScanPlast, Kaustik (Volgograd) last month produced 7,100 tonnes of SPVC, while in June this figure was 7,200 tonnes. During the period under review, the total volume of PVC production at the enterprise reached 50,300 tonnes against 43,700 tonnes in the same period in 2020.

According to the ICIS-MRC Price Report, in the middle of the week, negotiations started regarding the September price level for Russian PVC. At the same time, only one manufacturer began negotiations; other players postponed the price agreement for the next week. But in general, manufacturers are quite optimistic about September and do not plan to seriously adjust their prices, despite a serious increase in imports and a decline in demand for finished PVC products. In addition, prices have resumed on foreign markets in a number of regions.

The holding includes: JSC Kaustik - the main enterprise of the group, produces basic products - caustic soda, chlorinated paraffins, synthetic hydrochloric acid, commercial chlorine, polyvinyl chloride, sodium hypochlorite, etc .; JSC "NikoMag" - production of anti-icing materials, magnesium chloride, hydroxide and magnesium oxide; LLC "Zirax" - production of high-purity reagents for various industries and JSC "Poligran" - production of plastic compounds and rigid PVC-compositions.
MRC

Dangote oil refinery will buy at least 300,000 barrels of Nigeria's output

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Dangote's oil refinery will buy at least 300,000 barrels per day of Nigeria's crude production, the state oil firm said, after the government granted approval for a 20% equity purchase in the project promoted by Africa's richest man, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

"We structured our equity participation on the basis that the refinery must buy at least 300,000 barrels of crude oil per day of our production," said the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp's managing director, Mele Kyari. "This guarantees our market at a period when every country is struggling to find market for their crude oil," he told lawmakers in Abuja.

Nigeria produces under 2 million barrels per day and has been seeking to attract a shrinking pool of capital for fossil fuel development. President Muhammadu Buhari signed into law this month an oil overhaul bill that has been in the works for nearly two decades. The government this month gave NNPC the green light to acquire the stake in the oil refinery for USD2.76 billion.

The NNPC has said its move to work with private companies was in line with safeguarding the country's energy security and would not undercut plans to fix its own refineries. Nigeria, Africa's biggest crude oil exporter, imports virtually all its fuel due to moribund state refineries, which has prompted NNPC's interest in Dangote's oil refinery.

The 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery, owned by billionaire tycoon Aliko Dangote, is under construction in Lagos, the biggest city in the most fuel-consuming nation in the region. The refinery is scheduled for commissioning by January.

The NNPC signed term sheets with Dangote Group in June for the stake in its USD19 billion oil refinery and is in talks with banks to borrow to buy the stake.

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

Phillips 66 to sell the smaller of its two Louisiana refineries

Phillips 66 to sell the smaller of its two Louisiana refineries

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The fourth-largest US refiner Phillips 66 said it has put the smaller of its two Louisiana refineries up for sale amid continued losses and an uncertain future for motor fuels, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The company is holding talks with a potential buyer on the sale of its 255,600 barrel-per-day (bpd) Alliance refinery in Belle Chasse, Louisiana, according to two people familiar with the matter. The identity of the potential buyer could not immediately be learned.

US refiners have closed or sold oil processing plants as the COVID-19 pandemic slashed demand for gasoline and jet fuel, generating losses for the industry.

Top automakers are accelerating their shift to electric vehicles, signaling tougher times ahead.

"The US refining business in the future is going to be smaller, not bigger," Chief Executive Officer Greg Garland said earlier this month while laying out Phillips 66's plans to expand its supply of lower-carbon fuels and components for electric car batteries.

Garland predicted gasoline demand in the United States and Europe was at or near its peak. The Houston-based refiner posted a second-quarter profit on strong chemical demand, but work-from-home policies and sagging fuel margins left its refining business in the red.

Phillips 66's pursuit of a buyer for the Louisiana plant continues an industry rationalization of excess capacity, said Garfield Miller, CEO of investment bank Aegis Energy Advisors.

Falling demand amid the pandemic has forced the closure of five US refineries and cut oil processing capacity by 4.5% to 18.13 million barrels per day (bpd), according to the US Energy Information Administration.

The 50-year-old Alliance refinery is located 20 miles (32 km) south of New Orleans along the Mississippi River, where ships deliver crude oil retrieve fuel.

As MRC informed previously, Worley has been recently awarded a front-end engineering services contract by Phillips 66 to convert its San Francisco refinery in Rodeo, California, USA into a renewable fuels-manufacturing facility. Under the contract, Worley will provide front-end engineering design services for the facility, which will be executed by Worley’s North America West team with support from Worley’s Global Integrated Delivery team.

Besides, in October 2020, Phillips 66 said it plans to reconfigure its refinery in Rodeo, California to produce renewable fuels from used cooking oil, fats, greases and soybean oils.

We remind that US-based Phillips 66 remains open to developing another ethane cracker for its Chevron Phillips Chemical (CP Chem) joint venture, the refiner's CEO said in March 2018.

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.

Phillips 66 is a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company. With a portfolio of Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties businesses, the company processes, transports, stores and markets fuels and products globally. Phillips 66 Partners, the company’s master limited partnership, is integral to the portfolio. Headquartered in Houston, the company has 14,300 employees committed to safety and operating excellence. Phillips 66 had USD55 billion of assets as of Dec. 31, 2020.
MRC

US crude inventories continue falling as demand hits highest since March 2020

US crude inventories continue falling as demand hits highest since March 2020

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude inventories last week dropped for a third straight week while fuel demand rose to its highest since March 2020, reported Reuters with reference to the Energy Information Administration's statement.

Crude inventories fell by 3 million barrels in the week to Aug. 20, slightly higher than analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 2.7 million-barrel drop. At 432.6 million barrels, crude stocks were at their lowest since January 2020.

After 10 consecutive weekly drawdowns, stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub for U.S. crude futures rose by 70,000 barrels last week, the EIA said.

"A tick higher in refinery runs and a tick lower in imports has yielded a third consecutive draw to crude inventories - dropping them to their lowest since late January 2020," said Matt Smith, director of commodity research at ClipperData. "The inventory draw came despite a tick lower in refining activity on the US Gulf Coast."

Refinery crude runs rose by 66,000 barrels per day and refinery utilization rates rose by 0.2 percentage point to 92.4% of total capacity.

Net US crude imports rose last week by 426,000 bpd, the EIA said.

US total product supplied, a proxy for fuel demand, rose last week to 21.8 million bpd, the highest since March 2020, the data showed.

Both crude and gasoline prices gained after the report. US. crude rose 8 cents, or 0.2%, to USD67.62 a barrel by 11:13 a.m. ET (1513 GMT), while Brent was up 48 cents, or 0.6% at USD71.53 a barrel. US gasoline futures were up 2.5%.

As MRC informed previously, crude oil stockpiles fell modestly in early August, while gasoline inventories dipped to their lowest level since November, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Crude inventories fell by 447,000 barrels in the week to Aug. 6 to 438.8 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.3 million-barrel drop. Overall crude inventories have been on the decline for several weeks due to increased demand.

We remind that US crude oil production is expected to fall by 160,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2021 to 11.12 million bpd, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a monthly report, a smaller decline than its previous forecast for a drop of 210,000 bpd.
MRC