Ufaorgsintez partially shut its LDPE production, PP production to be shut soon

Ufaorgsintez partially shut its LDPE production, PP production to be shut soon

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Ufaorgsintez (petrochemical asset of Bashneft, which is part of Rosneft) has begun a gradual shutdown of some of its low density polyethylene (LDPE) production capacities for a scheduled maintenance. The plant's polypropylene (PP) production will be taken off-stream soon, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

The plant's clients said Ufaorgsintez began a gradual and planned turnaround at its first LDPE line (108 grade polyethylene - PE) on 1 September. The outage of the first PE line will be short and will take about two weeks. It should be noted that the plant's PP production will be shut down for a scheduled maintenance on 3 September.

It is also worth noting that Kazanorgsintez will begin a sequential shutdown at its PE production capacities for scheduled repairs on 10 September. The plant's LDPE and high density polyethylene (HDPE) production capacities will be taken off-stream.

Ufaorgsintez's overall LDPE and PP production capacities are 90,000 and 120,000 tonnes per year, respectively.

PJSC Ufaorgsintez produces phenol, acetone, synthetic ethylene-propylene rubber, high and low pressure polyethylene, polypropylene, more than 30 types of petrochemical products and over 25 consumer products.
MRC

Canada pushes to stimulate two major new carbon capture projects by 2030

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Canada is pushing to provide incentives for at least two new massive carbon capture projects by 2030, a federal government document showed, with nearly a dozen oil and gas companies already pursuing rights to store carbon dioxide in Alberta's vast underground caverns, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The hubs to collect carbon from clusters of emitters would advance Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's goal of cutting emissions by 40-45% from 2005 levels by 2030. The global oil industry is betting heavily that carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) can become a multi-billion-dollar global business with government and private investment.

To encourage private investment in CCUS projects, Canada is counting on its carbon price, which is set to rise to CD170 (USD134.8) per tonne of carbon by 2030 from CD40, a planned tax credit, and its Clean Fuel Regulation (CFR), which requires lower emissions intensity in fuel.

The cost of building the projects, and their locations, are not yet known. The two carbon storage hubs would be planned or under construction by 2030, with Canada sequestering at least 15 million tonnes of carbon annually by that year in total, according to the Natural Resources Department's draft CCUS strategy, obtained by Reuters after it was shared privately in July with industry stakeholders.

"The big takeaway is the federal government is pretty serious about CCUS," a Calgary oil industry source said. Canada's four existing projects, representing 15% of global facilities, currently capture 4 million tonnes per year, according to the Canadian government.

Canadians vote for a new federal government on Sept. 20. On Sunday, Trudeau said he would cut oil and gas sector emissions based on five-year targets starting in 2025. His Liberal party is in a tight race with the Conservatives, a party that also supports carbon capture and has promised to introduce a tax credit to encourage investment.

The Natural Resources Department is doubtful whether its incentives will be enough to stimulate widespread adoption. "It is not yet clear whether this elevated pricing signal, combined with other federal policies yet to be implemented, such as the CFR and the investment tax credit announced, will be sufficient to drive widespread CCUS adoption," the federal strategy said.

The government's doubts highlight challenges such as high costs and complex technology required to capture carbon.Natural Resources Minister Seamus O'Regan could not be immediately reached. In September, Alberta is expected to call for expressions of interest to store carbon underground, with formal project selection next year, according to two sources familiar with the process.

Alberta already has received informal interest from at least 10 groups, including publicly announced projects involving Royal Dutch Shell, TC Energy and a consortium of the five biggest Canadian oil producers, said David Knight Legg, board advisor to economic development agency Invest Alberta.

Many global oil and gas producers see CCUS as a way to prolong their capacity to produce fossil fuels, by locking away their emissions. A massive expansion of carbon sequestration facilities is vital if the world is to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), from around 40 million tonnes a year currently to 7.6 billion tonnes.

Julia Levin, program manager at Environmental Defence, called CCUS a "dangerous distraction" from transitioning to cleaner sources of energy. "It's been five decades of huge amounts of resources, research, public and private investment and we have a global capacity to capture 0.1% of emissions from the fossil fuel sector," she said.

IEA research suggests storing carbon deep underground is safe and stable. However, the pipelines required to transport carbon to injection sites need to be monitored to mitigate the risk of ruptures. One industry source said dozens of oil and gas companies are considering projects, awaiting details of Alberta's competitive process.

Jennifer Henshaw, spokeswoman for Alberta's energy minister, said the government is still developing the competitive process. Analysts say hubs are the most economic way to store carbon. Alberta is a rare place where suitable geology, a cluster of high emitters and government regulation are all in place, said Neeraj Nandurdikar, global head of power and renewables consulting at Wood Mackenzie.

Hubs make sense because the more carbon they sequester, the lower costs will be, said Tim McKay, President of Canadian Natural Resources, Canada's biggest oil producer. Some smaller oil producers warn that hubs could stymie their plans to inject carbon close to their operations, many in remote regions.

Whitecap Resources, an oil producer that already stores carbon, will propose to Alberta that it manage underground space for small producers that want to inject their carbon locally, CEO Grant Fagerheim told Reuters. Whitecap could sequester 6 million tonnes of carbon per year under the proposal, triple what it currently buries, he said.

Michael Belenkie, head of Advantage Energy's Entropy unit, a company making modular carbon capture technology, said Alberta needs to prevent speculators from securing underground space, which would kill off CCUS projects.

As per MRC, Canada has joined the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's global network of plastics waste reduction project. About forty players, including businesses, politicians, government and non-governmental organizations, have joined the pact to work to create a circular economy for the Canadian plastics industry.

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

US EPA approves emergency fuel waivers for Louisiana and Mississippi due to Hurricane Ida

US EPA approves emergency fuel waivers for Louisiana and Mississippi due to Hurricane Ida

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued emergency fuel waivers for Louisiana and Mississippi, effective immediately, due to Hurricane Ida, reported Reuters.

"EPA issued a waiver of the Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements in Louisiana and Mississippi to help improve the fuel supply circumstances caused by Hurricane Ida. The waiver begins Aug. 30, 2021, and ends Sept. 16, 2021", the agency said on Monday.

Ida, one of the most powerful hurricanes ever to hit the US Gulf Coast, knocked out power to over 1 million homes in Louisiana on Monday and prompted rescue operations in flooded communities around New Orleans.

As MRC informed earlier, Shell found evidence of building damage at its 230,611-bpd Norco, Louisiana refinery. Sources familiar with plant operations said damage had been found at the Norco refinery but did not know the extent of the damage or time needed to make the repairs. Shell is awaiting the restoration of external electrical power to the Norco refining and chemical plant 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 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

Extensive damage from Hurricane Ida hurts oil industry recovery effort

Extensive damage from Hurricane Ida hurts oil industry recovery effort

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Energy companies are having a hard time getting workers and supplies to offshore production platforms and refineries to make repairs after Hurricane Ida due to extensive storm damage to onshore infrastructure, reported Reuters with reference to executives' statement.

Some firms are still early in assessing damage from Ida, three days after the storm tore through the US Gulf of Mexico, pushing several feet of water into coastal plants and toppling transmission towers inland. Its 150-mile-per-hour (240 kph) winds were the strongest since Laura hit the state a year ago.

Roughly 1.7 million barrels of offshore oil production is offline, and damage around transportation and support hubs, including Houma and Port Fourchon, could slow efforts to restore production.

Shell said the storm inflicted "significant damage" to a heliport in Houma, Louisiana, used to transport workers to offshore platforms, and said it must establish a new facility before returning workers to production sites.

Offshore oil producers returned staff to only 10 platforms and two drilling rigs over Monday and Tuesday. Platforms run by BP PLC, BHP Group, Chevron Corp, Royal Dutch Shell and Occidental Petroleum Corp were evacuated last week. Offshore facilities in the region contribute 16% of US production.

Port Fourchon, a supply base for offshore energy companies, suffered extensive damage and the main road was not passable on Tuesday. Officials were limiting access to emergency vehicles, saying it could be weeks before roads are fully passable.

Loss of power and mobile phone service has prevented companies from reaching workers needed to conduct damage assessments. Swamped coastal roads and wind-damaged docks also hampered securing workers and supplies, the executives said. Power restoration has been slow, limiting efforts to restore operations at refineries. Nearly 1 million Louisiana homes and businesses remained without power on Wednesday.

Some 1.7 million barrels of daily oil processing is offline at seven Louisiana refineries, the US Department of Energy said. Consultancy Rystad Energy forecast losses will continue for seven to 14 days, depending on flood damage.

Gulf Coast refiners ExxonMobil Corp, PBF Energy Inc and Royal Dutch Shell PLC halted oil processing at plants in the storm's path, cutting about 9% of US refining capacity.

Power outages in some areas may persist for up to six weeks. Full recovery of processing capacity will depend on how quickly outside power is restored, with some plants taking four weeks to recover.

As MRC informed earlier, Colonial Pipeline, the nation's largest fuel line, has restarted its main gasoline and distillate lines after it shut the lines as a safety precaution ahead of Hurricane Ida.

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

LyondellBasell CEO Bob Patel to become CEO of W.R. Grace

LyondellBasell CEO Bob Patel to become CEO of W.R. Grace

MOSCOW (MRC) -- LyondellBasell CEO Bob Patel will become the chief executive of W.R. Grace in January after industrial company Standard Industries Holdings completes the acquisition of the Maryland chemical company, reported Houston Chronicle.

Patel is set to retire at the end of the year from the chemical company LyondellBasell after leading it for 15 years. At W.R. Grace, he will succeed Hudson La Force, who has been CEO since 2018.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Bob to the Standard family as CEO of W.R. Grace,” said David Winter and David Millstone, co-CEOs of Standard Industries. “Bob has for decades been a visionary leader in the industry, with a record of transforming businesses to achieve robust, sustainable growth. He has proven himself to be the right person to lead Grace’s exceptional team and help architect Standard’s investment in the advanced materials space. He will be instrumental in taking Grace into its next chapter as we ensure a seamless transition post-close and embark on an ambitious growth strategy.”

Patel said it’s a “privilege” to join Standard Industries and to be asked to lead W.R. Grace through its next chapter.

Patel joined LyondellBasell, which has headquarters in the Netherlands and Houston, in March 2010 after 20 years at Chevron Phillips Chemical Co.

As senior vice president of olefins and polyolefins Americas and then executive vice president of that same segment for Europe, Asia and International, Patel helped consolidate and reorganize operations in the United States and Europe as the company worked to boost the capacity of its plants along the Gulf Coast.

As MRC informed previously, in April 2018, W. R. Grace & Co. completed the USD416 million acquisition of the Polyolefin Catalysts business of Albemarle Corporation.

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.

LyondellBasell is one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world. Driven by its 13,000 employees around the globe, LyondellBasell produces materials and products that are key to advancing solutions to modern challenges like enhancing food safety through lightweight and flexible packaging, protecting the purity of water supplies through stronger and more versatile pipes, and improving the safety, comfort and fuel efficiency of many of the cars and trucks on the road. LyondellBasell sells products into approximately 100 countries and is the world's largest licensor of polyolefin technologies.

A leader in polyolefin catalysts and licensing, W.R. Grace has the world’s broadest portfolio of polypropylene and polyethylene 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 polypropylene process technology and process controls. Grace employs approximately 3,700 people in over 30 countries.
MRC