HDPE production in Russia up by 7% in Jan-Oct 2021

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia's overall production of high density polyethylene (HDPE) totalled 1,618,000 tonnes in the first ten months of 2021, up by 7% year on year. At the same time, only one producer increased its output, according to MRC's ScanPlast report.

October total HDPE production in Russia dropped to 144,000 tonnes, whereas this figure was at 146,400 tonnes a month earlier; Kazanorgsintez and Stavrolen's production capacities were shut for maintenance. Thus, overall HDPE output reached 1,618,000 tonnes in January-October 2021, compared to 1,506,000 tonnes a year earlier. Only ZapSibNeftekhim's output increased, three other producers reduced their polyethylene (PE) production.

The PE production structure by grades looked the following way over the stated period.


SapSibNeftekhim's October total HDPE production reached 98,200 tonnes versus 98,900 tonnes a month earlier. The Tobolsk plant's overall HDPE output reached 984,100 tonnes in the first ten month of 2021, up by 35% year on year.

Kazanorgsintez's overall HDPE output rose to 25,000 tonnes last month from 19,400 tonnes in September, the Kazan producer shut its production for a turnaround in the second half of September-the first decade of October. Thus, the plant's overall production of this PE grade totalled 308,600 tonnes over the stated period, down by 24% year on year.

Stavrolen's October HDPE production was 9,500 tonnes versus 24,900 tonnes a month earlier, the Budennovsk producer shut its production for scheduled repairs in the second decade of the month. Overall HDPE output exceeded 247,700 tonnes in January-October 2021, down by 7% year on year.

Gazprom neftekhim Salavat' total HDPE production was slightly less than 11,300 tonnes last month, its September output was 3,200 tonnes due to a long outage for maintenance works. Thus, the Salavat plant's overall output of this PE grade totalled 78,000 tonnes in the first ten months of 2021, down by 25% year on year.

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Fire breaks out in fuel tank outside Umm Qasr port in Basra

Fire breaks out in fuel tank outside Umm Qasr port in Basra

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Fire broke out in a fuel tank outside Iraq's main Gulf Umm Qasr port near Basra, reported Reuters with reference to the state news agency reported on Wednesday.

Iraq exports most of its oil through its southern Gulf ports.

As MRC informed before, Lukoil has submitted to Iraq's oil ministry a preliminary development proposal for Eridu field, which may yield an estimated 250,000 b/d at peak, helping OPEC's second biggest producer in its efforts to boost crude production capacity. The proposal's submission will allow the ministry to study and approve the field's development, the ministry said in a Nov. 12 statement.

Lukoil currently operates Iraq's southern West Qurna 2, one of the world's largest oil fields with around 14 billion barrels of initial recoverable reserves, according to its website. The field pumps around 9% of Iraqi total oil production. Lukoil holds a 75% interest in West Qurna 2 and Iraqi state-owned North Oil Co. the remainder.
MRC

LLDPE production rose by 17% in January-October in Russia

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia's overall linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) production totalled 4,946,000 tonnes in the first ten months of 2021, up by 17% year on year. ZapSibNeftekhim accounted for the main increase in the output, according to MRC's ScanPlast report.

October total LLDPE production in Russia decreased to 35,300 tonnes, whereas this figure was at 47,300 tonnes a month earlier, all producers decreased their capacity utilisation. Thus, overall PE output reached 4,946,000 tonnes in January-October 2021, compared to 4,242,000 tonnes a year earlier. All producers raised their output of PE, but ZapSibNeftekhim accounted for the greatest increase in production.

The structure of PE output by grades looked the following way over the stated period.

October LLDPE production at ZapSibNeftekhim's facilities reached 18,400 tonnes against 29,300 tonnes a month earlier. In general, the total output of linear polyethylene at the Tobolsk plant reached the level of 272,600 tonnes in January-October, up 21% year on year.

Last month, LLDPE production at the facilities of Nizhnekamskneftekhim decreased to 13,700 tonnes against 18,100 tonnes in September, the Nizhnekamsk producer stopped production in October for a short repair. Thus, overall production of this PE grade totalled 187,600 tonnes over the stated period, up by 4% year on year.

Kazanorgsintez for ten months of this year produced 34,400 tonnes of linear polyethylene against 19,500 tonnes a year earlier.

MRC

US crude oil stocks rise, fuel draws down on stronger refining activity

US crude oil stocks rise, fuel draws down on stronger refining activity

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US crude oil stocks rose last week but gasoline and distillate stocks fell even as refining activity increased on strong overall fuel demand, reported Reuters with reference to the Energy Information Administration's statement on Wednesday.

Crude inventories rose by 1 MM bbl in the week to Nov. 19, compared with analysts' expectations for a decrease of 481,000 bbl.

Fuel stocks have continued to decline as product demand remains strong. Gasoline stocks fell by 603,000 bbl, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 461,000-bbl drop. Stocks of gasoline are at their lowest since November 2017.

"Demand for gasoline and diesel fuel continues to be good in this holiday season and I expect that with drivers taking to the roads over the holiday, we're going to see gasoline inventories decline next week," said Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates in Houston.

Overall, gasoline product supplied, a measure of US demand, has averaged 9.3 MMbpd over the last four weeks, or in line with pre-pandemic levels.

"The gasoline demand is phenomenal - it's been unrelenting since the summer, and we are not seeing any decline now," said John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital Markets in New York.

Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 2 MM bbl, versus expectations for a 1 MM-bbl drop, the EIA data showed. Overall distillate stocks are now at their lowest since November 2018.

Refinery crude runs rose by 243,000 bpd, EIA data showed. Refinery utilization rates rose by 0.7% points.

As MRC informed before, US commercial crude stocks fell 3.48 million barrels to 413.96 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 17, to more than 8% below the five-year average, Energy Information Administration data showed. Stocks were last lower Oct. 5, 2018.

We remind that in late August, 2021, US crude stocks dropped sharply while petroleum products supplied by refiners hit an all-time record despite the rise in coronavirus cases nationwide, the Energy Information Administration said. Crude inventories fell by 7.2 million barrels in the week to Aug. 27 to 425.4 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 3.1 million-barrel drop. Product supplied by refineries, a measure of demand, rose to 22.8 million barrels per day in the most recent week. That's a one-week record, and signals strength in consumption for diesel, gasoline and other fuels by consumers and exporters.

We also remind that US crude oil production is expected to fall by 160,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2021 to 11.12 million bpd, EIA said in a monthly report earlier this year, a smaller decline than its previous forecast for a drop of 210,000 bpd.
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Shell to build pyrolysis oil unit in Singapore to convert plastic waste to chemicals

Shell to build pyrolysis oil unit in Singapore to convert plastic waste to chemicals

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Royal Dutch Shell plans to build a pyrolysis oil upgrader to turn plastic waste into chemical feedstock at its petrochemical complex in Singapore, part of its shift from oil and gas to renewables and low-carbon energy, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The company is also considering building a CCS regional hub and a 550,000 tpy biofuels plant at its 60-year-old Pulau Bukom manufacturing site, one of five remaining energy and chemical parks owned by Shell globally. The projects form part of Shell Singapore's plans to cut emissions from its own operations by half by 2030, from 2016 levels on a net basis, Shell Downstream Director Huibert Vigeveno said.

"This year, we have already halved our crude processing capacity, which is in line with Shell's global targets to reduce emissions," he said at a ceremony to break ground for the pyrolysis oil upgrader project. Energy companies are facing increasing pressure from investors, activists and governments to shift away from fossil fuels and rapidly ramp up investment in renewables.

Shell has pledged to halve emissions from its global operations by 2030, as well as reduce its net carbon footprint by 45% by 2035. The Singapore pyrolysis oil upgrader will produce 50,000 tpy of treated pyrolysis oil in 2023, the company said. The unit is Shell's first globally. It did not give an investment figure for the Singapore project.

Pyrolysis melts plastic waste into products such as pyrolysis oil, which can be upgraded as raw material for plastics and chemicals, although the process isn't commercially proven and consumes a lot of energy. Shell also plans to build two chemical conversion units in Asia to convert waste plastics into pyrolysis oil for the Shell Energy and Chemical Park Singapore at Bukom and Jurong Island, similar to units in the Netherlands with joint venture partner BlueAlp which will be operational in 2023.

Other projects being planned in Singapore include a CCS hub to reduce emissions. To meet Shell's global ambition to make around 2 MM tons of sustainable aviation fuel a year by 2025, the company is looking at investing in a facility to produce 550,000 tons of biofuels a year from waste and vegetable oils, Vigeveno said. Shell has previously announced it will trial the use of hydrogen fuel cells for ships in Singapore and is exploring developing a solar farm in a landfill near Bukom.

As per MRC, Royal Dutch Shell, the world's petrochemical major, has restarted its cracker in Pulau Bukom, Singapore after resolving technical issue. Thus, this cracker with an annual output of 960,000 tons/year of ethylene and 550,000 tons/year of propylene came back on-line on 5 November, 2021. It was shut on 1 November, after a flare occurred at the plant. The company was earlier rumored to have reduced the ethylene and propylene allocations to its downstream buyers at the adjacent locations following the incident, however, with the prompt restart, the impact might be smaller than initially expected.

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 1,868,160 tonnes in the first nine months of 2021, up by 18% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,138,510 tonnes in January-September 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) decreased significantly.

Royal Dutch Shell plc is an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the biggest company in the world in terms of revenue and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors". Shell is vertically integrated and is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading.

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