Mexico may cut crude oil exports to Europe, and Asia after new refinery starts

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mexico's state-run Petroleos Mexicanos would likely reduce oil sales to Europe and Asia before the United States, its main market for oil exports, after its Dos Bocas refinery begins operations, a Valero Energy Corp VLO.N executive said on Thursday.

Pemex in December said its crude exports will fall to 435,000 bpd this year from 1.019 million bpd in 2021 and it plans to cease all crude exports after its 300,000-barrel-per-day Dos Bocas refinery in the southeastern state of Tabasco begins processing crude next year.

Pemex was not immediately available to respond to the Valero executive's comments.

Analysts expect that the exports decline - which has not yet been included in the budget Mexico's congress approved for 2022 - would primarily affect customers that buy Mexican crude on the spot market, including many in Asia.

"It looks like their (Pemex) goals are pretty aggressive," said Gary Simmons, Valero's chief commercial officer, during the firm's fourth quarter earnings call on Thursday.

The Texas-based refining company, which is among the US top importers of heavy crude, expects to continue its business relationship with Pemex, he added.

Pemex also plans to reshuffle fuel imports after buying Shell's 50%-stake in the Deer Park refinery in Texas, which will give it access to up to 230,000 bpd of US fuels.

As MRC wrote before, Mexico carried out the transaction as agreed: USD596 MM for the refinery's assets - equivalent to Shell's 50% stake in the JV's debt - as well as the liquidation of the USD596 MM that made up Pemex's stake in the refinery.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MR''s ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) is a Mexican state-owned oil and gas and petrochemical company. Since the nationalization of the Mexican oil industry in 1938, Pemex has remained a state-owned company and, by law, has exclusive rights to explore and produce oil in the country. Almost 60% of the company's revenues go to the state budget. Petrochemical products include, but are not limited to, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mexican petrochemical company Alpek has signed an agreement to acquire international PET laminate producer Octal Holding for USD620 mln, said Reuters.

The financing for the acquisition will be covered through cash available on Alpek’s balance sheet, funds from its existing businesses and bank loans, and was made possible in part by the strength of its 2021 results, Alpek said.

"This transaction is ideal for Alpek. Through a single acquisition we get access to the growing and profitable segment of PET laminate," Alpek Chief Executive Officer Jose de Jesus Valdez said in a statement.

Octal serves customers in the Americas, the Middle East and Europe from its logistics center in Oman. It owns direct-to-sheet (DPET) technology, which eliminates several energy-intensive conversion steps, resulting in lower production costs.

The acquisition will add more than 1 million tonnes to Alpek’s capacity, the company said.

As per MRC, the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) manufacturing facility, formerly known as Lotte Chemical UK in the UK, is now owned by a subsidiary of Alpek and operates under the name Alpek Polyester UK Ltd. The deal, announced in October, includes a 350,000 tpa PET plant in Wilton. This is Alpek's first acquisition outside of America. The agreement entered into force on 1 January, 2020.

We remind, Alpek (Monterrey, Mexico) finished commissioning and begin production at a Reading, Pennsylvania, recycled polyethylene therephthalate (PET) facility in the third quarter of 2021. DAK Americas, Alpek's US subsidiary, bought the facility in late-May for USD98.1 million at an auction in the bankruptcy case of California recycled PET producer CarbonLite.

Alpek operates two main business segments, focused on polyester, and plastics and chemicals, and is a leading producer of purified terephthalic acid (PTA) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). It is also the largest EPS manufacturer in the Americas.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US offshore engineering and constructions services player McDermott has named a new president and chief executive officer (CEO) to strengthen the portfolio and forge a new path for the industry, according to Offshore Energy.

McDermott revealed on Tuesday that Michael McKelvy has been appointed to these roles, effective immediately. He will also serve as a member of McDermott’s board. Lee McIntire, who has been serving as interim CEO since June 2021 when David Dickson resigned, will continue as a member of McDermott’s board.

Nils Larsen, Chairman of McDermott’s Board of Directors, commented: “Michael joins McDermott at a pivotal time for the company as significant contract wins reflect increasing demand for McDermott’s diversified and integrated solutions.”

Namely, McDermott has secured two major contracts so far this year. At the very beginning of January, the company won a contract with QatarEnergy for the offshore scope of its North Field Expansion Project in Qatar. Later that month, McDermott revealed that this was one of the largest single contracts it had been awarded in its company history.

Also in January, McDermott was awarded an EPCIC contract by Woodside for the Scarborough floating production unit (FPU), which will be located offshore Western Australia.

According to McDermott, McKelvy has spent more than three decades working in the engineering and construction industry across the U.S. and international markets, including Europe and the Middle East. He previously led Gilbane Building Company as President and CEO since 2014.

As MRC reported earlier, McDermott plans to deliver engineering and procurement for the ethylene cracker of the Gas Chemical Complex (GCC) project. The largest polyethylene (PE) integration project in the world with China National Chemical Engineering and Construction Corporation Seven, Ltd (CC7). This agreement follows McDermott"s safe and successful delivery of the front end engineering design (FEED) and early works phases of the project. The ethane cracker project is owned by Baltic Chemical Complex LLC, (BCC) a subsidiary of RusGazDobycha, located onshore Russia in the Gulf of Finland.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MR''s ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

McDermott is a fully-integrated provider of engineering and construction solutions to the energy industry. Our customers trust our technology-driven approach engineered to responsibly harness and transform global energy resources into the products the world needs. From concept to commissioning, McDermott's innovative expertise and capabilities advance the next generation of global energy infrastructure Ѕempowering a brighter, more sustainable future for us all. Operating in over 54 countries, McDermott's locally-focused and globally-integrated resources include more than 30,000 employees, a diversified fleet of specialty marine construction vessels and fabrication facilities around the world.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Domo Chemicals, which supplies the European polyamide industry with solutions for automotive, electrical and electronics, building and construction, has made its TECHNYL branded products available to customers globally, said the company.

Domo acquired Solvay’s European Performance Polyamides business in 2020 and is now exclusively producing and commercialising TECHNYL, offering the full range of polyamide 66/polyamide 6 based solutions, widely used in many different applications.

Key applications served by TECHNYL include high thermal and chemical resistance materials, light engineering solutions (metal, aluminium and thermoset replacements), flame retardant materials for advanced electrical protection, high aesthetic materials with the addition of new solutions for extrusion and friction and wear resistance.

Domo recently teamed up with pump manufacturer Wilo to supply materials for its pumps used in urban water systems. Its hot water pumps will be constructed of Domo's TECHNYL A218 V30 Black 34NG – an injection moulding compound which includes a 30% glass fibre reinforcement. It is resistant to heat and glycol and will be used to produce the Wilo Para MSL/6-43/SC circulation pump for heating systems.

In February 2020, Solvay completed the deal to split and sell the polyamide business to BASF and Domo Chemicals for EUR1.6 billion. Initially, the acquisition of the Solvay division by the German petrochemical giant was announced in September 2017. The parties planned to complete the transaction in the third quarter of 2018.

Domo Caproleuna GmbH (Lein, Germany) produces nylon, nylon derivatives, and polypropylene. Domo Caproleuna GmbH was previously known as Caproleuna GmbH. Domo Caproleuna GmbH is a subsidiary of Domo Chemicals NV.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Asahi Kasei announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary in South Korea, Tongsuh Petrochemical Corp, has recently received ISCC Plus certification for its bio-acrylonitrile (ACN), becoming the first ACN manufacturer in Asia to acquire the certification, according to Apic-online.

Tongsuh is scheduled to begin producing ACN from biomass-derived propylene in February 2022.

Asahi Kasei Group will continue efforts to further reduce carbon dioxide emissions by improving acrylonitrile catalysts and processes based on original technologies, as well as the procurement of biomass raw material, Asahi Kasei noted.

As MRC reported earlier, South Korean Tongsuh Petrochemical resumed production at its No. 3 ACN line in Ulsan (South Korea) on November 12, 2021, after completing a scheduled turnaround. The maintenance on this line with a capacity of 265,000 mt/year of AKN began on October 14, 2021.

ACN is the main feedstock for the production of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS).

According to ICI-MRC Price report, ABS imports into Russia grew in 2021 by 15% year on year to 40,100 tonnes from 34,900 tonnes a year earlier. The share of South Korean shipments fell to 55% (22,100 tonnes) from 62% (21,600 tonnes) a year earlier.

Japanese Asahi Kasei owns 100% of Tongsuh Petrochemical. Asahi Kasei is the world's second largest manufacturer of acrylonitrile, which is the main component for the production of ABS, widely used in automobiles and consumer electronics.
MRC