Saudi Polymers begins commercial production in Al-Jubail

(reuters) -- Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LLC (Chevron Phillips Chemical) congratulates Saudi Polymers Company (SPCo) and its joint venture partner, National Petrochemical Company (Petrochem), as the joint venture’s manufacturing facility located in Al-Jubail, Saudi Arabia, begins commercial production.

The integrated SPCo petrochemicals complex includes world-class operating units that are capable of producing Ethylene (1,220 kmta), Propylene (440 kmta), Polyethylene (1,100 kmta), Polypropylene (400 kmta), Polystyrene (200 kmta) and 1-Hexene (100 kmta). In addition to direct sales to serve local Saudi demand, SPCo will manufacture products to serve growing world demand outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through its exclusive distributor, Gulf Polymers Distribution Company, utilizing Chevron Phillips Chemical’s global marketing network.

SPCo, which began construction in January 2008, has created approximately 950 jobs, with a high percentage being occupied by Saudi nationals.

SPCo is a limited liability company incorporated in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that is owned 65 percent by Petrochem, a joint-stock company incorporated in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and 35 percent by Arabian Chevron Phillips Petrochemical Company (ACP), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chevron Phillips Chemical.
MRC

(Platts) -- US polyethylene maker Dow Chemical announced Friday that it will hike its US polyethylene resin prices by 4 cents/lb in November.

The increase is effective November 1. The company noted that the November increase is on top of all previously announced price hikes.

Major polyethylene producers in the US are looking to increase polyethylene prices in October by 5 cents/lb as well. This comes on top of 3-5 cents/lb price increases seen in August and September.

Polyethylene supplies have been extremely tight since July when buying interest surged after the market had appeared to bottom out. Sellers were unable to meet the rash of inquiries and have yet to catch up. Sources said that inventory levels were were limited with sellers reporting being sold out for September.

Still there was some question as to whether the October increases would pass.

"There was a lot of product purchased in September in order to hedge against future increases like this," a market source said. "I am not sure if there is going to be enough demand out there right now to support the higher prices in October," one source said.

Spot demand continued to be suppressed by higher prices which left US values unprofitable. Sources anticipated that this could change, however, amid rising prices in both Asia and Latin America.
MRC

(LSB) -- La Seda de Barcelona (LSB) has set up a new subsidiary Artenius Espana for its PET business as a part of internal corporate restructuring process.

The PET manufacturing business carried on by La Seda de Barcelona (LSB) at its production plant in El Prat de Llobregat (Spain) will be called Artenius Espana, S.L, with effect from October 1, 2012.

All contracts with customers and suppliers of the PET business in Spain will be undertaken by the new subsidiary of LSB from that date onwards.

From now on, the new subsidiary Artenius Espana will also be in line with the different geographical names of the production plants which Artenius (the PET and PET recycling division of LSB) has in other countries (Artenius Italy, Artenius Turkey or Artenius Greece), and thus reinforce and strengthen its brand image.

Seda de Barcelona (LSB) is an industrial plastic packaging group operating internationally through its 14 facilities across Europe, Turkey and North Africa. It is the only European producer capable of supplying PET containers in a fully integrated way from raw material feedstock, conversion technology and design, injection and blow moulding up to the delivered finished product, by means of guaranteeing the quality of all its production processes.The PET and recycling division of LSB has four production plants in Spain, Italy, Greece and Turkey, and two recycling sites in Spain and Italy.
MRC

(plastermart) -- Despite demonstrating healthy sustainable growth rate, the demand for ethylene is forecast to be far outpaced by the vast capacity expansion projects awaited in Asia, particularly China, and the Middle East, as per a report by Merchant Research & Consulting.

Middle East capacity for ethylene has doubled in the past eight years and is projected to reach 20 mln tonnes by 2017.

The Asia-Pacific will keep on dominating the market and generating over a third of global demand with China set to become the largest ethylene consumer ahead of the US and Saudi Arabia.

Ethylene is feedstock polyethylene (PE) production, one of the main polymers used world-wide. Ethylene is a key raw material in the production of surfactants and detergents by ethoxylation. Ethylene oxide also hydrolyzed to produce ethylene glycol, widely used as an automotive antifreeze as well as higher molecular weight glycols, glycol ethers and polyethylene terephthalate (PET).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) – In October, Stavrolen will reach its full technological capacity utilization with production of on-spec material. The first shipments of polyethylene are expected to start next week, report MRC analysts.

Yesterday, Stavrolen (Lukoil group) informed that it is going to work at its full capacity in October, 2012, producing on-spec goods including HDPE. The first shipments of PE will be possible from 5 October.

Shipments of PP will be resumed starting from 3 October. We remind that due to the resumption of production at ethylene complex, Stavrolen had had to suspend PP production by the end of the previous week.

Stavrolen is the second largest PE maker in Russia. Its annual HDPE and PP production capacity makes 300,000 and 120,000 tonnes, respectively.
MRC