Lukoil to sell Odessa refinery in Ukraine to Vetek

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia's OAO Lukoil has signed a deal to sell its refinery in Ukraine's Black Sea port of Odessa to Vetek Group, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing with reference to Lukoil's statement.

The refinery, with a capacity of 3.9 million tpy, has been idle since the end of 2010. As MRC reported previously, Odessa refinery with the capacity of 2.8 million tonnes per year was stopped in October 2010 due to the economic situation in the Ukrainian oil market and changes in the oil supply chain. Lukoil management repeatedly discussed with the Ukrainian Government the removal of technical barriers to launch Odessa refinery.

The decision to sell is part of a plan by Lukoil - Russia's No. 2 crude oil producer - to restructure its international refining assets, the company said.

The deal is expected to be closed before June 1, after both sides fulfill a number of conditions, Lukoil said, without elaborating.

Lukoil said Vetek will acquire 99.6% of the refinery's stock, but didn't disclose any financial terms.

Vetek is a Ukrainian gas trader owned by Ukrainian businessman Serhiy Kurchenko, Ukrainian media has reported, citing company statements.

Lukoil is one of the leading vertically integrated oil companies in Russia. The main activities of the company include exploration and development of oil and gas, manufacturing and marketing of petroleum products.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Stavrolen (Lukoil group) resumed production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) after a short outage for maintenance, reported MRC analysts according to Price report.

The company shut its PE and PP production capacities for maintenance on March 1. Operations at ethylene cracker were also suspended as part of routine maintenance.

On Tuesday, 5 March, the ethylene cracker became operational. Polyethylene and polypropylene production is planned to resume work since 6 March.

Stavrolen production capacities of high density polyethylene (HDPE) make 300,000 tonnes and those of polypropylene make 120,000 tonnes per year, respectively. In January, 2013, the plant produced 26,400 tonnes of HDPE and 11,700 tonnes of PP.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- An explosion rocked a chemical company in La Porte, creating a massive fireball and smoke that could be seen for miles around, according to Abclocal.

The fire broke out at the AkzoNobel plant in La Porte at about 1pm on Monday. Emergency workers responded quickly to the thick black smoke and bright orange flames that billowed out of the AkzoNobel plant. The 80 to 100 employees and contractors were quickly evacuated, but one didn't escape without injury and was transported to a local hospital.

The fire was brought under control in about 45 minutes. AkzoNobel officials confirmed to Eyewitness News it was a chemical used to manufacture plastics.

"We did have a fire in our magnesium alkals unit and we responded with our emergency response team, our internal team, and now they have the fire under control," said AkzoNobel spokesperson Julie Sullivan.

The company said the product burning was magnesium oxide, and not toxic. Plant officials say it's too early to tell what caused the fire. That remains under investigation.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, is extending its colour and special effects' testing services for packaging sector customers in North America, according to the company's press release.

The acquisition by the company of a new production-scale stretch blow-moulding machine and other available services at its ColorWorks Design & Technology Center in West Chicago, Illinois, now make it possible for developers of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic containers to evaluate Clariant colour and special-effect masterbatches in full-size, three-dimensional bottles instead of flat injection-molded chips. They also now make their decisions about colour and special effects and produce sample containers, all in one facility.

The machine is typical of those used in actual package manufacturing, so designers and brand managers are now able to develop realistic samples for almost immediate evaluation. Clariant also has extrusion blow-molding machines available to produce for mono- and multi-layer containers made of polyolefins.

We remind that, as MRC wrote previously, earlier last year Clariant Masterbatches developed new liquid vehicle technology (LVT) aimed at elimination of many problems that had prevented wider use of liquid color and additive concentrates in extrusion blow moulding of polyolefins (high- and low-density polyethylene and polypropylene).

Clariant AG is a Swiss chemical company and a world leader in the production of specialty chemicals for the textile, printing, mining and metallurgical industries. It is engaged in processing crude oil products in pigments, plastics and paints.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Following the commercial success of Medalist medical thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) in the U.S.A., Teknor Apex Company has extended its international supply capabilities for these compounds by achieving ISO-13485 certification for its manufacturing facility in Oldbury, West Midlands, UK, according to the company's press release.

ISO-13485 is an international standard for quality management in medical manufacturing. The facility in the UK has passed the final audit and is expected to achieve full certification by the end of the current calendar quarter, according to Stef Hordijk, strategic market manager for the Thermoplastic Elastomer Division of Teknor Apex. A Medalist production facility in St. Albans, VT, U.S.A. obtained ISO-13485 certification in 2010.

"Certified production of Medalist TPEs in the UK helps Teknor Apex to save transit time and shipping costs in supplying the EU market, and it enables us to offer European customers compounds that provide the same properties as those from the U.S.A. and meet the same exacting standards," said Mr. Hordijk. "The startup of a second production facility for Medalist compounds increases our capability to serve as a single source of material for companies that manufacture internationally at multiple locations."

Developed for device manufacturers, ISO-13485 is not an essential standard for a compounder. Medalist elastomers are already fully compliant with regulations for medical uses and meet stringent standards for biocompatibility and purity.

"Teknor Apex undertook procedures for achieving ISO-13485 certification in order to provide our customers with an extra dimension of quality assurance and to demonstrate our commitment to the Medalist brand," said Mr. Hordijk.

As MRC informed previously, in the middle of last year Teknor Apex Company intorduced a new rigid vinyl compound that exhibits substantially higher flow than standard injection molding grades of RPVC and provides an economical alternative to engineering thermoplastics for large products, such as appliance panels, thin-wall parts, and complex structures with elaborate flow paths.

Teknor Apex is one of the world's leading custom compounders headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, USA. The company produces PA compounds in the UK, the U.S.A., and Singapore. Teknor Apex is one of the world's leaders of specialty PVC compounds which are used in a wide range of applications from wire and cable to automotive, medical, consumer and industrial products. The company also produces thermoplastic elastomers, nylon, bioplastics, chemicals, specialty compounds.
MRC