BP selects Jacobs as global services supplier for downstream operations

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Jacobs Engineering Group announced that it has been selected by BP to continue its role as strategic supplier of mid-cap work on a global basis, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Company officials did not disclose the contract value, but noted that it replaces Jacobs’ previous contract that has been in place since 2002.

The new contract includes two multi-year regional framework agreements, under which Jacobs is providing engineering, procurement and construction management services as well as personnel on loan at BP’s refinery, petrochemical and terminal sites globally.

Jacobs supports this work from its offices in the UK, US, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, South Africa and Australia; bringing technical expertise, a depth of global resources to support BP around the world; plus deep knowledge of BP’s facilities, practices, and business objectives.

"We are very pleased to continue our long history of supporting BP’s downstream business through these new professional services regional framework agreements," said Jacobs executive vice president Gary Mandel.

"We look forward to working with BP to achieve safe, reliable and profitable operations globally," he added.

As MRC wrote before, BP Zhuhai is in plans to start a new purified terephthalic acid (PTA) plant in China. A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the plant is likely to start in Q4, 2014. The exact start-up schedule of the plant could not be ascertained. To be located in Zhuhai province, China, the plant will have a production capacity of 1.25 million mt/year.

BP is one of the world's leading international oil and gas companies, providing its customers with fuel for transportation, energy for heat and light, retail services and petrochemicals products for everyday items.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Eastman Chemical Company EMN, announced that it has completed the acquisition of Commonwealth Laminating & Coating, Inc., said the producer in its press release.

The acquired business is part of Eastman's Advanced Materials business segment, and is expected to be accretive to 2015 earnings excluding acquisition-related costs and charges.

"This acquisition will help us better serve the broad and diverse customer base for window and protective films while supporting expansion of our product offerings and the use of window films," said Brad Lich, executive vice president. "We're also very excited about adding the SunTek(R) brand to our performance films products portfolio."

The addition of Commonwealth's expertise, paint protection technology, brand and sales channels, and experienced workforce is expected to support growth of our performance films products.

"Eastman is committed to providing continued superior products, service, and support to customers worldwide as we integrate these two businesses," said Travis Smith, vice president and general manager, performance films. "We're excited to bring Commonwealth employees together with our world-class global performance films team to benefit customers and support our growth ," Smith said.

Commonwealth had 2013 sales revenue of approximately USD100 million. The acquisition includes Commonwealth's manufacturing facility and master distribution center in Martinsville, Va., and nine sales distribution centers that serve the global market.

As MRC wrote before, Eastman Chemical Company announced the completion of its acquisition of Taminco Corporation, a global specialty chemical company, for a total of USD2.8 billion in cash and assumed debt, said the producer.

Eastman is a global specialty chemical company that produces a broad range of products found in items people use every day. With a portfolio of specialty businesses, Eastman works with customers to deliver innovative products and solutions while maintaining a commitment to safety and sustainability. As a globally diverse company, Eastman serves customers in approximately 100 countries and had 2013 revenues of approximately USD9.4 billion. The company is headquartered in Kingsport, Tennessee, USA and employs approximately 14,000 people around the world.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- BASF, the German chemicals giant, and Shell, an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company, have reached an agreement for BASF to sell its share in the 50-50 joint venture Ellba Eastern, Jurong Island, Singapore to Shell, reported BASF on its site.

The joint venture, which is operated by Shell, produces styrene monomer (SM) and propylene oxide. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Closing is planned for December 31, 2014.

BASF remains globally committed to propylene oxide and its respective value chains. Therefore, as part of the agreement, BASF and Shell have signed a supply contract to provide BASF with the necessary volumes of propylene oxide.

ELLBA Eastern started production in 2002. The plant is fully integrated into the Shell site on Jurong Island, Singapore, and has an annual capacity of 250,000 metric tons of propylene oxide and 550,000 metric tons of styrene monomer. The ELLBA joint venture between Shell and BASF in Moerdijk, the Netherlands, is not affected by the transaction.

As MRC informed earlier, in October 2014, BASF and Archroma agreed on the sale of BASF’s global textile chemicals business to Archroma, a supplier of specialty chemicals to the textile, paper and emulsions. Archroma is a portfolio company of SK Capital Partners, a private investment firm with focus on the specialty materials, chemicals and healthcare sectors. It is planned to integrate the business into the Archroma Textile Chemicals Specialties business. Currently, the textile chemicals business is part of BASF’s Performance Chemicals division.

BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries. BASF had sales of about EUR74 billion in 2013 and over 112,000 employees as of the end of the year.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Plastic Technologies Inc. (PTI) and Hemetek Techno Instruments Mumbai have recently entered an agreement to provide polyethylene terephthalate (PET) package evaluation services in Southeast Asia, said Industrysourcing.

Plastic Technologies Inc PET materials testingThe partnership will involve state-of-the-art PET material and bottle testing to be done in Hemetek’s expanded testing facility in Baroda, located in the Gujarat state, in western India. The open house is scheduled for January 20, after which the facility will start accepting bottle performance projects.

Brand owners and suppliers in Southeast Asia use limited in-house capability or send components to laboratories outside the region for evaluation. The PET material and bottle testing facility will address this need for a local resource to evaluate if preforms and bottles meet performance parameters. The PET resin, preform, and bottle testing will cover solution intrinsic viscosity, acetaldehyde and moisture content, finish dimensions, and bottle expansion and burst.

According to PTI global analytical labs director Greg Fisher, "For the past 30 years, PTI has earned a global reputation as the leader in PET bottle development and performance testing. Through our new partnership with Hemetek, a company that has established itself as a respected package testing solutions provider, we are now able to bring these services to Southeast Asia."

"Empty PET bottles do not typically sustain long journeys well, and particularly those that are subjected to temperature extremes typically found in Southeast Asia," added Hemetek president Viraj Devasthale.

Partnering with PTI in locating testing services in closer proximity to bottling plants will help reduce time and costs, and provide brand owners with critical data to meet performance standards, Mr. Devasthale said.

As MRC wrote before, Plastic Technologies Inc. is partnering with the Centro de Tecnologia de Embalagem (CETEA) to produce a second technical training conference for the rapidly-growing Brazilian marketplace.

Plastic Technologies, Inc. (PTI) is recognized worldwide as the preferred source for plastic package design, package development, rapid prototyping, pre-production prototyping, and material evaluation engineering for the plastic packaging industry.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mazda Motor Corporation has announced that, in conjunction with Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation, it has developed a new bio-based engineering plastic that can be used for exterior design parts for automobiles, said the producer in its press-release.

The new plastic will help Mazda to reduce its impact on the environment in a number of important ways. As the plastic is made from plant-derived materials, its adoption will help to curb the use of petroleum resources and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Furthermore, the material can be dyed and emissions of volatile organic compounds associated with the painting process reduced. Dyed parts made from the bio-based engineering plastic feature a finish of higher-quality than can be achieved with traditional painted plastic. The deep hue and smooth, mirror-like finish of the surface make the newly-developed plastic suitable for external vehicle parts with a high design factor.

This bio-based engineering plastic will be used for the first time for interior parts for the all-new Mazda MX-5 which will be launched globally in 2015. Moving forward, it will be used for exterior parts in other production models.

As MRC wrote before, Mazda Motor Corporation began collecting damaged bumpers (that were replaced at dealer service centers) as far back as 1992 and recycling them for use as vehicle undercovers. In subsequent years, it continued to hone paint removal technology to the point where by 2003, joint development with recycling system manufacturer Satake Corporation (Hiroshima) had increased the paint removal rate to 99.9%.

Mazda Motor Corporation, formerly (1927–84) Toyo Kogyo Company, Japanese automotive manufacturer, maker of Mazda passenger cars, trucks, and buses. The company is affiliated with the Sumitomo group. It is headquartered at Hiroshima.

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