Global PS & EPS market to grow to USD42 bln by decade end

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The global demand for polystyrene (PS) and expanded polystyrene (EPS) was valued at USD32 bln in 2014 and is expected to reach USD42 bln in 2020, growing at a CAGR of approximately 4.5% between 2015 and 2020, as per Plastemart with reference to Zion Market Research.

In terms of volume, the global PS and EPS market stood at 17.5 mln tons in 2014.

The packaging industry has remained major driving force for the growth of polystyrene and polystyrene industry. Packaging industry in emerging economies such as China, India, Brazil, South Africa, etc. is growing at a rapid pace. Increasing demand for consumer goods in these countries has resulted in the rise in demand for packaging materials.

Moreover, strong growth of food & beverages and pharmaceutical industry in emerging economies is expected to further trigger the demand for the packaging industry. However, environmental concern, fluctuating prices of raw materials and substitute materials are expected to present the significant challenge to industry participants. This is expected to affect the growth of this industry in the years to come.

Recycling of PS is expected to open new growth window for the industry participants. Polystyrene and expandable polystyrene are the key products types of PS market. Polystyrene dominated the global market with around two-third shares of the global market in 2014. However, EPS is expected to be the fastest growing segment during the forecast period.

The key application markets for polystyrene and expanded polystyrene includes packaging industry, electrical & electronics, building & construction, and others applications. Packaging industry dominated polystyrene and expanded polystyrene market with around 40% share of the total volume consumed in 2014. Electrical and electronics segment is expected to be the fastest growing application market for polystyrene and expanded polystyrene.

Asia Pacific was the leading regional market polystyrene and expanded polystyrene with over 40% share in total volume consumption in 2014. It is also expected to be the fastest growing regional market during the forecast period. Asia-Pacific is dominated by China, which accounts for the huge share in total volume of polystyrene and expanded polystyrene consumed in the region in 2014. China is expected to be the major driving force for the growth of global polystyrene and expanded polystyrene market. Asia Pacific was followed by Europe and North America. However, Europe and North America are expected to witness decline its market share over the forecast period owing stringent environmental regulations and growing demand for bio-base products in the region.

As MRC informed before, the global PS market is projected to reach USD28.2 bln by 2019, at a CAGR of 5.1% between 2014 and 2019, in terms of value, as per MarketsandMarkets. The market for polystyrene is estimated to grow on account of the rapid expansion of the plastics and rubber manufacturing industries, especially in Europe and the increasing rates of industrialization and globalization. The flourishing packaging and electronics application in emerging economies is expected to act as a budding opportunity for the PS market.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Braskem, the largest thermoplastics resins producer in the Americas, announced that The Linde Group, a gases and engineering company, has been selected as the lead engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor to build Braskem's new world-scale North American polypropylene (PP) production line, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Linde offers comprehensive project development services for polyolefin industrial plants, ranging from front end engineering design (FEED) to complete EPC execution and is an approved contractor for UNIPOL Polypropylene Process Technology.

Braskem has committed up to USD675 MM toward the design and construction of the new PP production line named Delta, which will be located next to Braskem's existing production facilities in La Porte, Texas. With the engineering design phase well underway, the new plant will have a production capacity of 450 kilotons (kt), or the equivalent of approximately 1 B pounds, per year.

"Today we are pleased to announce another significant step forward in the development of Delta, which is set to be the largest polypropylene production line in the Americas,” said Mark Nikolich, Braskem North America Chief Executive Officer. “The selection of The Linde Group as our lead EPC contractor follows a highly competitive selection process. We are excited to partner with Linde on this important project as we continue to execute on Braskem's global growth strategy and extend our position as the leading producer of polypropylene in the Americas."

The construction of Braskem's new Delta production line is expected to positively impact economic activity in the La Porte region, employing approximately 1,000 development and construction workers to fully construct the facility. Construction is expected to begin mid-summer 2017, with the final phase of main construction targeted for the first quarter of 2020.

As MRC wrote before, Braskem Idesa, a 75-25 joint venture between Braskem and Grupo Idesa, started polyethylene (PE) production at its Coatzacoalcos, Mexico complex on 6 April, 2016. The jv started injecting ethane at its Etileno XXI steam cracker on 18 March, 2016.

Braskem S.A. produces petrochemicals and generates electricity. The Company produces ethylene, propylene, benzene, toluene, xylenes, butadiene, butene, isoprene, dicyclopentediene, MTBE, caprolactam, ammonium sulfate, cyclohexene, polyethylene theraphtalat, polyethylene, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- With numerous usage of extruded plastics, the global extruded plastics market is expected to increase in future. Moreover, increasing demand in construction industry owing to the rising surge for plastics is another factor that drives the global extruded plastics market growth over the forecasted period 2022. The Global Extruded Plastics Market is expected to grow at USD 280 billion in 2022 with the CAGR of 4.9% from 2016 to 2022, as per Plastemart with reference to Market Research Future.

Thus, the global extruded plastics market has been evaluated to be rapidly growing and is expected to grow tremendously. Benefits like low thermal conductivity and poor resistance to oxygen and moisture make this resin a suitable material to be used in packaging of food products which has increased its market globally.

The major participants of this market are: Desku Group Inc, Halliburton Company, Excalibar Minerals LLC, P & S Extruded Plastics Mining Co. Ltd, Ashapura Minechem Ltd, Anglo Pacific Minerals, CIMBAR Performance Minerals, Kaomin Industries, Andhra Pradesh Mineral Development Corporation Limited, Mil-Spec Industries Corporation and others. Companies such as AEP Industries Inc., Arkema S.A., Bemis Company, Inc., Berry Plastics Corporation and Chevron Phillips Chemical Company have implemented acquisition and expansion of business strategies to increase their geographical presence. Few global players have invested in R&D amenities to discover advanced and innovative folic products which has higher efficacy and is easy to use.

Based on Type global extruded plastics market has been segmented into low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene, styrene, and others. Styrene is expected to grow at the CAGR during the forecasted period. Low density polyethylene segment dominated the market in 2015 as it one of the most versatile flexible packing materials that can be formulated for several packaging applications. Based on End-User Industries which are boosting the growth of extruded plastics market has been segmented into packaging, building & constructions, automotive, consumer goods, and others. Building & constructions segment is expected to grow at highest rate during the forecasted period. The packaging industry is expected to grow maximum at the CAGR in future. The rise in demand for extruded plastics is due to technological advancement in electronics goods.

The global extruded plastics market is majorly segmented on the basis of type and by end-user. Based on type the market is segmented into low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene, styrene, and others. Further on the basis of end-user the market is classified into packaging, building & constructions, automotive, consumer goods, and others.

Asia Pacific region is expected to maintain its dominance in the global market of extruded plastic. Emerging markets of China, Japan and India are expected to boost the Asia Pacific folic acid market. Other emerging markets are North America, Europe and Middle East countries. Asia Pacific has the largest market share of global folic acid, followed by Europe and other parts of the world. The largest market of extruded plastics is in Asia-Pacific owing to the growth of electrical, construction and automobile industry. Rapid industrialization in countries like China, India and Mexico contribute further in the growth of this market. Moreover, low thermal conductivity and poor resistance to oxygen and moisture make this resin a suitable material to be used in food packaging products particularly in China, India and japan which will further drive this market in the coming years. Robust growth of plastic and automotive industries in Asia-Pacific is expected to be largest consumer of extruded plastics market. It is seen that North America is the second largest consumer of extruded plastics due to the changing trends in the automobile industry there.

As MRC informed previously, growing demand from automotive and electronics is expected to boost growth in the global plastics market, as per Transparency Market Research. However, fluctuating raw material prices and surging environmental concerns will restrain growth. Rising concerns related to the harmful effects of the manufacturing process of molded plastics on the environment will also suppress the global molded plastics market. In accordance with this, the nonbiodegradable nature of molded plastics will also suppress this market.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Aramco was said to be seeking to enter exclusive talks on investing in the largest refining project under way in India - revealed in a coincident industry report to have been the world’s fastest-growing crude consumer last year, reported Plastemart.

Meanwhile, petrochemicals-focused Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) has committed to studying projects in Kazakhstan as part of a wider co-operation agreement between Riyadh and Astana.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi government-owned Mubadala Investment Co. (MIC) appears set to build on a history of involvement in the key Caspian state forged by the two legacy companies from which the new firm was born last month. It likewise agreed to study petrochemicals investments in the country’s Atyrau downstream hub.
India’s Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan revealed on June 14 that Aramco was requesting exclusivity in negotiations on taking a stake in the estimated US$40 billion refinery and petrochemicals project planned in the western Maharashtra state.

The Saudi firm’s involvement had been discussed for some time but the impetus was increased by the signature on the same day of the joint venture (JV) agreement between the three state firms behind the landmark project - which would create the world’s largest greenfield refinery with capacity of 1.2 million bpd. India Oil Corp. (IOC) will initially hold a 50% stake, with Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (HPCL) owning 25% apiece. "Saudi Aramco is interested to be a partner with the mega-refinery from the early stages of conception to implementation," Pradhan was quoted as saying in the local press.

The project is scheduled for completion by 2022 and is envisaged encompassing a naphtha cracker and aromatics and polymers units. As Pradhan pointed noted during the JV signing ceremony - and as was confirmed by BP’s well-respected Annual Statistical Review of World Energy published the previous day - India is the world’s third largest crude consumer, while the potential for demand growth is evident in per-capita energy consumption of only around 25% of the global average. According to the BP survey, oil consumption surged by 7.8% to 4.5 million bpd in 2016 - more than four times the world average.

Aramco has unsurprisingly named the Asian powerhouse as among the key target geographies in the company’s plan to increase worldwide refining capacity from 5.4 million bpd to 8-10 million bpd by the middle of next decade. The incentive to invest downstream has been intensified by recent conditions of world oversupply of crude and bearish forecasts of long-term future demand. The state firm has also discussed involvement in the expansion of BPCL’s Bina refinery in the central Madhya Pradesh state from 120,000 bpd to 310,000 bpd and in a 1.9 million tpy petrochemicals complex planned in Gujarat in the north-west by state-owned ONGC. SABIC’s proposed venture into Caspian production would be a newer development - and was reported in the Kazakh press as having been agreed during a visit to the Caspian state by Saudi Energy, Industry & Mineral Resources Minister Khalid al-Falih in early June. This reportedly focused mainly on ensuring Astana’s continued commitment to the agreement by a group of major non-OPEC oil producers to reduce crude output in tandem with cuts by the Saudi-dominated cartel’s members.

The Kazakh government promised to trim output by 20,000 bpd from reference production of 1.7 million bpd but is reportedly seeking some recognition of the additional crude coming on stream from the newly commissioned giant Kashagan field, where output is due to roughly double to 370,000 bpd by the end of the year. According to statements carried in the local press, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on the sidelines of the ministerial meeting between SABIC’s CEO Yousef al-Benyan and Zhenis Osserbay, the chairman of United Chemical Co. (UCC) – the state firm spearheading Astana’s drive to develop the local downstream industry. The deal entails a feasibility study on the development polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP) and methanol projects at the Atyrau petrochemicals zone on the central Caspian coast.

UCC has been planning for several years to develop a multi-billion dollar polymer complex at the site to process associated gas currently flared from the onshore Tengiz oilfield, further down the west coast.
While the location is novel for SABIC, the company has made landmark moves over the past year towards realisation of longstanding plans for overseas expansion, signing provisional agreements to develop a coal-to-chemicals (CTC) plant in northwestern China and a facility in Texas fed by US shale gas.

Abu Dhabi’s MIC - formally established in early May through the merger of the government’s MDC and International Petroleum Investment Co. (IPIC) - also signed a co-operation agreement with UCC later that month which was said to include studying the joint development of a PE complex in Kazakhstan.

Kazakh officials reported that the deal had been preceded by talks in Vienna - where MIC-owned chemicals giant Borealis and affiliate OMV are based. Both OMV and the former MDC have some upstream experience in the Caspian state - with the former operating four producing onshore fields in the west.

As MRC reported earlier, in late May 2017, Kazakhstan and UAE agreed to prepare a joint project for polyethylene production. Thus, a memorandum on cooperation between the Unified Chemical Company ltd and Mubadala (UAE) was signed on 23 May 2017 in Astana, which will prescribe development of the draft project with technical and economic parameters.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- US specialty polymer firms Polytek Development Corp. and California Medical Innovations (CMI) are to merge their businesses, said Polytek.

The combined company will be led by Polytek CEO Jonathan Kane. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

"The merger of the two companies creates a portfolio of products for our industries, unmatched by any competitor in the world, with a coast-to-coast presence that allows us to respond more quickly than ever before," Kane said.

The companies said the merger will enhance their performance and provide a stronger nationwide presence. In addition, the collaboration of their R&D departments and sophisticated manufacturing facilities at both locations will offer more opportunities for customized solutions.

Based in Easton, Pennsylvania, Polytek makes specialty polymers, including polyurethane elastomers and casting resins, silicones, epoxies and latex, used primarily in mold-making and casting applications for the industrial, construction, entertainment, fine arts and technology sectors.

CMI of Pomona, California, formulates and compounds latex, plastisols and thermoplastic elastomers for a variety of industries.

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