Vopak launches concurrent bunkering services at its Singapore terminal

MOSCOW (MRC) — Vopak, the world’s largest independent storage tank operator, has launched a new service that allows tankers docking at its Singapore Sebarok oil terminal to refuel while simultaneously loading or discharging cargoes, said Reuters.

“The new concurrent bunkering service is in line with Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore’s directive to improve port efficiency,” Vopak said in a statement on Tuesday. The service eliminates the time needed to move tankers calling at the Sebarok terminal to designated anchorages in Singapore’s congested waters for refueling, also known as bunkering.

Prior to this, tanker vessels were required to sail to the anchorage to receive their bunkers, the Dutch oil and chemicals storage company said. Citing safety concerns, oil and gas tankers have been restricted to taking bunker fuels at designated anchorages in Singapore, a Singapore-based bunker trader said.

Increased concurrent bunkering at some of the city-state’s oil terminals could help ease congestion in its waterways, which are some of the busiest in the world. Singapore is the world’s largest marine refueling hub, selling on average 4.2 MMt of bunker fuels to more than 3,400 vessels each month this year.

Vopak’s concurrent bunkering service is the result of collaboration with BW Pacific, Sinanju Marine Services, and Unicore Fuel, the company said, and will be progressively expanded to its other terminals in Singapore. Vopak’s Sebarok oil terminal has 79 storage tanks with a total capacity of 7.94 MMbbl and nine berths for vessels, according to the company’s website.

Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Li Ling Film Co., a subsidiary of Lealea Enterprise Co., will build a new biaxially oriented polyamide (BOPA) films manufacturing plant in Changhua County's Fangyuan Township, Taiwan, reported Apic-online with reference to the Taipei Times.

Construction is planned to take place in five phases, with the first phase scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of next year. The first phase will have an installed monthly capacity of between 800 and 1,000 tons, said the report citing Lealea.

Estimated to cost about USD232-million, the plant will be Taiwan's "first" BOPA films manufacturing facility, Lealea said. It will be backed by the National Development Fund and Yuanta Financial Holding Co.
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MOSCOW (MRC) — Pennsylvania's governor asked US President Donald Trump to ease up on the state's oil refiners by waiving a rule requiring them to add renewable fuel to their products, following a week of pressure from farm-belt politicians not to change the rule, according to a letter released to the public on Monday, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Tom Wolf, a Democrat, wrote to Trump, a Republican, on Friday asking him to urge the US Environmental Protection Agency to waive the renewable fuel requirement for all refiners in the US Northeast until prices fall in a market where renewable fuel credits are traded. The market, where refiners can buy Renewable Identification Number credits to comply with their renewable fuel obligation, has attracted speculators, driving RIN prices higher.

"The high cost of compliance with the Renewable Fuel Standard...is undermining the continued viability of the oil refining sector in the Northeast," Wolf wrote. "What was once envisioned as a low-to-zero cost tool necessary to measure compliance with the RFS, has increased dramatically in cost due to speculation and trading on an unregulated market."

A White House spokeswoman referred requests for comment to the EPA. "The agency is reviewing the letter and will respond through the appropriate channels," an EPA spokesman said. The EPA had begun to mull reducing the amount of US biofuels fuel companies would have to add to their fuel supply, but the agency backed off a series of proposed changes to the nation's biofuels policy after a massive backlash from corn-state lawmakers worried the moves would undercut ethanol demand.

On Friday, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt told the Midwestern lawmakers the agency would not lower standards and would abandon a proposal to allow ethanol exports to count toward renewable fuel requirements, which would have lowered RIN prices.

"The Northeast and specifically Pennsylvania will experience significant economic impacts" if RIN prices don't go down, Wolf wrote, adding, "the nation's refinery sector may be almost eliminated in this region of the country, negatively affecting the manufacturing sector, the Commonwealth (of Pennsylvania) and regional economies."
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- South Korea’s Lotte Chemical Corp. sees the global petrochemical market remaining ‘stable to firm’ out to 2020 thanks to low oil prices, but its chief executive wants to diversify the company’s feedstock to help it cut costs, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

South Korea’s second-biggest petrochemicals maker has benefited from low oil prices as its main feedstock, naphtha, is derived from crude oil, which has a bigger influence on its business than supply and demand, Lotte Chemical Chief Executive Officer Kim Gyo-hyun said at the Reuters Global Commodities Summit.

"By 2020, petrochemical markets are likely to be stable to firm as oil prices are expected to remain stable at USD60," Kim said in his first interview since starting as CEO in March.

"Given that, the profitability of petrochemical makers with naphtha crackers, like us, is likely to change little."

The petrochemical maker is on track to increase its global ethylene capacity by 40% to 4.5 MMtpy by the end of 2018, expanding its Yeosu plant in South Korea and building an ethane cracker with Axiall in Louisiana.

The plant in Louisiana will help it diversify away from mainly naphtha as a feedstock at its plants.

"Of the expected total capacity of 4.5 MMt, if we make 1.5 MMt with ethane crackers, it will help us diversify 30% of our raw materials to ethane or liquefied petroleum gas," the chief executive said.

"By doing so, we can make stable profits and become a sustainable petrochemical company even if oil prices rise to USD100."

As MRC wrote before, in 2016, Lotte Chemical Corp. finalized the takeover of Samsung Group’s chemical units.The company said that it paid for money to acquire Samsung SDI Chemical on Apr. 29 and completed the acquisition of Samsung Group’s chemical businesses in about six months after the announcement of "Big Deal" in October 2015.

Established in 1976, Lotte Chemical has been solidifyng its position by localizing cutting-edge petrochemical technologies. Among the high-quality products produced by Lotte Chemical through its efficient processes are ethylene, HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, PP, functional resin, EG, SM, PIA, PET, etc. Lotte Chemical’s products are being distributed to 152 countries around the world. With the acquisition of Pakistan’s PTA in 2009, Artenius in the UK in 2010 and Titan Chemical Corp., Lotte Chemical is now able to efficiently supply excellent products to an increasing number of countries. The company is further accelerating its efforts to strengthen its global competitiveness by establishing overseas branches in Hong Kong, Russia, and USA, along with the sales corporation in China for active sales activities both in domestic and abroad.
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According to the National Bureau of Statistics of Belarus, August 2017 PE imports to Belarus dropped to 9,600 tonnes from 10,600 tonnes a month earlier. Local companies reduced their purchasing of Middle Eastern LLDPE. Overall PE imports reached 82,000 tonnes in January-August 2017, compared to 83,700 tonnes a year earlier. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) accounted for the greatest increase in shipments.

The structure of PE imports to Belarus by grades looked the following way over the stated period.

August LDPE imports decreased to 3,600 tonnes from 3,800 tonnes a month earlier. Local companies reduced their PE purchasing in Russia. Overall imports of this PE grade into Belarus totalled 25,800 tonnes in the first eight months of 2017, compared to 19,300 tonnes a year earlier. An accident at the local producer's ethylene unit and, as a result, a major fall in capacity utilisation at LDPE production since July 2016 was the main reason for such a great increase in imports.

August LLDPE imports were 1,600 tonnes versus 2,800 tonnes a month earlier, local companies significantly reduced their purchasing of Middle Eastern PE for the production of stretch films. Thus, overall LLDPE imports to Belarus exceeded 25,800 tonnes in January-August 2017, whereas this figure was 34,900 tonnes a year earlier.

August imports of high density polyethylene (HDPE) grew to 4,300 tonnes from 4,000 tonnes a month earlier. Local companies almost doubled their purchasing of PE from European producers. Thus, HDPE imports totalled 30,500 tonnes in January-August 2017, up by 3.1% year on year.

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