Brazil's Cosan buys UK lubricants firm from Exxon

Nelson Gomes, executive director of the Cosan group, said the deal was part of the company's plan to diversify its revenues and expand abroad. Cosan is in a joint venture with Royal Dutch Shell Plc called Raizen that combines the company's sugar, ethanol and fuel distribution assets in Brazil.

MRC

North American sales in Bayer MaterialScience advanced by 9.6% to EUR 2109 mln (USD2932 mln). In 2011, Bayer invested EUR 528 mln (USD734 mln) in research and development in North America and increased its capital expenditures by 32% to EUR 420 mln (USD584 mln). Some of the announced investments and key activities in 2011 included a USD120 mln process technology and energy efficiency improvement project at Bayer MaterialScience's Baytown, Texas, facility -- Bayer's largest production site in the U.S.


MRC

(basf) -- BASF will increase prices of its Ultramid extrusion and fiber polyamides in Europe by EUR 150 per metric ton with immediate effect.

The price adjustment is necessary due to the strong increase in raw material costs. BASF continues its efforts to offset rising costs in a difficult environment. However, the extraordinary market conditions force BASF to implement this price increase.

BASF's Ultramid extrusion and fiber polyamides are used for producing films for food packaging and industrial use, for manufacturing monofilaments, for wire jacketing, for carpet and textile fibers.

MRC

(lanxess) -- Specialty chemicals company Lanxess is to increase its prices worldwide for its Baypren branded chloroprene rubbers by up to EUR 160 / USD 210 per metric ton effective March 1, 2012, in response to steeply rising raw material and energy costs, announced the company.

Chloroprene rubber (CR) is suitable as a solid rubber for producing cable sheathing, air spring bellows, hoses and belts and as a latex for the manufacture of adhesives.

The Technical Rubber Products business unit is part of Lanxess' Performance Polymers segment, which recorded sales of EUR 3,782 million in fiscal 2010.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- In January, the imports of PET to Ukraine increased by 3,600 tonnes and made about 6,000 tonnes which was by 1.5 times more than in December 2011, according to MRC Datascope.

December shipments were a record low for the year, which resulted from the accumulated stock balance in the market. In January, the situation about inventories did not change significantly, but the converters increased purchases to be ready for a coming season.


The structure of supply also changed significantly. JBF Industries (UAE) had suspended the supply of PET over the third month. In 2011, this producer was the second largest importer in Ukraine. The South Korean material was not supplied to the Ukrainian market.

In January, Ukrainian converters turned to the Chinese PET. The volumes of granulate shipments from China rose by 8 times and made about 2,600 tonnes. The price was the main reason for this choice. China was the last Asian country which increased the price of the material. At the end of December the Chinese bottle PET was offered with a discount compared to the South Korean material.


Over the second month, supplies of Gatranova, Pakistani producer, have been increasing. In January, there were supplied about 1,300 tonnes of granulate of Gatranova A-80 grade. As per converters, the main volume of the contracted material will arrive to the market in February-March. In this regard, the volume of the Pakistani products is expected to increase in this period.

In addition, for the first time over the last 5 months, the market was entered by the Russian PET grade Ekopet 80. However, the share of this producer in the total volume of deliveries is quite small. In January, the plant delivered about 60 tonnes of PET. According to traders, it is quite difficult to compete with Asian granulation. First of all, because the Asian price quotations are much more preferable.

mrcpast.com