Fluor wins engineering contract from BP and Shell for upgrade project in South Africa

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Fluor has been awarded a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract by South African Petroleum Refineries (SAPREF) for its Clean Fuels 2 project in Durban, South Africa, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing with reference to officials.

The undisclosed contract value was booked in the first quarter of 2013.

This new contract will be the first to be executed in Africa under Shell’s enterprise framework agreement with Fluor that encompasses engineering and project management services throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

The project will enable a substantial upgrade of the SAPREF refinery, thereby improving the quality of transportation fuels by reducing levels of sulfur, benzene and aromatics and meeting enhanced legislative requirements.

The agreement allows for the potential of an engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) contract to be signed at a later date.

As MRC wrote previously, Royal Dutch Shell had recently announced it plans to sell its only oil refinery in Australia, as the local industry struggles to compete with low-cost operators in Asia.

SAPREF is a joint venture between Shell SA Refining and BP Southern Africa. It is the largest crude oil refinery in the region, representing 35% of South Africa’s refining capacity.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sahara Petrochemicals Co. posted net earnings of SAR 125 million for Q1-13, soaring198 % y/y from SAR 42 million and 95% q/q from SAR 64 million, said Sahara.

Net profit for the first quarter of year 2013 reached an amount of SAR 125 million, compared with SAR 42 million for the same period in the previous year with an increase of 198%, and compared with SAR 64 million for previous quarter, with a an increase of 95 %.

Gross profit for the first quarter amounted to SAR 77 million compared with a gross loss of SAR (37.44) for the same period in the previous year.

The operational profit for the first quarter amounted to SAR 42 million compared with an operational loss of SAR (57.72) million for the same quarter of the previous year.

Earnings per share for the first three months of 2013 reached SAR 0.29 compared with SAR 0.10 for the same period in the previous year.

Increase of the net profit during this quarter compared with the same period of the previous year is mainly attributed to the improvement of the performance of Al Wahas plant in addition to the improvement of the results of the other companys affiliates due to the increase of sales prices, relative decrease of the feedstock prices and relative stability of production rates.

Increase of the net profit during this quarter compared with the previous quarter is mainly attributed to the improvement of the performance of Al Wahas plant in addition to the improvement of the results of the other companys affiliates due to the increase of sales prices, relative decrease of the feedstock prices and relative stability of production rates.

Increase of gross profits attained in the first quarter of 2013 is mainly attributed to the improvement of the performance of Al Waha Petrochemicals Company, an affiliate of Sahara , after completing the periodic maintenance of the propylene plant which was executed in the mid of the last year which apparently was reflected in the increase of the produced quantities besides producing new grades of polypropylene with high financial returns, in addition to the increase of the sales prices there was relative decrease of the feedstock prices.

As MRC wrote earlier, Sahara Petrochemicals plans to start up four joint venture plants over the next two years, completing the company’s initial expansion programme in Jubail.

Sahara Petrochemicals performs participation and supervises foundation and establishing several limited liability companies in Al Jubail Industrial City with the participation of Saudi and foreign companies that have the modern skills and technologies; to produce and market its chemical and petrochemical products such as propylene, polypropylene, ethylene and polyethylene.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Gruppo Mossi & Ghisolfi began building the world’s first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant in northwestern Italy, the company said.

The first stone for the EUR110 million (USD159 million) factory was laid today, Tortona, Italy-based Mossi & Ghisolfi said on the Bio Crescentino website. The refinery will produce 40,000 to 45,000 tons of ethanol a year from about 10 times that weight of a bamboo-like grass called Arundo Donax, it said.

The Crescentino project is a step toward commercializing second-generation biofuels, which aren’t made from food crops, unlike conventional bio-ethanol. The plant, scheduled to open in 2012, will be 10 times the size of the largest trial facilities operating now, Novozymes A/S said in a statement.

The refinery "signals the dawn of a new green era," said Poul Ruben Andersen, marketing director of bioenergy at Bagsvaerd, Denmark-based Novozymes, which makes the enzymes needed to help create the fuel. "There is a cure for the world’s addiction to fossil fuels."

Novozymes said the volume of fuel produced will amount to about 13 million gallons (50 million liters) a year.
When Arundo Donax isn’t available, wheat stalks and rice husks will be used, Mossi & Ghisolfi said on the project’s website. A biomass electricity plant on the same site will burn waste material to generate about 10 megawatts of electricity, according to the company.

Novozymes Chief Executive Officer Steen Riisgaard said in February that the market for cellulosic ethanol is set to ramp up from 2013, with London-based BP Plc (BP/) and Abengoa SA (ABG) of Spain planning U.S. plants by then, and refineries are also possible in Brazil and China.

As MRC wrote earlier, M&G Group, announces it has signed a Licensee Agreement with Alpek, S.A.B. de C.V. (Alpek) for IntegRex PTA technology, said the producer in its statement. The technology will be used in the construction of M&G's previously announced 1,200,000 MT per annum PTA plant at Corpus Christi, Texas. M&G also announces, Alpek has purchased for a price of USD350,000,000, a multiyear sourcing agreement covering rights to 400,000 MT of PET (made with 336,000 MT of integrated PTA) per year.

M&G Group is a family owned chemical engineering and manufacturing group headquartered in Tortona, Italy. M&G Group operates in the PET resin industry in the Americas through its wholly-owned holding company, Mossi & Ghisolfi International S.A. (M&G International). M&G International is presently a leading producer of PET resin for packaging applications in the Americas, with a production capacity in 2012 of approximately 1.6 million tons per year. Thanks to its proprietary Easy-up PET Technology M&G International currently owns the world's largest single line PET plants in Altamira, Mexico (single line of 490,000 MT/year nominal capacity) and Suape, Brazil (single line of 650,000 MT/year nominal capacity).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Specialty chemical maker Albemarle Corp. on Wednesday said its first-quarter net income dropped more than 26%, as business was slow in some segments, said Theadvocate.

The Baton Rouge company also warned that orders remain weak for products used for consumer electronics, construction and European automobiles.

The company earned almost USD84 million, or 94% per share, for the quarter that ended March 31. That was down from USD114.3 million, or USD1.27 per share, during the same period a year earlier.

Revenue fell 10 percent to USD641.6 million from USD711.7 million a year earlier.

Revenue in its largest business, its catalysts segment, fell 20% to USD235.5 million because of lower metals surcharges, a less-profitable mix of products and lower volumes. Profit in that segment dropped 32% from a year ago to USD57 million.

"First-quarter results matched our expectation that 2013 would begin the year slowly," CEO Luke Kissam said. The company said demand was strong for drilling fluids.

Albemarle’s polymer solutions business reported net sales of USD214.8 million for the quarter, a 6% decrease due to its exit from the phosphorus flame retardants business in the second quarter. Higher sales volumes were offset by lower prices, the company said, and profits fell 18% to USD45.3 million.

In fine chemistry, net sales were up 1 percent to USD191.3 million but profits were down 24% to USD31.4 million due to "unfavorable pricing, lower factory operating rates and timing of custom services projects."

As MRC wrote earlier, Albemarle Corporation introduced a new polymeric flame retardant for use in extruded (XPS) and expanded (EPS) polystyrene applications. With this, the company has expanded its Earthwise platform of sustainable product. This new technology, licensed from Dow Global Technologies LLC (DGTL), a subsidiary ofThe Dow Chemical Company, will be commercialized under Albemarle's Earthwise brand and provides a stable, high molecular weight, non-PBT (Persistent, Bioaccumulative, Toxic) polymeric technology for use in these demanding applications.

Albemarle Corporation, headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is a leading global developer, manufacturer and marketer of highly-engineered specialty chemicals for consumer electronics, petroleum refining, utilities, packaging, construction, automotive/transportation, pharmaceuticals, crop protection, food-safety and custom chemistry services. Albemarle is committed to global sustainability and is advancing its eco-practices and solutions in its three business segments, Polymer Solutions, Catalysts and Fine Chemistry.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Demand will remain weak in the coming quarters, especially in Europe, Akzo Nobel Chief Financial Officer Keith Nichols said Thursday following publication of the company's first quarter earnings, according to The Wall Street Journal.

"This will remain with us for a while", Mr. Nichols said in an interview, adding that for the second and third quarter the traditional positive seasonal effect for decorative paints is expected.

In the first quarter, the Dutch chemicals and paints company suffered from volume pressure in all three its business units due to weak demand. Quarterly revenue dropped by 7%, and operating income by 8%.

Akzo Nobel is currently working to boost efficiency to improve operating results in line with its financial targets for 2015. An important element is centralizing back-office functions.

In the past decade, Akzo Nobel expanded through several acquisitions, most notably U.K. paint maker ICI in 2008 for 8 billion pounds (USD12.2 billion).

The current improvement program is set to deliver EUR500 million in structural cost savings by the end 2013.

We remind that, as MRC reported earlier, the company planned to expand production of corrosion-resistant coatings for the aerospace industry in Turkey by absorbing smaller enterprises. The company is going to double its annual sales in the country up to EUR300 million during the next five years, producing annually 160 thousand tonnes of coatings.

Akzo Nobel N.V., trading as AkzoNobel, is a Dutch multinational, active in the fields of decorative paints, performance coatings and specialty chemicals. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the company has activities in more than 80 countries, and employs approximately 55,000 people.
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