Lanxess increases prices for Keltan EPDM elastomers in Asia

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Lanxess Keltan Elastomers (KEL) business unit will implement a price increase for all of its Keltan EPDM grades of up to USD150/tonne, according to the company's press release.

The price rise, which only affects the Asian region, is due to rising costs, especially for raw materials.

EPDM is used above all in the automotive industry as door sealants, hoses, belts or anti-vibration parts. The product is also used in the plastics modification, cable and wire, construction and oil additives industries. Its properties include very low density, good resistance to heat, oxidation, chemicals and weathering as well as good electrical insulation properties.

The Keltan Elastomers business unit is part of Lanxess’ Performance Polymers segment, which recorded sales of EUR 5.18 billion in fiscal 2012.

As MRC wrote before, in July 2013, German specialty chemicals company Lanxess celebrated the opening of its first production facility in Russia. In the new plant at the Lipetsk site, Lanxess subsidiary Rhein Chemie manufactures polymer-bound rubber additives for the markets in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), primarily for the automotive and tire industries. A production facility for the bladders used in tire production is to be added in 2016. The overall investment volume in euros amounts to a seven-digit figure and 40 new jobs will be created at the new plant in the medium term.

Lanxess is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 9.1 billion in 2012. The company is currently represented at 50 production sites worldwide. The core business of LANXESS is the development, manufacturing and marketing of plastics, rubber, intermediates and specialty chemicals. The Butyl Rubber business unit is part of Lanxess’ Performance Polymers segment, which recorded sales of EUR 5.2 billion in 2012.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US major ConocoPhillips has ramped up net profit by 38% in the third quarter despite flat production, with a pair of asset sales and higher prices delivering increased earnings, said Upstreamonline.

The Houston-based explorer earned USD2.5 billion net between 1 June and 30 September, compared to USD1.8 billion during the same period in 2012.

During the quarter the explorer completed the USD720 million sale of the Clyden oil sands leasehold in Canada and the USD600 million sale of the Phoenix Park midstream asset in Trinidad and Tobago.

When these dispositions are excluded, ConocoPhillips’ net profit rose to USD1.8 billion from USD1.7 billion in the third quarter of 2012.

While output was flat for the quarter, chief executive Ryan Lance said the company had lined up new projects such as Canada's Christina Lake Phase E and Norway's Ekofisk South that would ultimately deliver a 3% to 5% production rise.

"We successfully completed our major turnaround activity and have brought two major projects on line, with another three major projects expected to start production in the coming months," he said.

Production from continuing operations was unchanged from a year ago at 1.47 million barrels of oil equivalent, as new output was offset by field decline and the ongoing closure at Libya’s El Sider terminal.

Boosted average realised prices of USD69.68 per boe versus USD65.62 a year ago sent earnings upward despite the flat production, aided by a greater proportion of production in liquids and in higher-margin output areas.

On a nine-month basis, profits from continuing operations rose to USD5.3 billion from USD5 billion in the first nine months of 2012 with near-level production in both periods.

The explorer has chopped 50,000 boe per day off its expected output for the fourth quarter because of Libya, but it still expects annual output to range between 1.5 and 1.51 million boe per day.

The company's next quarterly results will be dominated by its USD8.4 billion stake sale at Kazakh giant Kashagan, which has now completed, ConocoPhillips announced.

ConocoPhillips Company is an American multinational energy corporation with its headquarters located in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, Texas in the United States. It is the world's largest independent pure-play exploration & production company and is also one of the Fortune 500 companies. ConocoPhillips was created through the merger of Conoco Inc. and the Phillips Petroleum Company on August 30, 2002 and was the fifth largest integrated oil company until spinning off its downstream assets to Phillips 66.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indorama Ventures has notified the Stock Exchange of Thailand of the establishment of four new wholly-owned subsidiaries, said Apic-online.

The new subsidiaries are Indorama Ventures USA Holdings LP, Indorama Ventures AlphaPet Holdings Inc., Indorama Ventures Europe BV and Indorama Ventures Packaging (Philippines) Corp.

Indorama noted that the three holding companies have been created as part of a restructuring.

As MRC wrote before, Indorama Ventures (IVL) completed the acquisition for the PET resin assets of PT. Polypet Karyapersada based in Cilegon, Indonesia, at a site with a capacity of 100,800 tonnes per annum.

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited is a Thailand-based holding company. It invests in companies in domestic and international markets across four business areas: companies engaged in the manufacture and sale of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is used for beverage containers and food packaging; companies engaged in the manufacture and sale of polyester fiber and yarn, which are used for textile and industrial applications; companies that produce and trade purified terephthalic acid (PTA), which is a white powder used in the production of polyester products, and companies that produce and trade wool. As of December 31, 2010, the Company had 23 factories worldwide, with a total production capacity of 1,648,000 tons of PET per year, as well as 280,800 tons of polyester fiber and yarn per year, 1,590,000 tons of PTA per year, and 5,900 tons of wool per year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP has awarded McJunkin Red Man Corporation, a subsidiary of MRC Global, a framework agreement for the supply of pipes, valves and fittings (PVF) and valve automation for Chevron Phillips Chemical's US Gulf Coast Petrochemicals Project, according to Plastemart.

Chevron Phillips Chemical has announced that its US Gulf Coast Petrochemicals Project is expected to include a 1.5 million metric tons/year ethane cracker that will be built at the Chevron Phillips Chemical's Cedar Bayou facility in Baytown, Texas, and two new polyethylene facilities, each with an annual capacity of 500,000 metric tons (1.1 billion pounds), that will be built on a site near the Chevron Phillips Chemical Sweeny facility in Old Ocean, Texas.

"We are very pleased that Chevron Phillips Chemical has placed their confidence in MRC Global to supply their PVF and valve automation requirements for their US Gulf Coast Project," MRC Global's Chairman, President and CEO Andrew Lane said. "We look forward to servicing Chevron Phillips Chemical's needs for this very important project."

As MRC reported earlier, in August this year, Chevron Phillips received air permits from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for its plan to build a new ethane cracker and polyethylene (PE) units in Texas. Additionally, the company said it received a greenhouse gas permit from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the cracker earlier this year.

Chevron Phillips is a chemical producer jointly owned by Chevron Corporation and Phillips 66. The company was formed July 1, 2000 by merging the chemicals operations of both Chevron Corporation and Phillips Petroleum Company. A 50/50 venture, the company continues to be governed by a board of directors composed of two members from each of the parent companies. Chevron Phillips is headquartered at The Woodlands, Texas (a northern suburb of Houston), and is a major producer of ethylene, propylene, polyethylene, polypropylene, K-Resin(r) SBC, ryton polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), alpha-olefins, polyalphaolefins, aromatic compounds and a range of specialty chemicals.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Concern Stirol (Gorlivka) suspended its polystyrene (PS) production in late October, having stopped its capacities for a month long maintenance works, according to MRC analysts.

The plant was shut down because of the shortage of styrene monomer (SM), the main feedstock. Sources at the company said that the producer has not purchased SM yet. The sources also noted the company is not going to produce PS in November.

The outage of Stirol will enhance the ongoing shortage of expandable polystyrene (EPS) in the first half of November further.

Traders have already reported the deficit of EPS in Ukraine, which is complicated by the shipment disruptions of Russian and European EPS, which is more expensive.

Concern Stirol is the only Ukrainian producer of polystyrene. The company produces expandable polystyrene (EPS), general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) and high impact polystyrene (HIPS). Stirol's production capacities of HIPS and GPPS are 25,000 tonnes/year. EPS capacities of the plant are 50,000 tonnes/year.

MRC