Russian Sanors shows interest in mega refinery project in Vietnam

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russian petrochemical company SamaraNefteOrgSintez (Sanors) has shown interest in Thai PTT's mega refining and petrochemical project in Vietnam's Binh Dinh province, reported Apic-online with reference to the Binh Dinh provincial government's statement.

Sanors chief, Igor Soglayev, and his delegation met Binh Dinh government officials at the proposed 660,000 b/d project site. "Igor Soglayev said this project is very attractive to investors, but it needs clear commitments of the involved governments," it said.

The mega refining and petrochemical project in Vietnam's Binh Dinh province was proposed by Thailand's top energy company PTT in November last year. It expects to complete the feasibility study for the proposed complex in the Vietnamese central province of Binh Dinh in April 2014, which will then be submitted for Vietnamese government's approval.

Soglayev has asked Binh Dinh officials to meet Igor Sechin when the Rosneft president accompanies Russian President Vladimir Putin on his visit to Vietnam starting November 12.

The provincial government will also meet PTT officials on Tuesday, according to the provincial government officials.

Total investment for the project is expected to range from USD25 billion to USD30 billion. PTT would finance part of it with the remainder sourcing from other potential investors and financiers, Sukrit Surabotsopon, Senior Executive Vice President of Petrochemicals & Refining Business Unit at PTT, said in a press briefing in Binh Dinh on August 15.

As MRC wrote previously, Sanors and Russia's state-owned giant Rosneft in June signed a heads of agreement, under which the companies intend to create a joint venture that will incorporate Rosneft's gas-processing assets and Sanors' petrochemical assets in Russia's Samara and Orenburg regions. One of the joint venture's main objectives will be to build a world-scale petrochemical complex in the Samara region.

Russian Sanors produces a wide variety of petrochemical products like phenol, acetone, alpha-methyl-styrene, ethylene, synthetic ethanol.

PTT Asahi Chemical Company Limited (PTTAC), a company of the PTT Group, is a joint venture of PTT Public Company Limited (PTT), Thailand chemicals producer , and Marubeni Corporation (Marubeni) of Japan, one of the world's leading petrochemicals traders with the shareholding ratio of 48.5%, 48.5% and 3% respectively. PTTAC receives joint support from the shareholders with strengths in technology, feedstock, operations and marketing.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Showa Denko and KH Neochem Co., Ltd. have agreed to dissolve their joint venture, Japan Ethyl Acetate Co., Ltd. (JEA), said Plastemart.

JEA was established in August 2003 for the purpose of strengthening the foundations of the two parent companies' ethyl acetate businesses. JEA began commercial production in April 2004.

While demand for ethyl acetate has grown inside and outside Japan since then, the business environment has changed dramatically, reflecting the rise in raw material costs and capacity expansions in neighboring countries.

Under the circumstances, SDK and KHNC have concluded, after mutual consultation, that it is difficult to continue JEA's operations. Thus, the two companies have agreed to stop ethyl acetate production at JEA, and dissolve the company.

As MRC wrote before, Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), a major petrochemical producer, and Showa Denko K.K. (SDK) have entered into a strategic partnership in the Fullerene business. As part of the arrangement, SDK acquired from Mitsubishi Corp a 50% stake in Frontier Carbon Corporation (FCC), a producer and marketer of Fullerene products, thereby making FCC a 50-50 joint venture between MC and SDK.

Showa Denko K.K. is a major manufacturer and marketer of chemical products serving a wide range of fields ranging from heavy industries, to the electronic and computer industries. The company has overseas operations and a joint venture with Netherlands-based Montell and Nippon Petrochemicals to manufacture and market polypropylenes (PP).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Dow Chemical Company presented its latest technological advances and the comprehensive portfolio of solutions for Russia and former Soviet Unionin at the 17th international chemical exhibition "Khimia-2013", reported the company on its site.

"With our continuous presence in Russia and CIS for almost 40 years, today we are proud to say that Dow is a recognized leader on the Russian market having two manufacturing facilities and supplying our diversified solutions for almost all the market segments. We view Russia and CIS as one of the largest growth potential regions in the world - given its size, vast natural resources, growing population, proximity to very large population areas such as China, India and Western Europe," said Peter de Groot, general manager of Dow in Russia and CIS.

During Khimia-2013 two Dow’s businesses - Dow Oil & Gas and Dow Microbial Control - presented a wide range of solutions for the oil & gas industry.

Besides, Dow and JSC SIBUR Holding, recognized leading manufacturers of basic and specialty chemistry, signed a framework agreement which clarifies the companies' collaboration in the spheres of fuel ethers, process technologies of sorption and others. The parties aim to introduce at SIBUR's sites Dow's latest technologies and solutions that increase efficiency of production processes and ensure the quality of future product.

Also, Dow, together with other major coatings producers and raw materials suppliers - LLC Tikkurila, JSC Yaroslavskie Kraski, CJSC Akzo Nobel Decor and DuPont Titanium Technologies - signed a Charter to form the Quality Paint Association in Russia. The Association aims to unite major producers of paints and varnishes, raw materials suppliers and other players of the coatings and paints industry in Russia - to advance international quality, and safety and environmental standards of paints on the Russian market bringing the market closer to Western international standards.

As MRC informed before, Dow Elastomers, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, has recently unveiled a breakthrough compatibilization technology that offers a tuneable range of new-to-the-world, highly effective solutions for combining both non-polar and polar polymers with polypropylene. INTUNE PP-based Olefin Block Copolymers from Dow offer highly effective solutions for combining polyethylene (PE), polyolefin elastomers (POE) and polar materials such as ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) and polyamide (PA) with polypropylene (PP) to provide the best benefits of each material, while minimizing individual trade-off properties.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene (PS), polyurethane, polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and synthetic rubber.

With almost 40 years of continued presence in Russia and CIS, Dow keeps growing the business, while significantly accelerating the growth of the chemical industry in the region. In 2012, Dow had annual sales of over 700 mln. USD and employed approximately 260 highly qualified specialists in Russia and CIS. In addition to its representation offices in Moscow and Sochi (Russia), Kiev (Ukraine) and Astana (Kazakhstan), the company has two manufacturing facilities in Ramenskoye (Moscow Region) for the production of additives for paints and coatings, and in Vladimir where the Dow Izolan joint venture company inaugurated in 2009 its new, large and state-of-the-art manufacturing plant for the production of polyurethane systems.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russian producers of dioctyl phthalate (DOP) plasticiser managed to stabilise the market.
Price offers for November delivery of DOP plasticiser was left at the rollover from the October level, as per MRC analysts.

Following price reduction of Rb1,000/tonne in October, Russian producers managed to stabilise the domestic market.
Many producers said DOP price offers for November were practically left at the rollover from the previous month.

Spot price for Russian DOP plasticiser was heard at Rb69,000-70,500/tonne FCA, including VAT. Demand for DOP plasticiser has weakened but there is not any shortage.

DOP is the dominant plasticizer used in PVC, providing low cost.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- European polypropylene (PP) producers have reduced prices following lower prices for propylene, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

November contrast PP prices in Europe were agreed by EUR30/tonne lower from October. European producers announced PP price cuts for the CIS markets by EUR30-40/tonne amid lower feedstock prices.

Deals for European homopolymer of propylene (homopolymer PP) to be shipped in November were being negotiated in the range of EUR1,130-1,200/tonne FCA this week. Prices for block copolymers of propylene (PP-block) were heard in the range of EUR1,200-1,260/tonne FCA.

Some market participants were not in a hurry to contract European PP, hoping to achieve even lower prices. European producers have recently adoped a practice of reducing prices further in the middle of the month.
MRC