Polisan Holding to restart the PET polymer plant of Spanish group La Seda

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A Turkish petrochemicals group, Polisan Holding plans to restart the former PET polymer plant of Spanish group La Seda de Barcelona in Volos, Greece by the end of this year, said Palstemart.

The 80,000 tpa Artenius Hellas facility, which was mothballed by the insolvent Barcelona-based group early this year, was bought in September by Polisan of Ankara for EUR8.6 mln. The Greek plant, which employed almost 100, has been renamed Polisan Hellas.

Polisan has been negotiating with potential PET customers for the PET and bottle preforms unit and local news reports the group’s CEO, Necmettin Bitlis, is confident that the market will accept more than 90% of the Volos output. The group is targeting sales in Greece, the Balkans and Turkey. The former La Seda plant suffered from a cutback in production capacity and dwindling local demand. The Spanish group has been seeking buyers for its PET operations and originally looked at possibly closing down the Greek unit altogether if it was unable to sell it.

We remind that La Seda has been in talks with creditors since last September after high material costs and excess supply of the PET plastic containers it makes put pressure on the business. As MRC wrote before, Invista Performance Technologies has acquired from La Seda de Barcelona SA intellectual property relating to its leading purified terephthalic acid (PTA), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and related process technologies, including the full rights to exclusively license the technologies in the region comprising Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Production of general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) and high impact polystyrene (HIPS) in Russia rose from January to November 2013 by 20% year on year, according to MRC ScanPlast.

The overall output of Russian GPPS and HIPS grades totalled 281,700 tonnes over the stated period. Increased capacity utilisation at Nizhnekamskneftekhim helped production to grow. At the same time, stronger domestic consumption of material and expansion in foreign markets made it possible to load the plant's production line. Thus, GPPS and HIPS consumption grew by 8% from January to November and totalled 313,700 tonnes.

As reported previously, increased production helped reduce purchasing in foreign markets and displace imported grades. Thus, imports of polystyrene (PS) dropped by 10%, whereas exports to foreign markets surged by 42%.

At the same time, Nizhnekamskneftekhim accounted for 78% of the total PS production in the country over the first eleven months of 2013, while this figure was 74% a year earlier. PGProf and Gazprom neftekhim Salavat accounted for 14% and 8%, respectively.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Imports of polypropylene (PP) to Belarus decreased by 5.1% in the first ten months of the year, compared with the same period in 2012, according to MRC DataScope.

PP imports to Belarus was about 7,100 tonnes in October, up by 4% from September. Nevertheless, total PP imports to Belarus fell to 67,200 tonnes in the first ten months of the year, compared with 70,900 tonnes in the same period in 2012.

Structure of PP imports to Belarus over the reported period was is as follows. October imports of homopolymer PP to Belarus was 5,100 tonnes, from 4,800 tonnes in September. Total imports of homopolymer PP to Belarus in the ten months of this year decreased to 50,000 tonnes, from 52,800 tonnes year on year.

Main importers of homopolymer PP to Belarus were Russian producers. Imports of Russian homopolymer PP over the reported period was 26,700 tonnes.

The second and third places took importers from Poland and Germany with 5,600 tonnes and 4,600 tonnes respectively.

October imports of propylene copolymers remained in the level of September at about 2,000 tonnes. Imports of propylene copolymers to Belarus increased to 18,300 tonnes in the first ten months of the year, compared with 18,000 tonnes year on year. The main importer of propylene copolymers to Belarus were producers from Germany with 12,600 tonnes in the first ten months of the year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Production of PET chips in Russia decreased by 9% to 377,300 tonnes in the first eleven months of the year, compared to the same period a year earlier, according to MRC ScanPlast.

November was no exception in the chain of shutdowns at Russian PET productions, which had begun in August 2013. Senege did not produce PET in November. Alco-Naphtha shut it PET production on 11 November.
At the same time, Russia's production of PET increased by 8% to 23,600 tonnes in November, from the October level. Production rates at Russian plants remained very low despite a slight increase in November compared with October level. According to MRC average capacity utilisation of Russia's PET production in November was 54.5%.

Alco-Naphtha and Senege resumed their PET production in the first half of December, following scheduled shutdowns for maintenance works and force majeure respectively.
MRC

MOSOCW (MRC) -- Huntsman Corporation, the US chemicals producer founded by Jon Huntsman Sr., and Rockwood Holdings, Inc. has announced completion of an important milestone in Huntsman’s pending acquisition of Rockwood’s Performance Additives and Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) businesses, reported Huntsman on its site.

The waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 has expired. Therefore, the antitrust review in the United States is now complete. The company continues to work through the regulatory process in the European Union.

As previously disclosed, Huntsman anticipates closing the transaction with Rockwood in the first half of 2014.

As MRC wrote earlier, Moody's Investors Service has lifted its outlook on Huntsman Corp., noting improvements across the chemical maker's main product lines. Moody's backed Huntsman's corporate family rating at Ba3, three notches into junk territory. The outlook was raised to positive, from stable.

Huntsman is a global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated chemicals. The company's operating companies manufacture products for a variety of global industries, including chemicals, plastics, automotive, aviation, textiles, footwear, paints and coatings, construction, technology, agriculture, health care, detergent, personal care, furniture, appliances and packaging.
MRC