Lanxess raises prices for EPDM rubber

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Keltan Elastomers business unit of specialty chemicals group Lanxess will globally raise its prices for all of its Keltan EPDM grades (ethylene propylene diene monomer), effective April 1, 2014, reported the company on its site.

The price adjustment for EPDM is USD150/tonne.

EPDM, which is offered under the brand name Keltan, is used in the automotive industry for the manufacture of door sealants, hoses, belts or anti-vibration parts. The product is also used in plastic modification, wire and cable, construction and oil additives. Its properties include very low density, good resistance to heat, oxidation, chemicals and weathering as well as good electrical insulation properties.

As MRC wrote previously, Lanxess' KEL already raised its prices for all of its Keltan EPDM grades in Europe, Middle East and Africa from 1 February, 2014. The price adjustment for EPDM is EUR125/tonne.

The Keltan elastomers business unit is part of Lanxess’ Performance Polymers segment, which recorded sales of EUR 4.49 billion in fiscal 2013.

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. Lanxess' sales totalled EUR 8.3 billion in 2013.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Preparations to start the construction of an industrial complex for polyethylene and polypropylene production in Turkmenistan's Kyyanly seaside settlement are underway, said Azernews.

The news was announced by the Turkmen government on March 25. "This project is planned to be implemented with the participation of a Japanese consortium and a South Korean company," the Turkmen government said.

The issue was discussed at a government meeting during which Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov pointed out that the construction of this facility has been determined by the existence of huge natural gas resources and plans for the diversification of the country's export potential.

"Approving the project for a new gas and chemical complex, the Head of State gave his instructions to hold strict control over the timely fulfillment of all tasks related to the country's fuel and energy complex which is the strategic sector of the national economy," the government said.

A number of industrial facilities worth USD10 billion, including a gas chemical complex in Kyyanly, will be built with Japanese capital in Turkmenistan in the near future.

The Turkmen State Bank for Foreign Economic Affairs and the Japanese Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) signed a cooperation agreement to implement the large-scale project in September 2013. The project will be implemented as part of the oil and gas industry development project for the period of up to 2030.

Turkmenistan's chemical industry is one of the fastest growing sectors of its national economy, having enormous resource potential.

Turkmenistan is working on the development of a large project for the establishment of major gas, chemical, and petrochemical industries in the next ten years.

Work on the utilization of associated petroleum gas and the extraction of liquefied natural gas, synthetic fluids, and electricity are of great importance as well.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- CB&I has announced it has been awarded a contract by Shandong Sincier Petrochemical Co., Ltd. for the license and engineering design of a grassroots propane and butane dehydrogenation unit to be built in Dongying, Shandong Province, China, according to Plastemart.

The unit will use the CATOFIN dehydrogenation technology offered from CB&I and Clariant's tailor-made CATOFIN catalyst to process feeds containing 165,000 mtpa of propane and 250,000 mtpa of iso-butane for the joint production of propylene and isobutylene.

"This project award demonstrates the flexibility of the CATOFIN technology and catalyst to allow customers to co-process multiple feed compositions at optimal conditions for the highest yields with proven operational reliability," said Daniel McCarthy, President of CB&I's Technology operating group. "The new CATOFIN unit will enable Shandong Sincier to process cost effective LPG feedstocks."

Propylene and isobutylene will be used as building blocks to produce a variety of plastics and solvents.

As MRC wrote previously, Shandong Huachao Chemical Co. will use the UOP C4 Oleflex process to produce isobutylene. The Shandong Huachao project will be the sixth C4 Oleflex unit in China. The new units is expected to start up in 2016. The Shandong Huachao facility will process 200,000 metric tons of isobutane.

We also remind that Honeywell's UOP granted the third technology license for its breakthrough methanol-to-olefins (MTO) technology to China's Shandong Yangmei Hengtong Chemicals. The Chinese company will use Honeywell UOP's advanced MTO process to convert methanol from gasified coal into ethylene and propylene.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Celanese Corporation, a global technology and specialty materials company and a global leader in vinyl acetate ethylene (EVA) emulsions, has announced that it will increase the price of all GUR and GHR UHMW-PE grades sold in China, reported the company on its site.

This price increase will be 15% and come in force on 1 May, 2014, or as contracts allow.

As MRC informed earlier, Celanese Corporation will increase the price of vinyl acetate-based emulsions sold in Asia. PVAc homopolymer and (EVA) emulsions will increase by Yuan 240/tonne for China and USD40/tonne for Asia outside of China effective April 1, 2014, or as contracts allow. This price increase affects all applications including, but not limited to, adhesives, paints and coatings, building and construction, glass fiber, carpet and paper.

Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications. Based in Dallas, Texas, Celanese employs approximately 7,400 employees worldwide and had 2013 net sales of USD6.5 billion.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Deceuninck Group, the European vinyl profile extruder, plans to invest around 20 million euros (USD27.6 million) to expand its manufacturing operations in Turkey over the next two years, said Plasticsonline.

The group, which has seen steady sales growth in Turkey, despite national political crises there, will construct a new profiles plant with a capacity in the city of Izmir which will replace its existing Egepen Deceuninck plant in the city.
Deceuninck says it was prompted to invest in the new facility at this time because its current Izmir unit with a capacity of 50,000 metric tons per year has become too small for future expansion in the Turkish market. The new plant will be able to handle an additional 15,000 metric tons.

The company, based in Hooglede, Belgium, has made Turkey its export hub, feeding new emerging markets in Asia, Africa and Latin America. In 2012, it launched a warehouse in India and recently opened another in Santiago, Chile.
Deceuninck expects to complete the move to the new plant in Menemen near Izmir by the end of next year. The vacated plant buildings will then be put up for sale, a spokesman told EPN.

Deceuninck estimates the warehouse and foiling manufacturing section of the new plant will be finished in 2014 with its extrusion and compounding sections to be completed in 2015.

The Belgian group operates a second smaller plant in Turkey at Kocaeli. It manufactures Deceuninck’s Winsa brand window system and opened in 2007.

In Turkey, Deceuninck states, it has made a good start to 2014 although it expects the weak Turkish lira to continue to weigh on its revenues and earnings in the region.

In 2013 Turkish sales represented 23% of the group’s world sales, with Western Europe representing 33 percent, Central and Eastern Europe 30 percent and North America 14%.

Deceuninck reported it cut its debt and doubled its net profit in 2013 to EUR8.4 million (USD11.5 million) "in spite of the challenging economic environment." This resulted from stable volumes, strict working capital management and cost control, the group’s CEO Tom Debusschere said.

At the same time Deceuninck saw its overall sales dip 3.7% to EUR536.5 million (USD740.2 million) with European construction markets depressed after a harsh winter. Even so, stable volumes resulted from growth in the U.S., Germany, Italy and England as well as Turkey and the emerging markets, said the group.

As MRC informed before, Deceuninck North America recently added three PVC lineal lamination lines to its existing lamination capabilities to meet consumer demand for a wider variety of color customization options.

Deceuninck NV is a Belgian designer and producer of PVC systems for windows and doors, interior, roofline & cladding and terraces. The company extrudes PVC and the single base material Twinson. Founded in 1937, with its headquarters in Hooglede-Gits, the Deceuninck Group operates in more than 75 countries and has 35 subsidiaries across Europe, North America and Asia, including the United States, United Kingdom, Russia and Turkey.
MRC