PTT Global Chemical to shut LLDPE plant for maintenance in Thailand

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PTT Global Chemical (PTTGC) is likely to shut a linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) plant for maintenance turnaround, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Thailand informed that the plant is planned to be shut in mid-July 2014. It is likely to remain off-stream for around three weeks.

Located at Map Ta Phut, Thailand, the plant has a production capacity of 400,000 mt/year.

As MRC reported earlier, last year, Indonesian state-owned energy company Pertamina signed an agreement to purchase petrochemical products from Thailand’s PTT Global Chemical. The agreement serves as a pre-marketing strategy for Pertamina and PTT’s joint Indonesian petrochemical business. Under the agreement, PTT will deliver at least 5,000 tonnes of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) products each month to Pertamina for sale in Indonesia.

Recently, Pertamina and PTTGC have announced that they will start joint shipments of PE to the Indonesian market from 1 July 2014.

PTT Global Chemical is a leading player in the petrochemical industry and owns several petrochemical facilities with a combined capacity of 8.45 million tonnes a year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SABIC has passed the milestone of having more than 10,000 patents either issued or pending approval, making it the largest owner of intellectual property in the Middle East, as per the company's press release.

SABIC has also significantly increased the rate at which it obtains patents with 2013 seeing a record 373 patent applications filed by the company, a rise of over 300% from the figure in 2010. 2014 could see a further increase with 159 new patent applications applied for in just the first three months of the year.

On average, SABIC files a new patent application every 18 hours, each based on the work of approximately four researchers. This represents greater efficiency than any other top ten company in the chemical industry.

"Intellectual property is an important tool to help SABIC achieve its business goals," said Ernesto Occhiello, SABIC Executive Vice President, Technology and Innovation. "Our 10,400 global patent dockets are a reflection of our emphasis on innovation to support our growth," Occhiello said, pointing out that SABIC also has over 550 active disclosures under review.

As MRC wrote before, SABIC developed a new grade of high density polyethylene (HDPE) - SABIC HDPE PCG4906 - for large containers used in healthcare applications in close cooperation with Mauser, a well-known supplier of blow moulded industrial packaging solutions.

SABIC is a diversified manufacturing company, active in chemicals and intermediates, industrial polymers, fertilizers and metals. It is the largest public company in Saudi Arabia. It is the largest company in the Middle East.
SABIC is currently the second largest global ethylene glycol producer and is expected to become number one after the introduction of these new projects. SABIC is the third largest polyethylene manufacturer, the fourth largest polyolefins manufacturer and the fourth largest polypropylene manufacturer. It is also the world's largest producer of mono-ethylene glycol, MTBE, granular urea, polyphenylene and polyether imide.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- With immediate effect, or as existing contracts permit, BASF, the world's petrochemical major, is increasing its European sales prices for Ethyleneamines (EEA), as per the company's statement.

The price increase will be as follows: ethylenediamine (EDA) - by EUR50/tonne, diethylenetriamine (DETA) - EUR50/tonne or by the equivalent amounts in local currency.

The price increase will also apply to current supply agreements as soon as and to the extent permitted by their terms and conditions.

Ethyleneamines are high-class intermediates used in the manufacture of crop protection agents and paper chemicals, surfactants for detergents and cleaning products, process chemicals for gas treatment, lubricants and cement additives as well as active pharmaceutical ingredients.

BASF produces ethyleneamines at its Verbund sites in Antwerp, Belgium and Nanjing, China.

As MRC wrote previously, BASF increased its May prices for all its Lupranat MDI (methylene diphenyl diisocyanate) basic products by EUR70 per metric ton and for its Lupranat TDI (toluene diisocyanate) basic products by EUR50 per metric ton in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East and Africa).

BASF is the world’s leading chemical company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. BASF had sales of about EUR74 billion in 2013 and over 112,000 employees as of the end of the year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- KraussMaffei is supplying four injection molding machines manufactured in China to BSH Bosch and Siemens Hausgerate GmbH (BSH) in China, said the company in its press release.

The large MX-series machines will be delivered to the BSH facility in Nanjing from KraussMaffei's Chinese plant in Haiyan, where they will be used to produce washing-machine tubs. BSH Nanjing has already been using linear robots from KraussMaffei since 2008.

KraussMaffei has supplied BSH with complete production solutions for the fully automated manufacture of washing-machine tubs for many years. BSH manufactures these tubs in three large injection molding plants in Russia, Turkey and China. The company has ordered four new large machines from the MX Series, two of which were put into operation back in February 2014, for their plant in China. The other two MX 850-8100 machines will be installed there in the summer. The new MX machines are the first to be supplied to BSH directly from KraussMaffei's production plant in Haiyan.

Based on their positive experiences of collaborating with KraussMaffei, the BSH laundry experts decided to use the fully automated injection molding solutions consisting of the MX 850-8100 with LRX linear robots. Once the metal bushings required for the tub have been checked, the LRX 500 is used to place them into the mold and remove the finished parts. Bushings of varying diameters are needed depending on the size of the tub being made, and the robots provide these bushings quickly and in the correct size. Getting this right is especially important because the accuracy of the bushing/bearing unit design is a decisive factor in the longevity of the washing machines. These modular units from KraussMaffei Automation have been used to automate the production of injection-molded parts in China since 2008.

From its production plant in Haiyan, KraussMaffei supplies production solutions that are specially tailored to the needs of Asian customers and meet the company's globally applicable quality standards. The MX series of large machines, which are manufactured and assembled locally in China, are designed for use in the automotive, electronics, packaging and transport industries.

As MRC wrote before, Two leading pipe manufacturers from Russia have recently chosen KraussMaffei Berstorff as a systems supplier for premium-quality technology and invested in PO pipe extrusion systems. Isoljazionny Trubny Zawod (ITZ) is seeking to enter into a long-term partnership with KraussMaffei Berstorff. Polyplastic Group is already a satisfied KraussMaffei Berstorff customer and, consequently, has placed a follow-up order.

The KraussMaffei Group is a global leader in the plastics and rubber processing industries. The company covers all areas of injection molding machinery, extrusion technology and reaction process machinery, which gives it a unique selling point in the industry.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Alfa Laval has won an order to supply compact heat exchangers for the caustic evaporation plant of AkzoNobel in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The order, booked in the process industry segment, has a value of approximately SEK 120 million, and deliveries are scheduled for 2014 and 2015.

Alfa Laval’s compact heat exchangers will be used for concentrating caustic soda, an important ingredient in the chemical and petrochemical industries.

The compact heat exchangers will re-use heat from different steps of the evaporation process, thereby maximizing the energy efficiency and minimizing the energy use.

"This is Alfa Laval’s largest caustic installation to date and it will include our compact heat exchangers in a set-up that makes the process extremely energy efficient," said Lars Renstrom, CEO of the Alfa Laval Group.

As MRC wrote before, Alfa Laval won an order to supply Alfa Laval Packinox heat exchangers to an integrated refinery-petrochemical complex in the Middle East. The order, booked in the Process Industry segment, is worth approximately SEK 65 million and delivery is scheduled for 2014 and 2015.

Alfa Laval is a leading global provider of specialized products and engineering solutions based on its key technologies of heat transfer, separation and fluid handling. The company’s equipment, systems and services are dedicated to assisting customers in optimizing the performance of their processes. The solutions help them to heat, cool, separate and transport products in industries that produce food and beverages, chemicals and petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, starch, sugar and ethanol.
MRC