Spot prices of Korean and Chinese PET increased by USD45-75/tonne

MOSCOW (MRC) - This week prices for imported Chinese and Korean polyethylene terephthalate (PET) continued its rapid growth on increased feedstock costs in Asia (PTA, MEG and paraxylene). Price offers from Asian suppliers increased by USD45-75/tonne, according to ICIS-MRC Price Report.

Importers in Russia and Ukraine reported increased price for PET chips. Last week's prices for Chinese PET in eastern Russia were heard at USD1,310-1,340/tonne CIF Vostochny, excluding VAT; this week's prices for Chinese material increased to USD1,355-1,370/tonne CIF Vostochny, excluding VAT.

Price offer for Korean PET in Russia with the freight reached USD1,410-1,430/tonne CIF Vostochny, excluding VAT.
The demand for Russian PET has weakened this week. Converters reported carryovers of imported material, bought in spring in their stock inventories. At the same time, Russian factories are in no hurry to cut their PET prices significantly.

The rising cost of procurement in China and Korea will help to keep Russian PET prices at the current level in July, said the sellers of PET chips. Buyers in Ukraine reported prices for Chinese PET at the beginning of the week in the range of USD1,350-1,370/tonne CIF Odessa, excluding VAT. By Wednesday, PET prices in Ukraine rose to USD1,385-1,400/tonne CIF Odessa, excluding VAT.

Trading companies expected PET prices to increase next week in the Ukrainian market on the rising feedstock costs in Asia. Seasonal demand for PET chips, fears of oil supply disruption, and low capacity utilisation at PTA plants contributed to increase in PET prices.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PVC recycling continues to grow across Europe, with the UK contributing more than 20% - or 88,648 tonnes - to the total recycled through Recovinyl, the PVC industry's recycling scheme, in 2013, said Mhwmagazine.

A total of 435,083 tonnes of waste PVC was recycled through Recovinyl last year across its 16 European member countries. To date, the Recovinyl recycling network comprises 141 companies. Recovinyl is the operational arm of VinylPlus, the ten-year Voluntary Commitment of the European PVC industry, which is tackling the sustainability challenges for PVC and delivery of current recycling targets to 2020.

Waste PVC-U profiles comprised 50,421 tonnes of the UK's recycling effort in 2013, with pipes, rigid and flexible PVC films and cables making up the rest. This profile fraction is equivalent to the replacement of 3 million individual frames, or more than 300,000 homes based on an average of ten windows per house. The assumption is based on the weight of an average PVC-U window frame.

Having already established significant volumes of PVC recycling with Vinyl 2010, Recovinyl's strategy now is to consolidate and increase the steady supply of PVC waste being recycled in Europe by creating demand - a 'pull-market' for recycled PVC material - from the converting industry.

Potential new recycling opportunities for PVC include non-infectious medical PVC waste from hospitals, such as IV Fluid and oxygen bags. This type of waste is the focus of a new VinylPlus-funded research project undertaken jointly by Axion Consulting and the BPF Vinyls Group.

As part of its drive to increase PVC recycling, VinylPlus has issued new communications material showcasing the sector's achievements. The VinylPlus PVC Recycling Technologies brochure outlines some of the challenges and solutions for extending recycling of waste PVC, with an emphasis on the emerging technologies that can access the 'more difficult to recycle' waste streams.

Its 'Closing the Loop with PVC' document showcases best practice examples developed within the framework of the VinylPlus programme, such as extensive recycling of PVC products from the 2012 London Olympics. One of the objectives of the VinylPlus Voluntary Commitment is to recycle 800,000 tonnes of PVC waste per year by 2020, including 100,000 tonnes of difficult to recycle PVC through innovative recycling technologies.

As MRC wrote before, a group of European plastics converters, recyclers and collectors have completed a two-year project that looks at steps that can be taken to boost the use of post-consumer plastic scrap. The project was conducted by European Plastics Recyclers (EuPR) and the European Association of Plastics Recycling and Recovery Organisations (EPRO) in collaboration with the European Plastics Converters (EuPC), the European Association unoriented Polyester Films (EuPET), Recovinyl, the German company Cyclos GmbH and a few plastics recycling companies to perform the first pilot audits at factory level.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Shen Hua Chemical Industrial is in plans to shut a styrene-butadiene-rubber (SBR) plant for maintenance turnaround, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the plant is planned to be shut next week. It is likely to remain off-stream for around one month.

Located in Nantong, China, the plant has a production capacity of 180,000 mt/year.

We remind that, as MRC informed previously, Shenhua Baotou Coal Chemical is in plans to take off-stream a linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE)/high density polyethylene (HDPE) swing plant for maintenance trunaround in July 2014. It is expected to remain shut for around one month. Located in Shenhua, China, the plant has a production capacity of 300,000 mt/year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Williams Partners is to restart its fire-hit Geismar, Louisiana, olefins plant in July, instead of June as previously planned, the company said in a 2014 financial guidance update, as per Plastemart.

Williams cited lower than expected labor productivity and "other factors" on both the reconstruction and expansion projects, as the main factors behind the delayed startup. The company continues to expand the Geismar plant, which is expected to boost ethylene production capacity by 600 mln lbs pa to a total capacity of 1.95 bl lbs pa.

"The Geismar plant rebuild and expansion projects are targeted for initiation of startup in late July. Williams Partners' financial guidance assumes ethylene sales commencing in mid-August," the company said in a June 15 statement.

Before the June 13, 2013, explosion and subsequent fire, that injured over 70 employees and killed two, the plant's ethylene and propylene production capacity were pegged at 1.3 bln lbs pa and 90 mln lbs pa, respectively. The facility has been offline for investigatory work, but the company was able to resume expansion activities across the majority of the plant outside the affected area.

An initial damage assessment found the explosion started in the propylene fractionator area of the complex, which caused damage to the heat exchangers and reboilers in adjacent areas, the company said in an incident update memo on June 24, 2013. Additionally, a 50-foot section of plant pipe rack system was damaged, which would require the replacement of support structures and a "significant amount of piping," the company added.

The Geismar, La. plant is a natural gas liquids cracker that processes olefins used in the petrochemical industry. Williams Partners produces approximately 1.3 billion pounds of ethylene and 90 million pounds of polymer grade prophylene from the plant.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russian oil giant Rosneft says sufficient oil products stocks available but fails to mention any injuries, said Upstreamonline.

Rosneft has said a refinery that was struck by a fire on Sunday was under planned maintenance at the time. The Russian oil giant has still refused to comment, however, on whether or not there were any injuries or deaths as a result of the blaze at the Achinsk facility in Krasnoyarsk region.

The fire broke out late on Sunday evening after a vapour line on a gas fractionation unit depressurised. Local media earlier reported that 12 people were affected by the fire, with one person understood to have been killed. A further four were missing, Itar-Tass reported.

An update from Rosneft on the situation late on Monday did not address questions of any casualties or injuries. Instead the company said the refinery was undergoing scheduled maintenance at the time of the fire and that, before repair work was carried out, sufficient supply stocks were lined up.

"Petroleum products delivery to the Krasnoyarsk region was carried out, including, from other plants of the company," Rosneft said.

On (Monday) the plan of restoration works was approved, and also additional measures were taken to ensure uninterrupted consumer supply with fuel in connection with the accident that happened the day before. Currently, the stock of petroleum products is sufficient for uninterrupted consumer supply. The company also allocateed additional volumes of motor fuels from other oil-processing plants. Oil products supply to fulfill contracts in northern regions will be completed in due course, the company vowed.

Rosneft swiftly followed this up with confirmation that it has reached an agreement with AAR to take the other half of TNK-BP in an all-cash deal worth USD28 billion.
MRC