Mitsui Chemicals and China Petroleum's JV start world largest EPT plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mitsui Chemicals and China Petroleum & Chemical have announced the startup of one of the world’s largest EPT (ethylene-propylene-dieneterpolymer) plant for a single train under their joint venture, Shanghai Sinopec Mitsui Elastomers, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

EPT, which has superior resistance to heat and cold, UV rays, and chemicals, in addition to good electric insulation and other exceptional properties, is widely used in automotive parts (glass run channel, weatherstripsponge, etc.), electric cables, and other industrial materials. With the rapid growth of the Chinese automotive industry and expansion of its social infrastructure (railways, etc.), the demand for EPT has increased significantly.

Commencement of full scale commercial operation of the plant will provide the Chinese market with superior quality, performance-driven functional materials backed by extensive technical services. The joint venture’s EPT plant will stably supply superior quality EPT to meet the growing needs in the Chinese market.

As MRC wrote earlier, Dow Chemical has signed a long-term ethylene off-take agreement with a new Japanese joint venture that will allow the chemical producer to enhance its performance plastics franchise. The joint venture is being formed between Japanese companies Idemitsu Kosan and Mitsui & Co. to construct and operate a Linear Alpha Olefins unit on the US Gulf Coast.

Mitsui Chemicals,a Japanese chemical company, is a part of the Mitsui conglomerate. The company has a turnover of around 15 billion USD and has business interests in Japan, Europe, China, Southeast Asia and the USA. The company mainly deals in performance materials, petro and basic chemicals and functional polymeric materials.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indonesia is seeking money from Saudi Arabia to Japan for a USD25 billion upgrade of aging refineries as President Joko Widodo’s effort to cut subsidies prompts the state-owned oil company to boost output, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing.

PT Pertamina is in talks with Tokyo-based JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp. to refurbish its Balikpapan refinery and may turn the plant into a joint venture, according to a statement. Saudi Arabian Oil Co., the country’s largest crude supplier, may revamp three other domestic plants and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. also signed a memorandum of understanding.

The move is part of a broader strategy by Widodo, known as Jokowi, to overhaul the country’s energy industry and reduce costly imports that have led to a current-account deficit weighing on the rupiah. The refinery effort comes even as regional profit margins are forecast to remain weak at USD6/bbl through 2015 as processing capacity exceeds demand, according to Moody’s Corp.

"We need to have new refineries and additional storage to strengthen national energy security," said Rudy Radjab, president director of PT Kreasindo Resources Indonesia, a private refining investor.

As MRC wrote earlier, last summer, Pertamina signed an agreement to purchase petrochemical products from 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 and polypropylene products each month to Pertamina for sale in Indonesia. First shipments began in September 2014.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- BASF presented its latest solutions for applications in the Home Care, Industrial & Institutional Cleaning (I&I), and Personal Care markets at the HPCI Middle East and Eurasia Exhibition in Istanbul on December 3-4, as per the company's press release.

This congress is the biggest event in the region and focuses on ingredients and applications for the cosmetics, detergents, and cleaning products industry."

Regarding home care applications, there is a growing demand for detergents and cleaning products that clean quickly and efficiently, provide care, are safe and easy to use, and save resources. With Sokalan HP 20, BASF is introducing a special polymer for the formulation of liquid detergents. Even at low temperatures, it actively disperses particulate soil from clothes and prevents graying - this ensures clean laundry with low energy consumption.

Besides its performance, the esthetics of the cleaning product is also gaining importance. The market is calling for liquid detergents and fabric softeners in transparent bottles, bright colors, and creamy textures. For the formulation of this product category, special Rheovis rheology modifiers and Tinogard/Cibafast stabilizers that protect the products against light- and oxygen-related degradation were presented at the exhibition. These can extend the esthetics and shelf life of market products in transparent packaging.

Market empathy and science excellence are the pillars of BASF’s Personal Care business. To even better connect both strengths with one another the company has implemented a new approach based on consumer research. A validated typology system helps define the personality characteristics and needs of six consumer archetypes and translate these needs into innovative personal care products. Based on consumer studies in France and Germany carried out by BASF and TNS Infratest new formulation concepts for anti-aging face care and hair conditioning have been developed. The concepts translate consumer needs into tailored solutions and enable efficient targeting of different personality profiles.

BASF’s innovative emulsion concept SWOP technology enables the formulation of personal care products with new textures and unusual sensory perception. SWOP emulsions are oil-in-water emulsions that become water-in-oil emulsions during application and thus combine the advantages of both. Products based on this technology moisturize, nourish and protect the skin. They absorb quickly and produce a fresh and light skin feel during application.

Cetiol Ultimate answers to the rising market demand for new textures with excellent skin feel in cosmetics industry. Here, this ultra-fast spreading, 100% natural based, fresh and dry emollient meets a wide range of claims - from ultra-thin water-in-oil formulations and dry face oils to pleasant feeling face and sun creams. Personal care products with Cetiol Ultimate are easy to apply, absorb quickly and leave a smooth skin feeling. At the same time, the emollient provides good pigment wetting and enhances color shade stability. Thus, it also performs well in color cosmetics formulations - like light foundations with improved coverage and a powdery sensation. As it is readily biodegradable and approved by Ecocert, COSMOS and Natrue, Cetiol Ultimate is also suitable as a sensory booster for natural cosmetics.

As MRC wrote before, in April 2014, BASF introduced new ingredients and innovative concepts for the personal care market. Driving forward the development of the brand Care CreationsTM, the company is taking a more and more science based approach to explore consumer needs: the focus is on a validated typology system with which users can define different consumer personalities.

BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Jurong Aromatics Corp (JAC) is likely to shut its petrochemical complex for maintenance turnaround, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Singapore informed that the complex is planned to be shut on December 22, 2014. It is likely to remain off-stream for around 45 days.

Located on Jurong Island, Singapore, the aromatics complex of the company comprises an 800,000 mt/year PX plant, a 400,000 mt/year benzene plant and a 200,000 mt/year OX plant.

As MRC informed before, on 1 October 2014, ONGC Mangalore Petrochemicals Ltd (OMPL)'s Mangalore plant commenced regular commercial production of benzene and paraxylene. OMPL had conducted trial production during July-August period, exported three consignments to destinations such as Indonesia and Thailand.

Besides, this May, Ulsan Aromatics started commercial production at its new PX plant in South Korea informed. The new PX plant at Ulsan in South Korea has a production capacity of 1 million tonnes per year.

Paraxylene is used in the production of polyester fibres and PET bottles. Benzene is used as an intermediate to make products such as styrene, polystyrene, phenol and nylon.
MRC