Sumitomo Rubber and Goodyear dissolve JV

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. have agreed to dissolve a global alliance established between the two companies in 1999, reported GV.

The alliance primarily consists of four joint venture operating companies, two in Japan and one each in North America and Europe, which Goodyear earlier told "PetroChemical News" (PCN) were “purely tire” and not involved in the production of synthetic rubber.

"While we have derived value from the alliance over the last 16 years, Goodyear is well positioned today to pursue our strategy on our own," said Goodyear Chairman and Chief Executive Richard J. Kramer.

As MRC informed before, Japan's Sumitomo Chemical Co started to mothball the ageing 415,000 tpa naphtha cracker at its Chiba plant from May 11, 2015. To offset lost production, Sumitomo Chemical raised its stake in Maruzen Petrochemical Co's 55%-owned unit Keiyo Ethylene to 45% and will receive 59.4% of petrochemical output from the venture's naphtha cracker.

Though Sumitomo Chemical's cracker will be shut for good, the company plans to resume operations of downstream petrochemical units at the Chiba plant from the beginning of July, using petrochemical feedstock from Keiyo Ethylene's 768,000 tpy cracker located nearby.

Sumitomo Chemical is a Japanese based manufacturer of a diverse range of products, including basic chemicals, petrochemicals and plastics, fine chemicals, agricultural chemicals, IT-related chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Coca-Cola has introduced the world's first polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle made entirely from plants using Virent's BioFormPX paraxylene (PX), as per GV.

Coca-Cola and Virent have been working together since 2011 to develop and commercialize Virent's bio-based paraxylene technology for use in Coca-Cola's PlantBottle packaging.

Since 2009, Coca-Cola has distributed more than 35-billion bottles using its current version of PlantBottle packaging, made from up to 30% plant-based materials.

"The Coca-Cola Co. continues its innovative leadership commitment to sustainability and is a valued partner for Virent," said Virent Chief Executive Lee Edwards. "Their support of our plans for the BioFormPX material in the next generation of PlantBottle packaging is critical in attracting manufacturing investment from the PET supply chain," he added.

As MRC wrote before, in September 2014, Coca-Cola Company made an additional investment in the US-based Virent, which is developing its bio-based PX - BioFormPX. This investment will enable Virent to scale up separation and purification of BioFormPX material at their demonstration plant in Madison, Wisconsin.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SK Global Chemical Co. has announced plans to sell its Nexlene polyethylene (PE) solution technology business to Sabic SK Nexlene Co., its equally owned PE joint venture with Sabic Industrial Investments Co., as per GV.

With the sale, for which a closing date was not given, SK will retain a 50% stake in the Nexlene assets through the joint venture with Sabic.

Sabic SK Nexlene has a 230,000-t/y metallocene linear low-density PE plant in Ulsan, South Korea, which is expected to begin commercial production during the second half of this year.

The venture has said it plans to build a second plant based on the Nexlene technology in Saudi Arabia, and, over time, expects to establish production bases globally.

As MRC wrote before, Sabic has recently broadened its SABIC PCG portfolio for healthcare with the addition of a new LDPE grade to help the global IV packaging industry benefit from consistent and reliable supply.

Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) ranks among the worldпїЅs top petrochemical companies. The company is among the worldпїЅs market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Germany-based Henkel has unveiled plans to build an adhesives plant at Kurkumbh, near Pune, in the Indian state of Maharashtra, with an investment of EUR30m, said Chemicals-technology.

With production planned to start by early 2017, the facility will be constructed in phases and will serve automotive, metal and industrial segments. It will be the tenth plant for Henkel in India. The first phase will have an operational area of around 20,000m, and is expected to produce 80,000t of adhesives and surface treatment products annually.

"This plant will enable us to localise our product portfolio and reduce imports, while bringing the best global technology to India." Henkel Group India president Jeremy Hunter said: "This plant will enable us to localise our product portfolio and reduce imports, while bringing the best global technology to India.

"Considering the proximity of the plant to our customers, it will also help us to work closely with them in developing solutions. We are aiming to win a greater market share in India, which is one of the biggest emerging markets for us."

The project is in line with the company's plan to strengthen its presence in the emerging markets. With this investment, Henkel aims to obtain a 40% share in the adhesives segment in India.

The Kurkumbh facility will be designed in compliance with LEED standards set by the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC), and will implement the highest safety, health and environment standards.

Business Standard cited Hunter as saying that the company intends to double its revenue in India in the next five years.

By the end of 2016, Henkel expects to record net sales of EUR10bn in markets where it already has strong presence.

As MRC informed earlier, in April 2015, Henkel said it plans to acquire Novamelt, a privately owned company based at Wehr in southern Germany, to further enhance its competence in the area of hotmelt adhesives

Henkel operates in three business units, including laundry and home care, beauty care and adhesive technologies.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- GS Engineering & Construction has notified the Korea Stock Exchange that it has withdrawn from a USD 1.4-billion contract to build a polyethylene (PE) plant in Kazakhstan, reported GV with reference to an industry source.

In 2013, a consortium of GS, Petrofac and Linde received a contract from Kazakhstan LG Polyethylene LLP (KLPE) for a PE plant comprised of two 400,000-t/y lines. The project is part of KLPE’s integrated petrochemicals complex and infrastructure project in the Tengiz and Karabatan regions of Kazakhstan.

GS attributed its decision to cancel the contract to a disagreement on the cost of construction for the project.

KLPE is an equally-owned joint venture of Kazakhstan Petrochemical Industries and LG Chem.

GS Engineering & Construction (GS E&C) is aiming to take a larger piece of the global construction pie. Founded in 1969, the company provides engineering and construction services to a variety of industries around the world. GS E&C's civil division builds roads, bridges, railroads, underground subways, and harbors. Its plant division undertakes work on oil and gas and petrochemical facilities. Projects include sewage system maintenance and wastewater treatment and commissioning of nuclear power plants. GS E&C also builds housing across Korea and in Vietnam. In addition to offices in South Korea, the firm has offices in China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Italy, United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam.
MRC