Formosa Petrochemical took off-stream its No.1 residual fluid catalytic cracker

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Formosa Petrochemical Corp (FPCC) has taken off-stream its No 1 residual fluid catalytic cracker (RFCC), as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Taiwan informed that the unit was shut on August 4 owing to technical issues. The restart date for the unit could not be confirmed.

Located in Mailiao, Taiwan, the unit has a propylene capacity of 375,000 mt/year.

As MRC reported earlier, Taipei- Formosa Plastics is considering construction of a plant in Louisiana to produce 1.2-million t/y of ethylene from shale gas.

Formosa Petrochemical is involved primarily in the business of refining crude oil, selling refined petroleum products and producing and selling olefins (including ethylene, propylene, butadiene and BTX) from its naphtha cracking operations. Formosa Petrochemical is also the largest olefins producer in Taiwan and its olefins products are mostly sold to companies within the Formosa Group. Among the company's chemical products are paraxylene (PX), phenyl ethylene, acetone and pure terephthalic acid (PTA). The company's plastic products include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resins, polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP) and panlite (PC).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Essen-based Evonik Industries, a leading specialty chemicals manufacturer, has posted its financial results for the second quarter of 2015. Sales grew 8% to EUR3.5 billion, as per the company's statement.

The company's adjusted EBITDA above strong first quarter at EUR661 million, all three chemical segments posted better results than in the first quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin at a very good level of 18.8%, adjusted net income rose 70% to EUR307 million.

For the H1 2015, Evonik unveiled considerable improvement in adjusted EBITDA to EUR1.3 billion (+40%), adjusted net income, which reflects the development of operating earnings, increased by 67% to EUR627 million in the first six months.

"Evonik has posted another strong quarterly result," said Klaus Engel, Chairman of the Executive Board of Evonik Industries AG, when the Group presented its key financial data for the second quarter and first half of 2015. "The successful business trend continued in the second quarter. It is especially pleasing to report that all three chemical segments improved their results further compared with the already very good first quarter."

At Group level as well, sales and adjusted EBITDA rose further compared with the first quarter of 2015 and were well above the prior-year figures. Global demand for Evonik's products was good and volumes increased further compared with the second quarter of 2014. In view of the continued strong business performance, Evonik is raising its outlook for the full year.

In view of the continued strong business trend, Evonik has raised its outlook for fiscal 2015 again: the company now expects to report sales of around EUR13.5 billion (2014: EUR12.9 billion) and adjusted EBITDA of around EUR2.4 billion (2014: EUR1,882 million). At the start of the fiscal year, it had assumed a slight increase in sales and earnings. Following the successful first quarter, Evonik raised its guidance for adjusted EBITDA to at least EUR2.2 billion.

As MRC informed before, Evonik Industries is making an investment in the double-digit-million euro range in a new research center at the Rheinfelden site. Starting at the beginning of 2016, research into silanes will be carried out in modern laboratories in the four-story building. Silanes are used in the electronics industry, in the tire industry, for the production of adhesives and sealants as well as plastics, and in the construction industry.

Evonik, the creative industrial group from Germany, is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. Its activities focus on the key megatrends health, nutrition, resource efficiency and globalization. Evonik benefits specifically from its innovative prowess and integrated technology platforms. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Following a strong second quarter, specialty chemicals company Lanxess again raised its guidance for the full year 2015, said the producer on its site.

The company now expects to achieve EBITDA pre exceptionals within a corridor of EUR 840 million and EUR 880 million. It had previously assumed that EBITDA pre exceptionals for the full year would come in at between EUR 820 million and EUR 860 million.

"Lanxess is returning more and more to the right course. In the second quarter of this year, we posted a very good operating result to which all segments of our company contributed," said Matthias Zachert, Chairman of the Board of Management of Lanxess. "On the basis of these strong figures and the rapid implementation of our realignment program, we assume that our annual result will be higher than previously anticipated."

Sales improved by 4.3 percent in the second quarter of 2015 to EUR 2.1 billion, compared with EUR 2.0 billion in the prior-year quarter. Higher volumes and positive currency effects more than offset the raw material induced lower selling prices. EBITDA pre exceptionals increased by 13 percent from EUR 239 million to EUR 270 million. This development was driven by increased volumes, savings generated by the realignment, and positive currency effects due to the strong U.S. dollar. The EBITDA margin pre exceptionals rose accordingly to 12.8 percent, against 11.8 percent in the prior-year quarter.

Net income improved by a substantial 58.2 percent to EUR 87 million from EUR 55 million a year earlier. Operational development and proceeds from the sale of noncurrent assets contributed to this increase.

At around EUR 1.4 billion, net financial liabilities were almost at the same level as at the end of 2014. Following the completion of major projects in Asia, capital expenditures declined by more than half in the second quarter against the prior-year quarter from EUR 154 million to EUR 73 million. "The financial consolidation measures we have implemented as part of our realignment process are taking effect," said Lanxess CFO Michael Pontzen. "This development was recently rewarded by the rating agencies Moody's and Standard & Poor's when both confirmed our investment-grade rating with stable outlook."

Higher volumes, positive currency effects and raw material induced lower prices characterized business development in the Performance Polymers segment and resulted overall in sales of around EUR 1.1 billion. This represents an increase of 3.5 percent against the prior-year figure of around EUR 1 billion. EBITDA pre exceptionals for this segment climbed by 22.1 percent to EUR 149 million, compared with EUR 122 million in the second quarter of 2014.

The three-phase realignment program initiated by Lanxess last year continues to progress on schedule. The company has already successfully implemented the first phase. Measures of the second phase, aimed at improving operational competitiveness, have also been initiated. They include the reorganization of the production networks for its rubber types EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer) and Nd-PBR (neodymium-based performance butadiene rubber).

The third phase of the program is focused on improving the competitiveness of the business portfolio, especially through potential alliances in the rubber business. "In this connection, we are currently engaged in very constructive discussions and assume that we will achieve concrete results in the course of the second half of the year," said Zachert.

As MRC reported earlier, the new Rhein Chemie Additives business unit of specialty chemicals company Lanxess has developed innovative halogen-free flame retardants that are based in part on a newly developed type of phosphorus chemistry. These are characterized by low fogging and scorching, making them ideal for use in the furniture and automotive industries.

Lanxess is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 8.0 billion in 2014 and about 16,600 employees in 29 countries. The company is currently represented at 52 production sites worldwide. The core business of Lanxess is the development, manufacturing and marketing of plastics, rubber, intermediates and specialty chemicals.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The expanded polypropylene (PP) foam Neopolen P reFLAM of BASF meets fire safety requirements of the aviation industry for applications in aircraft, reported BASF on its site.

The new material was tested in an institution certified by the aviation industry, in accordance with the specification CS25.853, and is approved for molding densities from 36g/l to 75g/l in accordance with applicable requirements. The certification allows Neopolen P reFLAM to be used in numerous applications with the highest fire safety requirements, particularly those found in the aviation sector.

"The level of interest in new, lightweight and at the same time flame-retardant materials is very high, particularly in the aviation industry", says Carsten Junghans, Key Account Manager Specialty Particle Foams Europe. It is in particular the high thermal insulation characteristic but also the almost unlimited scope for shaping that make this particle foam so versatile. "Neopolen P reFLAM now provides manufacturers with a foam material which combines these requirements and enables a wide variety of different applications."

The certification allows Neopolen P reFlam to be used, for example, in fitting out the aircraft cabin, in specific applications in the on-board kitchen, but also as a material to provide comfort for passengers and crew.

Specification CS25.853 is a standardized specification which serves as the basis for assessing the fire safety characteristics of materials using precisely defined criteria. The institutions that conduct the investigations are subject to strict certification and have the accreditation required to issue test certificates for aviation.

Neopolen P reFLAM is an advanced development of the expanded polypropylene foam Neopolen. The material owes its enhanced level of fire safety to its special flame-retardant additives. In addition, the metallic-gray material offers a further improvement in thermal insulation properties and meets the requirements of REACH and those of the ROHS Directive and its amendments.

As MRC reported earlier, in june 2014, BASF undertook three key capacity expansion projects for performance materials at its Pudong site in Shanghai (China). The capacity expansion projects includes Ultramid (polyamide, PA), Ultradur (polybutylene terephthalate, PBT), Elastollan thermoplastics polyurethane elastomers (TPU), and Technical Center and capacity expansion of Cellasto (microcellular polyurethane components).

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) -- Evonik has presented its latest development based on polyphthalamide (PPA): VESTAMID HTplus M1035 P1 now offers customers a glass-fiber reinforced molding compound with superior properties, as per the company's press release.

Dynamically stressed casing components in the automotive industry need outstanding mechanical properties: high burst pressure strength is essential to withstand alternating stresses. Good chemical resistance against corrosive media is also required. VESTAMID HTplus M1035 P1 was developed especially for use under these difficult conditions. This new PPA grade also achieves very good results as regards to the impact strength.

"We are pleased that the trials carried out by our customers confirm our own test results, which allow us to increase our customers' competitiveness even more," says Dr. Simon Ting, global business director at High Temperature Polymers.

In addition to the excellent mechanical properties, customers also benefit from the good flow behavior of VESTAMID HTplus M1035 P1. As a result, the surface of the injection-molded parts tends to be smoother and defects-free.

The VESTAMID HTplus product family was developed to replace classic metal applications. It is a semi-crystalline, polyphthalamide-based material that is resistant to high temperatures with a very good price-performance ratio. It combines high temperature stability with outstanding resistance to chemicals and exceptionally good mechanical properties.

As MRC informed before, Evonik Industries is paving the way for a new technology whose applications include automotive finishes that are more scratch-resistant than ever before. The specialty chemicals company has developed an industrial-scale method for producing silane-modified binders for automotive finishes. The advantage of these silane-modified binders: silane groups increase crosslinking density, making it possible to create automotive finishes that are flexible yet harder, leading to improved scratch resistance.

Evonik, the creative industrial group from Germany, is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. Its activities focus on the key megatrends health, nutrition, resource efficiency and globalization. Evonik benefits specifically from its innovative prowess and integrated technology platforms. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world. In fiscal 2013 more than 33,500 employees generated sales of around EUR12.9 billion and an operating profit (adjusted EBITDA) of about EUR2.0 billion.
MRC