Brenntag will expand its business by acquiring strong industrial chemicals distribution base across Asia Pacific

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Brenntag, the global market leader in chemical distribution, has signed an agreement to acquire TAT Group, a Singapore based distributor for industrial chemicals, said the company on its site.

The company’s facilities in Singapore cover supply chain requirements and value added services including modern blending, packaging, storage and logistics facilities. Via its subsidiaries in Singapore, South Korea, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Indonesia, TAT offers its local and overseas customers a broad product range of solvents and related products.

Steven Holland, CEO Brenntag Group: "TAT has a strong market position and reputation as well as high coverage in South East Asia, Hong Kong and South Korea. The acquisition is a significant complement and important investment into Brenntag’s geographic and strategic position in Asia Pacific. TAT’s distribution network serves a broad customer base in the coatings, pharmaceutical, plastics, electronics and other industries and will contribute to further enhance Brenntag’s relationships with its Global Key Accounts as well as major suppliers."

"TAT manages one of the most attractive and well-located distribution sites in Singapore with a large warehouse, modern blending and repackaging facilities, operating under HSE standards that perfectly fit the high principles at Brenntag", says Henri Nejade, Member of the Management Board of Brenntag Group and responsible for Brenntag’s business in Asia Pacific. In addition, Singapore is the preferred hub location being the second-largest port of the world and offering access to the chemical industrial zone "Jurong Island".

The business is expected to generate total sales of approximately EUR 145 million in the financial year 2015. Closing of the transaction is expected in Q4 2015, subject to the approval of shareholders of TAT’s holding company and certain other closing conditions.

As MRC informed earlier, Brenntag, the global market leader in chemical distribution, has signed an agreement to acquire Parkoteks Kimya San., Turkey.

Brenntag is the global market leader in full-line chemical distribution. Linking chemical manufacturers and chemical users, Brenntag provides business-to-business distribution solutions for industrial and specialty chemicals globally. The value-added services include just-in-time delivery, product mixing, formulation, repackaging, inventory management, drum return handling as well as extensive technical support. Headquartered in Mulheim an der Ruhr, Germany, the company operates a global network with more than 400 locations in 70 countries.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- JX Nippon Oil and Energy shut the crude distillation unit (CDU) at its Mizushima refinery in Japan, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Japan informed that the CDU with a processing capacity of 140,000 bpd was taken offstream on September 16, 2015. It is likely to restart operations on November 7, 2015.

Located at Mizushima in Japan, the refinery has a crude processing capacity of 140,000 bpd.

As MRC wrote before, on January 6 2015, Japan's JX Nippon Oil and Energy shut its olefins conversion unit (OCU) in Kawasaki indefinitely. The shutdown was attributed to compressed margins in the wake of low propylene prices as compared to prices of ethylene.

Besides, on June 27, 2015, JX Nippon Oil and Energy restarted the No.1 crude distillation unit (CDU) at its Kashima refinery in Japan, as per Apic-online. The CDU with 189,000 bpd was shut on May 29, 2015 following a fire at the Kashima refinery. The Kashima refinery of JX Nippon has a crude processing capacity of 252,000 bpd.

The Nippon Oil Corporation, or NOC or Shin-Nisseki is a Japanese petroleum company. Its businesses include the exploration, importation, and refining of crude oil; the manufacture and sale of petroleum products, including olefines (ethylene, propylene) and aromatics.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Japan's Sumitomo Chemical Co. is in plans to shut its caprolactam plant for maintenance turnaround, according to Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Japan informed that the plant is planned to be shut towards the end of October 2015. It is likely to remain off-stream for around one month. Currently, the plant is operating at around 80-85% production capacity rates.

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

As MRC reported earlier, in May 2015, Sumitomo Chemical Co. announced its plans to mothball the ageing 415,000 tpa naphtha cracker at its Chiba plant from May 11. Though Sumitomo Chemical's cracker is shut for good, the company resumed 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.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Asahi Kasei is partnering with Taiwanese chemical manufacturer Formosa Plastics to construct a facility in Taiwan for making fibers used in sports apparel, a move that will boost the Japanese company's production capacity there by 60%, said Nikkei.

Subsidiary Asahi Kasei Fibers, the core company in the fibers division, already runs a plant with an annual capacity of 5,000 tons under a joint venture with Formosa Plastics. The new plant will be built on a site adjacent to the existing facility in Yunlin County. Construction is slated to begin this year, with the plant expected to begin operations during 2017.

Investment is expected to fall just short of 3 billion yen (USD24.6 million). When completed, the plant will be able to turn out 3,000 tons a year of polyurethane elastic fibers, which will be supplied to major sporting goods makers. Many large sporting goods companies such as Nike and Adidas have production sites in Taiwan, so ample local demand for the fibers is anticipated.

By boosting capacity, Asahi Kasei hopes to be able to respond more flexibly to increases in orders and also improve product development.

The Japanese chemical company's fibers division suffered an operating loss in the year ended March 2009 but rebounded last fiscal year, posting a profit of 10.5 billion. The company is enhancing production capacity in Japan as well in response to growing inquiries for nonwoven cloth made from cupro, a highly absorbent fiber.

Through these measures, Asahi Kasei aims under a new three-year business plan to boost the fibers division's sales by 15% to 150 billion yen and operating profit by 43% to 15 billion yen by fiscal 2018.

As MRC informed earlier, Asahi Kasei is in plans to take off-stream its No.3 styrene monomer (SM) plant for a maintenance turnaround. The plant is likely to be shut next week. The shutdown is expected to remain in force for a period of around 45-50 days. Located in Mizushima, Japan, the plant has a production capacity of 390,000 mt/year.

Asahi Kasei Corporation is a global Japanese chemical company. Its main products are chemicals and materials science.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- State-owned ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) has evinced interest in acquiring another 10% in Russia’s second-largest oilfield (by production), owned by OAO Rosneft, taking its total stake in CSJC Vankorneft to 25%, reported LiveMint with reference to a person familiar with the matter.

In response to a query about OVL’s interest in acquiring another 10% stake in Vankorneft, N.K. Verma, managing director of OVL, said: "At the moment we have agreed for a 15% stake."

The person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified, said the 10% additional stake was that which was originally offered to China National Petroleum Corp.

OVL, Mint learns, is also considering other acquisition opportunities in Russia.

Earlier this month, OVL, the overseas arm of Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd (ONGC), said it was buying a 15% stake in the OAO Rosneft subsidiary for USD1.26 billion.

At that price, the additional 10% stake will be valued at around USD840 million. The deal was structured with crude oil prices pegged between USD60 and USD70 per barrel. Rosneft claims to have the world’s lowest production cost per barrel of USD2.8 per barrel.

Indian investments in Russia, mainly in the hydrocarbon sector, total around USD4.25 billion. OVL has invested USD23.81 billion in overseas assets till date.

The acquisition in CJSC Vankorneft will give OVL access to the crude oil being produced by the company. Vankorneft operates the Vankor field, in the Turukhansky district of Krasnoyarsk province, which has an output of 22 million tonnes (mt) per annum. A 15% stake will give OVL 3.3 mt of oil per annum as per its entitlement, with the effective value date of the agreement being 31 May. A 25% stake would give it 5.5 mt of oil a year.

We remind that, as MRC wrote before, in September 2015, China National Chemical (ChemChina) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Rosneft to acquire a majority stake in Far-East Petrochemical Company (FEPCO) project in Nakhodka, Russia. The agreement was signed by Rosneft management board chairman Igor Sechin and ChemChina chairman Ren Jianxin during Russia President Vladimir Putin's visit to China. The transaction is subject to due diligence, and corporate and regulatory approvals. "The achieved agreements are indicative of a special level of cooperation with our Chinese partners."
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