Supreme Petrochem to expand polystyrene producing lines in India

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Supreme Petrochem has received approval for modification of one of the three polystyrene (PS) producing lines at the plant in villages Amdoshi, Wangani in the state of Maharashtra into a swing line capable of producing 42,500 TPA of SMMA (Styrene Methyl Methacrylate) in addition to PS, said Plastemart.

The board of directors at its meeting held on January 22, 2016 has approved for the same.

The technology for the modification of the PS line and production of SMMA will be from Polysty Inc. USA. The cost of the project, including hardware and technology fee would be around Rs 6 crore and will be met from internal accruals. The plant start up is expected by end of 2016 and the estimated payback period is two years.

As MRC reported earlier, in December 2015, Supreme Petrochem Ltd, a producer and exporter of polystyrene polymer, temporarily stopped production at its expanded polystyrene (EPS) plant it Chennai due to flood.

Supreme Petrochem LTD (SPL) owns and operates state-of-the art production facilities from two locations in India the first at Amdoshi – Wangani Village near Nagothane in District Raigad Maharashtra and the Second in New Manali Town near Chennai in Tamil Nadu.

Supreme Petrochem Ltd., incorporated in the year 1989, is a Mid Cap company (having a market cap of Rs 1140.65 Cr.) operating in petrochemicals sector. Supreme Petrochem Ltd (SPL) is India’s largest producer and exporter of polystyrene polymer based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. In Indian market it has share of more than 50%. SPL is also the largest exporter of PS from India, exporting to over 93 countries around the globe.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Injection molder US Farathane Corp. has staked out more international territory by acquiring Shanghai-based Boston Plastics, said Plasticsnews.

The firm finalized the purchase Jan. 22 for undisclosed terms, a spokesperson said. The Jan. 27 announcement of the deal came two weeks after Farathane revealed it bought Tepso Plastics Mex to give it two manufacturing plants in Mexico.

Boston Plastics does injection molding and assembly in Shanghai, Taicang and Changchun. About half its business is molding automotive parts such as interior components, with the rest split between industrial and other markets. It was established in Singapore in 2005.

Farathane’s international profile is expanding a year after private equity Gores Group acquired the company. Gores’s principals have experience in Asia and other markets and are helping guide Farathane’s growth. A spokesperson said Farathane is now looking at Eastern Europe for a potential manufacturing location.

Farathane said the China deal puts it into the largest global auto market in the world, and will help the firm serve carmakers in both the United States and China.

"The acquisition will enable us to increase US Farathane’s immediate reach into the China market, while simultaneously opening up new business with direct OEMs," said Boston Plastics general manager Eddie Chia in a news release.

The latest deal gives Farathane a total of 16 manufacturing plants in China, Mexico and the United States. It is headquartered in Auburn Hills, Mich.

Stout Risius Ross Advisors LLC and Mummert & Co. served as financial advisers to Boston Plastics.

With 16 manufacturing facilities in the United States, Mexico, and China and headquartered in Auburn Hills, MI, US Farathane Corporation is a leading solutions partner to the North American automotive OEMs providing functional black plastic and interior and exterior plastic components. US Farathane is ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified as well as TS 16949 certified. US Farathane customers include FCA, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Toyota, and several other large global OEMs.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Arabia’s Sadara Chemical Co. (Sadara) is on schedule to start up the new butyl glycol (BG) plant in the second half of 2016, said Argaam.

The Jubail-based plant will have a combined BG and and butyl di-glycol (BdG) capacity of 200,000 tons per year.

As MRC informed earlier, on 8, December 2015, Sadara Basic Services, fully owned by Sadara Chemical, started at its polyethylene (PE) plant in Jubail Industrial City II. The plant is designed to produce 375,000 metric tons per year of products used in specialty applications, such as the manufacture of food-grade plastics, industrial and consumer packaging and health and hygiene films, it said in a bourse statement.

The USD20 billion Sadara is 65 percent-owned by Saudi Arabian Oil Co. and 35 percent-owned by the United States' petrochemical major, Dow Chemical.

Located in Jubail Industrial City, Sadara is deemed the world’s largest chemicals complex built in a single phase with 26 integrated manufacturing plants.


MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Replacement of traditional packaging applications and reduced atmospheric emissions are the reasons for increase in the demand of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) market, as per Research and Markets.

About 72% of the PET resin demand was from the bottle application, driven by the beverage bottles for mineral water, carbonated soft drinks, ready to drink tea, and functional, dairy, and energy drinks. It is expected that light weight PET bottle trend will continue in future as it is a cost saving measure. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are used in an increasing number of markets - from Packaging, Automotive, Electrical & electronics, Consumer Appliances and others.

The key drivers of PET industry are population growth, rise in disposable income, urbanization in developing economies, and growing fast moving consumer goods, and restraint such as being a capital and technology intensive industry.

Demand for PET is rising with polyester and food and beverages industries determining market behavior.
The market is and will be characterized by excessive capacity bringing it to oversupply. The influence of PET performs sector is decreasing as packaging industry witnesses change to lighter-weighted bottles and carbonated drinks consumption decline (especially in North America), besides the share of recycled material application is growing.

As MRC informed previously, global bio based PET market is expected to reach 5,800 kilo tons by 2020 , according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Polyethylene production at Mexico's Etileno XXI petrochemical complex is on course to begin in Q1-2016, with resins available to the US market, said Plastemart, citing Platts.

"We hope to start production of the first PE grades in March and by Q2 we will have various grades available to export to the US,' the source said. Company officials previously said the cracker would begin operations in February, with the startup of output at the polyethylene plants coming in March. There was market talk that PE resins from the complex would not be available to the US market. However, that claim was dismissed as exports to the US have always played a part in the company's strategy.

The project is anchored by a 1 mln mt/year ethylene steam cracker and includes 1 mln mt/year of PE capacity.

The joint venture between Brazil's Braskem (with 75%) and Mexico's Grupo Idesa (25%) will focus on meeting Mexico's growing PE demand, with remaining output available for export, including to the US and South America.

As MRC wrote before, in 2012, Braskem Idesa announced the approval of a line of credit in the amount of USD700 million by the Brazlian National Economic and Social Development Bank - BNDES to finance the construction of the largest petrochemical complex being developed in the Americas: Braskem Idesa- Etileno XXI Project. The group of financial institutions will also include Mexico's development banks, Bancomext and Nafinsa- Nacional Financiera, and commercial whose loans are subject to the completion and closing of the formal documentation.

Braskem is Brazilian main producer of polyethylene and polypropylene. In addition with ongoing plants located in both petrochemical complexes, in April 2008 Braskem opened a 300,000 metric ton polypropylene plant in the city of Paulinia (Sao Paulo).
MRC