SIBUR increased revenue by 5.2% in 2015 on expansions

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SIBUR's revenue increased by 5.2% year-on-year to RR 380 billion, while revenue adjusted for trading operations via the Ust-Luga transshipment facility ceased in 2015, increased by 18.9%, said the company on its site.

Company's revenue from sales of plastics and organic synthesis products increased by 39.3% year-on-year to RR 63.7 billion. SIBUR also increased our revenue from sales of basic polymers by 32.6% year-on-year to RR 50.9 billion following an increase in the average capacity utilisation rate of our polypropylene production in Tobolsk. SIBUR's revenue from sales of synthetic rubbers increased by 26% year-on-year to RR 35 billion on the back of improved market environment. In 2015, revenue from sales of petrochemical products increased by 32.7% year-on-year to RR 175.8 billion.

SIBUR's adjusted profit decreased by 9.9% year-on-year to RR 62.4 billion.

In 2015, the company's capital expenditures increased by 17.9% year-on-year to RR 84.4 billion. SIBUR's Board of Directors has approved the 2016 capital expenditures budget in the amount of RR 147.5 billion7. The increase is attributable to the start of the implementation of ZapSibNeftekhim project. As MRC informed before, SIBUR launched construction of ZapSibNeftekhim,a facility for deep hydrocarbon to polyolefin processing, on 17 February 2015.

In 2015 SIBUR’s gas processing plants (GPPs) processed 21.5 billion cubic metres of APG, an increase of 3%1 year-on-year. As a result, production of natural gas rose by 2.4%1 year-on-year to 18.5 billion cubic metres. Raw NGL fractionation volumes increased by 23.1% year-on-year to 7.8 million tonnes following the capacity expansion in Tobolsk.

Natural gas sales volumes increased by 10.1% year-on-year to 17.6 billion cubic metres. External LPG sales volumes increased by 23.1% year-on-year to 4.3 million tonnes.

In 2015 SIBUR increased sales volumes of all types of petrochemical products. Production volumes of polypropylene increased by 30.6% year-on-year to 516 thousand tonnes. Sales of plastics and organic synthesis products increased by 17% year-on-year to 921.6 thousand tonnes. Sales of synthetic rubbers increased by 14.2% year-on-year to 411.1 thousand tonnes largely attributable to improved economics for commodity and specialty rubbers, completion of continued thermoplastic elastomers homologation with key clients by the end of 2014, and respective increase of export sales. The sales of intermediates and other chemicals increased by 22.4% to 549.8 thousand tonnes following the expansion of the production facilities of the Group.

SIBUR is a vertically integrated gas processing and petrochemicals company. SIBUR owns and operates Russia’s largest gas processing business in terms of associated petroleum gas processing volumes and is a leader in the Russian petrochemicals industry. SIBUR operates 26 production sites in various regions of Russia. The Group employs 26,000 people. The Company sells its products to over 1,400 major customers engaged in the energy, automotive, construction, fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), chemical and other industries in approximately 70 countries worldwide.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Inovyn has announced intention to undertake major investment to convert its mercury chlorine cellroom at Stenungsund (Sweden) to membrane technology, said the producer on its site.

Initial design and feasibility studies for the conversion project are under way, with targeted completion of the project by the end of 2017.

Converting the chlorine plant at Stenungsund to the most modern membrane technology forms part of Inovyn’s wider Chlorine Strategy. Through this strategy the company is already well advanced on the expansion of its membrane chlorine cellroom at Antwerp/Lillo (Belgium), which is due to come on line in Q4 2016.

The company has also previously announced a major investment in a large scale potassium hydroxide (KOH) production facility, also at Lillo, which is expected to be on line in late 2017.

Once completed, these projects will complement INOVYN’s existing high quality membrane based production portfolio across Europe, with assets in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Norway and the UK.

Comments Jean-Michel Mesland, Operations Director for Inovyn: "Our project at Stenungsund is another major investment by INOVYN that will underpin the sustainability and competitiveness of our business in the long term.

"This and other investments we are making across our European asset base will deliver our commitment to phase out mercury cellroom production in accordance with European regulations.

As MRC reported previously, in early April 2016, Solvay and Ineos agreed to end their Inovyn chlorvinyls joint venture earlier than originally announced. Solvay will receive a final payment of EUR335 million (USD381.3 million) and Ineos will become the sole owner of Inovyn on the completion of the transaction, which is expected in the second half of 2016. The partners formed Inovyn in mid-2015 and announced then that Solvay would exit the jv in July 2018.

Headquartered in London, INOVYN has pro-forma sales of more than EUR3 billion, with 4,300 employees and assets across 14 sites in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the UK. Governance of the Joint Venture is equally split between the partners.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Essen-based Evonik Industries, a leading specialty chemicals manufacturer, has presented its innovative products and solutions, said the producer in its press release.

"Fostering strong relationships and collaborations with our customers are keys to success in business", said Jay Janis, Head of Evonik’s North America’s Paint & Coatings Industry Team.

Thus, Evonik introduced in the US market the following innovative products and technologies: SILIKOTOP new binders for high solids protective coatings, SPUR technology for ambient cure polyurethane coatings, novel matting agents for low VOC coatings, dynasylan silanes for acrylic polymer modification, VISIOMER specialty methacrylates for post-crosslinking.

As MRC informed previously, in 2015, Evonik Industries invested over EUR400 mln in its plants in Germany in 2015. The lion’s share of the funds (around two-thirds) was divided among Evonik’s five-largest sites in Germany: Marl (hundreds of millions of euros), Hanau, Essen, Darmstadt, and Wesseling (tens of millions of euros at each site). Evonik is planning further large-scale projects in Germany. One of these is the construction of a new plant for production of specialty copolyesters in Witten by 2018 with an investment in the double-digit million euro range.

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) -- Celanese Corporation, a global technology and specialty materials company, is launching Ateva ExtruBond ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) to meet the growing need for stronger, more flexible extrusion coating materials for food packaging and other applications, said the producer in its press release.

Manufacturers can use various grades of this latest flexible packaging and thermal lamination polymer to package food, for packaging lids, and for document lamination and gift cards.

"Where manufacturing speed is critical, we’ve created a material that allows converters to run lines both faster and more efficiently to improve machine utilization and increase a converter’s capacity," said Stephanie Barden, global business development manager for the EVA Polymers business of Celanese. "We formulated Ateva ExtruBond EVA to hit this sweet spot with a chemical makeup that provides a much stronger bond to substrates commonly used in packaging and lamination processes."

Celanese developed this material using a combination of unique polymer properties, deep technical expertise and regulatory knowledge to create a polymer that is equally safe to package and preserve food, film or tubing. This new polymer technology proves in extensive customer testing and early use to increase line speeds and dramatically improve adhesion during the extrusion coating process for a stronger, more reliable bond.

As MRC informed earlier, Celanese Corporation increased list and off-list selling prices for Ateva EVA and low density polyethylene (LDPE) polymers, effective April 1, 2016 or as contracts allow. Prices of Ateva EVA rose by USD0.03/lb (USD 0.07/kg or USD70/tonne) for North and South America and by USD50/tonne for Asia, whereas LDPE prices increased by USD0.04/lg (USD 0.09/kg or USD90/tonne) for North and South America and by USD50/tonne for Asia.

Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications. Based in Dallas, Celanese employs approximately 7,000 employees worldwide and had 2015 net sales of USD5.7 billion.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- LyondellBasell, one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies, has announced that it has completed the previously announced acquisition of the polypropylene (PP) compounding assets of Zylog Plastalloys Pvt. Ltd. (Zylog) in India, said the producer on its site.

The company entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Zylog's PP compounding assets in November 2015.

LyondellBasell has supplied the Indian market through imports and tolling arrangements since 2009. In October 2015, LyondellBasell acquired SJS Plastiblends Pvt. Ltd.'s PP compounding business which is located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. With the acquisition of Zylog's manufacturing operations in Sinnar, Maharashtra, and Chennai, Tamil Nadu, LyondellBasell is now the third largest producer of PP compounds in India with an annual capacity of 44,000 metric tons (97 million pounds).

In addition to the already existing product lines offered at these sites, LyondellBasell will produce its Hostacom glass fiber-reinforced, mineral filled and unfilled colored grades as well as Hifax high impact thermoplastic olefins. These compounds are used to manufacture automotive parts, home appliances and other products.

"Our investments in India demonstrate LyondellBasell's continued focus on strategic growth projects that increase our competitive advantage and provide a strong return on assets," said Bhavesh (Bob) Patel, CEO and chairman of the management board of LyondellBasell. "We are proud of the high-quality products we provide to the automotive manufacturers, and our expansion in India underscores our commitment to meeting customer needs globally," he added.

LyondellBasell is the world's largest producer of PP compounds with an annual capacity of 1.3 million metric tons (2.8 billion pounds).

India represents the fourth largest growth market for automobiles globally with 3 million new vehicles produced each year. According to IHS Inc., India's automotive market is expected to continue growing by 6 to 8 percent annually through 2021. In its latest Global Economic Prospect report, the World Bank projected that India's GDP will grow by 7.8 percent in 2016 and 7.9 percent annually in 2017 and 2018.

LyondellBasell is one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies and a member of the S&P 500. LyondellBasell manufactures products at 57 sites in 18 countries. LyondellBasell products and technologies are used to make items that improve the quality of life for people around the world including packaging, electronics, automotive parts, home furnishings, construction materials and biofuels. Hostacom and Hifax are trademarks owned by LyondellBasell. The manufacturing facilities in India are owned and operated by Basell Polyolefins India Pvt. Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of LyondellBasell.
MRC