Linde Q4 net profit slips 2.5%

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Linde Group reported that its profit for the fiscal year 2016 rose to 1.327 billion euros from 1.236 billion euros last year. Earnings per share for continuing operations were 6.50 euros up from 6.10 euros in the prior year, said Rttnews.

"Despite the low price of oil and the economic headwind, we were able to meet expectations and achieve increases in revenue and earnings after adjusting for exchange rate effects, especially in a strong fourth quarter," said Professor Dr Aldo Belloni, Chief Executive Officer of Linde AG.

The company's performance was hampered by the lower contribution made to revenue by the Engineering Division in 2016 compared with 2015 and by adverse exchange rate effects.

Group operating profit from continuing operations in the 2016 financial year rose to 4.098 billion euros from the prior-year's 4.087 billion euros.

Due to the planned sale of Gist in 2017, the revenue and operating profit contributed by this division have been reported as a discontinued operation and are therefore not included in the Group figures for 2016. This resulted in a reduction in Group revenue of 602 million euros and in Group operating profit of 44 million euros for the past financial year.

Linde even achieved an increase in Group operating profit after adjusting for exchange rate effects of 2.7 percent. At 24.2 percent, the Group operating margin was 60 basis points above the prior-year figure of 23.6 percent. One factor contributing to this improvement were efficiency improvement measures introduced back in 2015. In the three-year period from 2015 to 2017, this programme is expected to reduce costs by a total of up to EUR 180 m. In 2016, Linde launched another Group-wide efficiency programme called LIFT. Through this three-year programme, additional cost savings of around 370 million euros per annum should be achieved. In total, annual savings of around 550 million eurosshould be achieved from 2019.

Group revenue from continuing operations for the fiscal year declined to 16.948 billion euros from last year's 17.345 billion euros.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sinopec Guangzhou has shut its polypropylene (PP) plant for a maintenance turnaround, as per Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the company has taken off-line its plant at the first weekend of the month, on 4-5 March. The shutdown is likely to last for a period of around 2 weeks.

Located in Guangzhou province of China, the plant has a production capacity of 200,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed earlier, in June 2016, Rosneft and Sinopec Group signed a Framework Agreement on joint pre-feasibility study of the project related to the construction and operation of a gas processing and petrochemical complex in East Siberia. The project will meet the growing demand for polyethylene and polypropylene in Russia and in China. It is assumed that the annual capacity of the new complex near the administrative center of Boguchany District will be 5 BCM of gas yielding up to 3 mln tons of polymers and petrochemical products primarily for sale on the Russian and Chinese markets. The resource base of the project comprises Rosneft oil and gas fields of Yurubcheno-Takhomsky cluster in East Siberia.

China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) is a super-large petroleum and petrochemical enterprise group established in July 1998 on the basis of the former China Petrochemical Corporation. Sinopec Group's key business activities include the exploration and production of oil and natural gas, petrochemicals and other chemical products, oil refining.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Aramco will supply full contract volumes of crude oil to multiple Asian buyers in April, three industry sources with knowledge of the matter said, reported Reuters.

Despite commitments to cut production in an OPEC deal, Saudi Aramco had agreed to supply at least one customer in Asia with incremental crude on top of contracted volumes next month, as it holds to a strategy of maintaining market share in the fastest-growing market, one of the sources said.

As MRC wrote previously, in June 2016, Saudi Arabian Oil Co. and Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (Sabic) became one step closer to building their first plant to process crude directly into chemicals, cutting out a link in the production chain from hydrocarbons to the finished products that go into plastics and other consumer goods. The state-owned companies signed an agreement to study such a project to be located in Saudi Arabia. A joint venture is possible if the companies decide to move ahead after the study is completed by early 2017, they said then. Oil companies normally refine crude into transportation fuels including gasoline and diesel and leave byproducts such as naphtha to be processed separately into chemicals.

Saudi Aramco is an integrated oil and chemicals company, a global leader in hydrocarbon production, refining processes and distribution, as well as one of the largest global oil exporters. It manages proven reserves of crude oil and condensate estimated at 261.1bn barrels, and produces 9.54 million bbl daily. Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the company employs over 61,000 staff in 77 countries.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sinopec Corp plans to boost investment in fine chemicals at its Maoming-Zhanjiang refining base in southern China alongside partners like Germany's BASF, a senior executive said in an interview on Thursday, reported Reuters.

The investment would be part of the USD29 billion the state major plans to spend upgrading its refining and petrochemical hubs by 2020, and highlights industry efforts to move up the value chain in the face of dwindling diesel demand and a refining capacity glut in the world's second-largest oil user.

Sinopec, China's largest refiner and petrochemicals producer, is taking the lead in the push for low-volume but high-value products that are used in the pharmaceuticals, agrichemical and aviation industries.

"We are going to cooperate with BASF in more downstream fine chemical products because they have lots of advanced technology in those areas," said Yu Xizhi, general manager of Sinopec Maoming, on the sidelines of parliament's annual meeting.

Yu said Sinopec is far behind the German chemicals giant in terms of diversification of downstream chemical products.

"I visited BASF headquarter, where it has 600,000 t of ethylene capacity and 300 units of processing equipment. In Maoming, we have 1.1 MMt of ethylene capacity but only 20 units for further processing."

Sinopec said last week it would invest USD29 billion to upgrade its four refining bases between 2016 and 2020 to produce high-quality fuels as China embraces more stringent fuel standards and expands petrochemicals investment.

"We are seeing a clear trend that refiners are diversifying their products to include fine chemicals. This shift helps them to better deal with oversupply in traditional fuel markets as the glut persists," said Seng Yick Tee, senior director at Beijing-based consultancy SIA Energy.

Sinopec is better positioned than domestic rival PetroChina in chemical markets because it has more facilities and better geographic locations, Tee said.

Sinopec's refining sites to be upgraded are in the cities of Shanghai, Nanjing and Zhenhai on the east coast, and Maoming-Zhanjiang in southern Guangdong province.

Under the Maoming-Zhanjiang base that Yu heads up, the 400,000-bpd Maoming refinery will focus on traditional fuel and fine chemicals, while the Zhanjiang greenfield project will produce clean fuels and have a heavier focus on fine chemicals, Yu said.

"Headquarters sets no limit on funding the fine chemicals projects, so long as we can convince them it's the right one," he said.

Chinese refiners have had to look for new areas of business amid a moderating economy and excess refining capacity the past few years, with domestic fuel demand growth easing.

As MRC informed earlier, in June 2016, Rosneft and Sinopec Group signed a Framework Agreement on joint pre-feasibility study of the project related to the construction and operation of a gas processing and petrochemical complex in East Siberia. The project will meet the growing demand for polyethylene and polypropylene in Russia and in China. It is assumed that the annual capacity of the new complex near the administrative center of Boguchany District will be 5 BCM of gas yielding up to 3 mln tons of polymers and petrochemical products primarily for sale on the Russian and Chinese markets. The resource base of the project comprises Rosneft oil and gas fields of Yurubcheno-Takhomsky cluster in East Siberia.

China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) is a super-large petroleum and petrochemical enterprise group established in July 1998 on the basis of the former China Petrochemical Corporation. Sinopec Group's key business activities include the exploration and production of oil and natural gas, petrochemicals and other chemical products, oil refining.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sahara and Ma’aden Petrochemical Company (SAMAPCO) will start the scheduled turnaround at its plants Jubail from 10 March, said Sahara Petrochemicals Company.

Sahara Petrochemicals Company announces that the plant’s production units of its affiliates Al-Waha Petrochemical Company which produces Propylene and Polypropylene and Sahara and Maaden Petrochemical Company (SAMAPCO) which produces Caustic Soda and EDC, will start Periodic prescheduled maintenance which will be in Jubail industrial city for a period of ( 32.5 ) days for Al-Waha plant starting today 7th March 2017 and ( 25 ) days for SAMAPCO which will start from 10th of March 2017 .

It may be noted that such shutdown for periodic maintenance is not considered as loss in production and revenues, since it is planned in advance in accordance with normal industrial practice for carrying out required routine and preventive maintenance and the effects have been taken into account in the preparation of the budget for 2017, both in terms of the quantity of production and expected revenue.

The financial impact depending on the expected prices of feedstock and the products will be reflected in the financial results of the First and second quarter of 2017.

SAMAPCO, a limited liability company, is a 50:50 joint venture between Sahara and Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Ma’aden).
MRC