Lotte signs agreement with unidentified firm to acquire two Indonesian ABS companies

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Lotte Advanced Materials, a subsidiary of Lotte, has signed an agreement with an unidentified party to acquire two acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) companies in Indonesia, according to Yonhap News Agency, as per Apic-online.

Lotte will purchase PT Arbe Styrindo and PT ABS Industri Indonesia, the only two ABS producers in Indonesia, for an undisclosed amount, the report said.

Once the acquisition is finalized, Lotte plans to normalize operations at the units, which have been suspended since October 2017 due to financial difficulties.

Lotte will increase their combined production capacity to 73,000 t/y from 40,000 t/y currently. Commercial production is scheduled to begin from 2019.

As MRC informed before, in May 2016, Lotte Chemical Corp. has finalized the takeover of Samsung Group’s chemical units.The company said that it paid for money to acquire Samsung SDI Chemical on Apr. 29 and completed the acquisition of Samsung Group’s chemical businesses in about six months after the announcement of "Big Deal" in October 2015. Samsung Fine Chemicals, which was completely taken over by Lotte in Feb., changed its name to Lotte Fine Chemical, while SDI Chemical, which completed the acquisition process on the 29th, changed its name to Lotte Advanced Materials through the general meeting of stockholders.

Established in 1976, Lotte Chemical has been solidifyng its position by localizing cutting-edge petrochemical technologies. Among the high-quality products produced by Lotte Chemical through its efficient processes are ethylene, HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, PP, functional resin, EG, SM, PIA, PET, etc. Lotte Chemical’s products are being distributed to 152 countries around the world. With the acquisition of Pakistan’s PTA in 2009, Artenius in the UK in 2010 and Titan Chemical Corp., Lotte Chemical is now able to efficiently supply excellent products to an increasing number of countries. The company is further accelerating its efforts to strengthen its global competitiveness by establishing overseas branches in Hong Kong, Russia, and USA, along with the sales corporation in China for active sales activities both in domestic and abroad.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) is hosting the India Refineries Performance Optimization Reverse Trade Mission in January, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

USTDA is hosting a group of Indian oil and gas officials, and senior executives from state-owned and private sector Indian refineries on a visit to the United States where they will see the design, manufacture, and operation of US goods and services. The visit will introduce the delegates to US companies that can meet India’s needs as the country invests in producing cleaner fuels and improving refineries’ performance and operations. This reverse trade mission carries out USTDA’s mission of creating US jobs through the export of US goods and services for priority development projects in emerging economies. Currently, USTDA’s programs generate $95 of US exports for every USD1 programmed.

Skipping Stone is acting as a technical advisor for USTDA’s upcoming India Refineries Performance RTM, in addition to providing necessary infrastructure support to developing countries. These programs are huge job creators for the US energy technology sector.

The first visit of 2018 involves a delegation from India’s oil and petrochemical sector. Recently India has passed air quality regulations for its transportation sector to become compliant with new Bharat VI air quality standards (analogous to European Union standards) by 2020. The Indian oil refineries currently cannot manufacture the fuel to meet the new air quality standards and must invest billions of dollars in the near future. By connecting Indian refining firms with US companies that provide modern conversion process technologies and licenses, residue upgradation technologies, engineering services and expertise, the RTM will help Indian oil firms find US solutions to upgrade their refining operations to produce higher-quality fuels.

A business opportunity briefing for US companies which may be interested in supplying product, services and solutions to India’s Refining Sector will be held in Houston on Wednesday, January 17th, 2018. During the business opportunity briefing the delegation will be giving overview presentations on their projects, technology requirements and overall project budgets. There will also be time available for one on one meetings with the individual RTM delegates.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Toyo Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd. (TTR) is making several executive changes, dividing roles and responsibilities previously held by Jim Hawk, who will step down from several executive positions at the end of the year. The appointments take effect Jan. 1, said Rubbernews.

Hawk will remain with Toyo, serving in a non-executive capacity as director and chairman of the boards of Toyo Tire Holdings of Americas Inc. and Toyo Tire North America OE Sales L.L.C. (TNOE). He also will remain as chairman and CEO of its U.S. subsidiary, Toyo Automotive Parts (USA) Inc., a newly created position Hawk was appointed to in November.

Iori Suzuki, meanwhile, will take on the role of CEO of Toyo Tire Holdings of Americas Inc., a position previously held by Hawk. In addition to serving as the TTHA CEO, Suzuki will retain his title as TTHA president and will continue in his role as corporate officer.

Suzuki joined TTHA as senior vice president and general counsel in 2005 and was named president of TTHA in 2016. He also played a key role in helping to establish Toyo's first U.S. tire manufacturing plant in Georgia, Toyo said. Throughout his 30-year career, Suzuki has gained experience in global banking and international trade, according to Toyo.

Meanwhile, Tomoshige "Tomo" Mizutani was named president and CEO of White, Ga.-based Toyo Tire North America OE Sales L.L.C., taking on responsibilities previously held by Hawk, who will continue to serve as director and chairman of the board of TNOE.

Muzutani, a 30-year industry veteran, was responsible for helping to establish the Nitto brand in U.S., according to Toyo. In his new role, Mizutani will spearhead the sales of original equipment tires to the auto industry, Toyo said, noting that he will continue to serve as chairman of Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp., chairman and CEO of Nitto Tire U.S.A. Inc., and senior corporate officer of TTR.

Toyo also named Donald Bunn as president and CEO of Toyo Tire North America Manufacturing Inc. (TNA), a role also held by Hawk. Bunn, whose 40-year tire industry career includes development and manufacturing experience, will be responsible for managing the company's tire manufacturing facility in White. Bunn joined Toyo as director of technical services in 2005.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP has announced that its world-scale ethane cracker at Cedar Bayou in Baytown, Texas successfully achieved the major milestone of mechanical completion, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The unit is now undergoing a series of rigorous commissioning activities, system checks and final certifications to ensure a safe and reliable start-up, and consistent, on-spec production.

Once operational, the unit is expected to produce at least 1.5 MMmt of product annually. At peak construction, approximately 5,000 workers were employed on this project, helping to spawn additional economic activity across the region.

The new ethane cracker will produce valuable product for the company's ethylene business and feedstock for its ethylene derivatives businesses. The polyethylene (PE) fleet now includes the two new PE units at Old Ocean, Texas, which were also part of the US Gulf Coast petrochemical project (USGC PP).

These units started up in September 2017 and play a critical role in Chevron Phillips Chemical's strategic expansion to meet the growing global demand for PE. These units can produce a wide variety of high quality Marlex polyethylene resins ranging from metallocene LLDPE film to bi-modal film and pipe products, displaying the wide capability of Chevron Phillips chemical Company's proprietary MarTech technology.

In addition to the cracker and PE units, the company has purchased nearly 3,000 newly built rail cars and constructed a state-of-the-art storage-in-transition facility to ship polyethylene via rail to customers both domestically and to ports for export around the globe.

As MRC reported earlier, in June 2017, Chevron Phillips Chemical announced it had successfully completed a low viscosity polyalphaolefins (PAO) capacity expansion at its Cedar Bayou plant in Baytown, Texas. The 20% capacity expansion enables the company to meet the increasing demand for lubricants in automotive and industrial applications. Chevron Phillips Chemical develops and produces PAOs, marketed under the brand name Synfluid PAO, which are used for a variety of applications including engine oils, gear oils and greases.

Headquartered in San Ramon, California, Chevron Corporation is the the second-largest integrated energy company in the United States and among the largest corporations in the world. With a net income of USD21.42 billion in 2013, Chevron is involved in upstream activities including exploration and production, downstream activities including refining, marketing and transportation, and advanced energy technology. Chevron is also invested in power generation and gasification processes.

Phillips 66 is a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company with a portfolio of integrated businesses: Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties. The company processes, transports, stores and markets fuels and products globally. Phillips 66 Partners, its master limited partnership, is an integral part of the portfolio.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and the OCP Group of Morocco (OCP) have announced the signing of a long-term sales agreement whereby ADNOC will supply OCP with granulated sulfur, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Under the agreement, ADNOC, the world’s largest exporter of sulfur, will steadily supply OCP, the largest worldwide sulfur importer, until 2025. The two parties agreed to consider a gradual increase of the contracted annual volumes. ADNOC exported more than 2 MMmt of granulated sulfur to Morocco in 2016.

Significant synergies exist between ADNOC and OCP, allowing the two companies to explore various opportunities for a larger cooperation.

As a by-product of its sour gas operations, ADNOC and partners produce more than 6 MMtpy of sulfur, exporting it to customers from its state-of-the-art sulfur handling facilities in Ruwais. The amount of sulfur available for export will increase over the next decade as ADNOC and partners brings new sour gas projects on line, as part of its plans to achieve gas self-sufficiency by 2030.

As MRC wrote before, in May 2017, ADNOC and OMV signed an agreement, which ment that ADNOC will work together with the Austrian producer OMV to help grow Adnoc’s downstream businesses. The memorandum of understanding, signed in the presence of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and the Austrian chancellor Christian Kern, covers cooperation on new downstream projects, refining operations, refinery-petrochemical integration and optimisation, and technical and maintenance support.
MRC