Gazprom neftekhim Salavat reduces significantly April PS prices for Russian market

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Gazprom neftekhim Salavat, one of Russia's largest production complexes for oil refining and petrochemicals, has reduced its April indicative polystyrene (PS) prices for Russian buyers, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

Thus, the decrease was Rb8,000/tonne. At the same time, prices of general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) have not yet been set for small- and medium-sized buyers.

Demand has been subsiding rapidly in the construction segment of the Russian PS market. Buyers reduced their orders for April purchasing of material from some traders by half. A number of small- and medium-sized converters were forced to temporarily suspend production because of the tightening of the quarantine conditions. Demand for finished products remained strong in the food packaging segment.

OAO "Gazprom neftekhim Salavat" (formerly OAO "Salavatnefteorgsintez") is one of the leading petrochemical companies in Russia, carrying out a full cycle of processing hydrocarbon material. The list of products manufactured by the plant includes more than 140 items, including 76 grades of the main products: gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene, fuel oil, toluene, solvent, liquefied gases, benzene, styrene, ethylbenzene, butyl alcohols, phthalic anhydride and plasticizers, polyethylene, polystyrenes, silica gels and zeolite catalysts, corrosion inhibitors, elemental sulfur, ammonia and urea, glycols and amines, a wide range of household products made of plastics, surfactants and much more.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Hanwha Total Petrochemical, a South Korean petrochemical major, has halted operations at its LPG cracker owing to technical glitch, according to Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in South Korea informed that, the company halted operations at the cracker on April 7, 2019. The cracker is likely to remain off-line for about 2-3 days.

Located at Daesan, South Korea, the cracker has an ethylene capacity of 310,000 mt/year and propylene capacity of 120,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed earlier, Hanwha Total Petrochemical restarted its Deasan cracker on 10 June, 2019, following a maintenance and debottlenecking exercise. The cracker was shut for maintenance and expansion in end-March, 2019. Following the expansion, the ethylene capacity has been increased by 310,000 MT and propylene capacity by 120,000 MT. The main production capacities of the company's Daesan cracker is 1.09 million mt/year of ethylene and 640,000 mt/year of propylene.

We also remind that Hanwha Total Petrochemical is investing approximately USD500m to further expand its Daesan integrated refining and petrochemical complex in South Korea. The company operates as a 50/50 joint venture (JV) between Total and Hanwha. The planned investment is expected to increase annual polypropylene capacity by almost 60% to 1.1 million tonnes and ethylene capacity by 10% to 1.5 million tonnes by the end of 2020.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 383,760 tonnes in the first two month of 2020, up by 14% year on year. High density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments increased due to the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 192,760 tonnes in January-February 2020, down by 6% year on year. Homopolymer PP accounted for the main decrease in imports.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- DuPont, which operates one of the Richmond region’s largest manufacturing plants, confirmed Monday that five local employees have tested positive for the coronavirus, but the company’s local manufacturing operations are still functioning, according to Richmond Times-Dispatch.

All five employees who tested positive for COVID-19 are "quarantined and recovering," DuPont spokesman Ryan Smartt said.

"We have not made any adjustments to our workforce at this time," Smartt said. "Employees who have tested positive for COVID-19 or are being quarantined continue to be paid. We continue to monitor and respond to the situation and will adjust our plans and protocols as needed."

The Wilmington, Del.-based industrial company’s largest US factory, called the Spruance plant, is on Jefferson Davis Highway in Chesterfield County. The factory employs about 2,200 people, including about 1,800 DuPont employees and several hundred contractors.

The production areas for Tyvek, Kevlar and Nomex are all operating, the spokesman said.

Those products are deemed "essential" during the coronavirus outbreak, including Tyvek, a water and microbial-resistant material used in a variety of applications, including protective personal garments worn by first responders and medical professionals.

The company reported in March that it was responding to a surge in demand for Tyvek apparel because of the coronavirus outbreak, and that production of Tyvek had increased about 20% so far this year compared with the same period last year.

The plant also makes the bullet-resistant material Kevlar and the fire-resistant material Nomex, used by the military, police officers and firefighters, as well as in industrial environments.

"The safety and well-being of our employees continues to be our top priority," Smartt said in an emailed response to questions. "We have implemented safety plans and protocols based on World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control guidelines and recommendations to help prevent the spread of the virus, and to ensure we continue providing a safe and healthy workplace for our essential employees."

The company said that all employees who are not needed for the continuous operation of its manufacturing processes are now working from home.

"We have limited visits to the site, and are practicing social distancing and sanitizing common areas in the plant more frequently," Smartt said.

DuPont is at least the third manufacturing plant in Virginia that has been hit by the coronavirus outbreak.

Cigarette maker Philip Morris USA, a subsidiary of Henrico County-based tobacco giant Altria Group Inc., announced on March 19 that it was suspending operations for two weeks at its cigarette factory just off Interstate 95 after two employees tested positive for COVID-19. In addition, Altria’s chairman and chief executive officer, Howard A. Willard III, was diagnosed as having the virus that causes COVID-19 and temporarily stepped aside from his job for medical leave.

Altria said it would restart operations at the plant this week with a limited staff. Employees must complete a health questionnaire before they return to work. Anyone entering the factory will first need to stop at an off-site location to get his or her temperature checked.

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. also has temporarily suspended operations at its factory in Danville due to a sudden decline in market demand because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As MRC wrote before, Chemical maker DuPont will spend USD220 million to build new production assets at its specialty films plant in Circleville, Ohio. In a statement, Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont said that the new assets will expand production of its Kapton-brand polyimide film and Pyralux-brand flexible circuit materials to meet what it calls "growing market demand in automotive, consumer electronics, telecom, and defense." DuPont expects the new assets to be operational by 2021.

Besides, rising demand for DuPont’s Tyvek nonwoven materials has prompted DuPont Safety and Construction, a business unit of DowDuPont Inc., to invest more than USD400 million to expand capacity for the materials at its facility in Luxembourg. The expansion will include the addition of a new building and third operating line at the site. The new capacity will come on stream in 2021.

We also remind that an employee at the Port Arthur Total refinery has tested positive for the coronavirus. The company confirmed Tuesday that the employee who tested positive is in self-quarantine and hasn't been at the site since March 26. Total says it has 'implemented its pandemic response in the case of a positive COVID-19 test, which includes disinfecting and sanitation of the potentially-affected areas.'

In November 2019, Total disclosed that it is evaluating construction of a new gas cracker at its Deasan, South Korea, joint venture (JV) with Hanwha Chemical.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 383,760 tonnes in the first two month of 2020, up by 14% year on year. High density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments increased due to the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 192,760 tonnes in January-February 2020, down by 6% year on year. Homopolymer PP accounted for the main decrease in imports.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- April contract price of ethylene was settled in Europe down by EUR200/tonne from the previous month. However, European producers are not going to cut export high density polyethylene (HDPE) price proportionally for shipments to the CIS markets in April, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.

Negotiations over April prices of European PE began at the mid of last week. All market participants said that European producers have made a significant reduction in the export prices of HDPE for shipments in the current month, but the price reduction made EUR80/tonne, while ethylene fell by EUR200/tonne in the current month in Europe.

Deals for April shipments of HDPE were discussed in the range of EUR730 - 810/tonne FCA, down by EUR80-90/tonne from March. Pipe polyethylene has fallen in price more significantly, negotiations are ongoing in the range of EUR830 - 870/tonne FCA, which is EUR140-180/tonne lower than a month earlier.

Some producers have export restrictions due to scheduled maintenance works of capacities. But they are not critical for most buyers. Consumers partially met their needs in HDPE due to cheaper shipments from the Middle East.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- An employee at the Port Arthur Total refinery has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to 12News.

The company confirmed Tuesday that the employee who tested positive is in self-quarantine and hasn't been at the site since March 26.

Total says it has 'implemented its pandemic response in the case of a positive COVID-19 test, which includes disinfecting and sanitation of the potentially-affected areas.'

Employees who may have been in contact with the patient are asked to self-quarantine according to a Total news release.

The Port Arthur Refinery works with Total’s U.S. COVID-19 Task Force to implement a wide range of mitigation measures.

As MRC informed earlier, European oil majors Shell and Total announced in late March plans to cut capital expenditure by around 20% and suspend their share buybacks as part of a raft of measures to strengthen balance sheets in response to collapsing oil prices and the economic impact of the global coronavirus pandemic. Shell said it would cut its cash spending by USD5 billion from planned levels to USD20 billion "or below" in 2020 and reduce its operating costs over the next 12 months from 2019 levels. Separately, Total announced a "USD30/b action plan,” under which it will cut more than USD3 billion, or over 20%, mostly from its organic capex this year, taking its net investments to less than USD15 billion.

We also remind that a contractor working at Shell's Pulau Bukom manufacturing site in Singapore has contracted the new coronavirus. The Bukom manufacturing site in Singapore houses Shell's biggest wholly-owned refinery. The company said earlier it had sent some staff home from its main office at Metropolis in western Singapore after discovering another employee had been in contact with a carrier.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 383,760 tonnes in the first two month of 2020, up by 14% year on year. High density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments increased due to the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 192,760 tonnes in January-February 2020, down by 6% year on year. Homopolymer PP accounted for the main decrease in imports.

Total S.A. is a French multinational oil and gas company and one of the six "Supermajor" oil companies in the world with business in Europe, the United States, the Middle East and Asia. The company's petrochemical products cover two main groups: base chemicals and the consumer polymers (polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene) that are derived from them.
MRC