Plastic bottle buyback operations resume in more states as US reopens

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Massachusetts and New York have initially restarted their container deposit programs, following an earlier move by Connecticut, after suspending operations in mid-March on coronavirus-related safety concerns, with Michigan soon to follow, said S&P Global.

In Massachusetts, reverse vending machines reopened on June 5 and enforcements of redemption requirements will resume at retailers on June 19, the state Department of Environmental Protection has said.

New York, where container redemption was considered an essential service throughout the pandemic, had relaxed retailer enforcements at facilities facing staffing issues. This meant retailers were not in violation of state law for turning away residential recyclables at drop-off locations. However, the state Department of Environmental Conservation announced that all redemption sites at supermarkets and big-box stores must have reopened by June 3.

Michigan will also begin the first phase of its reopening process on June 15, by allowing retailers to accept bottle and can returns exclusively by RVMs to limit person-to-person contact.

Ten states in the US currently have "bottle bills," or mandatory container buyback programs. Since the beginning of the pandemic, nine of these 10 states -- California, Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Oregon, New York. and Vermont -- had temporarily halted or severely limited buyback operations.

By the end of June, residents in these three states will once again be able to drop off their collected recyclables for deposit value -- usually 5 cents or 10 cents -- but now under certain new criteria. These include limitations on the amount of items allowed at one time, requirements that all cans and bottles must be emptied and rinsed before returning, and strict enforcements of social-distancing policies.

For example, the Michigan Treasury Department stressed that during the initial phase "retailers must limit the volume of weekly returned beverage containers to no more than 140% of their average weekly collection volume" for April and May 2019.

As per MRC's ScanPlast, Russia's PET imports decreased by 35% in April to 11,200 tonnes against 17,400 tonnes in March; last April material imports amounted to 22,900 tonnes. Imports of Chinese injection moulding PET chips in Russia increased by 16% in January-April, compared with the same period a year ago and reached 40,400 tonnes. The same indicator in January-April 2019 amounted to 48,200 tonnes.
MRC

OPEC+ endorses one-month extension to oil cuts

MOSCOW (MRC) -- OPEC, Russia and allies agreed on Saturday to extend record oil production cuts by one month until the end of July, five OPEC+ sources told Reuters.

The group, known as OPEC+, also demanded countries such as Nigeria and Iraq, which exceeded production quotas in May and June, compensate with extra cuts in July to September.

As MRC informed previously, global oil consumption cut by up to a third in Q1 2020. What happens next in the oil market depends on how quickly and completely the global economy emerges from lockdown, and whether the recessionary hit lingers through the rest of this year and into 2021.

Earlier this year, BP said the deadly coronavirus outbreak could cut global oil demand growth by 40 per cent in 2020, putting pressure on Opec producers and Russia to curb supplies to keep prices in check.

We remind that, in September 2019, six world's major petrochemical companies in Flanders, Belgium, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and the Netherlands (Trilateral Region) announced the creation of a consortium to jointly investigate how naphtha or gas steam crackers could be operated using renewable electricity instead of fossil fuels. The Cracker of the Future consortium, which includes BASF, Borealis, BP, LyondellBasell, SABIC and Total, aims to produce base chemicals while also significantly reducing carbon emissions. The companies agreed to invest in R&D and knowledge sharing as they assess the possibility of transitioning their base chemical production to renewable electricity.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 721,290 tonnes in the first four month of 2020, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments grew partially because of the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 347,440 tonnes in January-April 2020 (calculated by the formula production minus export plus import). Supply exclusively of PP random copolymer increased.
MRC

Indian Oil seeks up to 24 million barrels of U.S. crude to diversify imports

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indian Oil Corp, the country’s top refiner, is seeking to buy up to 24 million barrels of U.S. oil for delivery between October 2020 and March 2021, tender documents showed, as part of its efforts to diversify supply, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The move will help IOC to hedge against unpredictable pricing moves by Middle East producers, a source familiar with the matter said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

IOC is requesting 2 million barrels of U.S. crude per month with the option of an additional 2 million barrels per month for discharge at the Paradip port on the east coast, the documents showed.

Asian refiners had anticipated state oil giant Saudi Aramco would raise July crude prices, despite weak refining margins, to track a jump in Middle East benchmarks, but the increase to Asian buyers was more than expected.

The producer on Sunday hiked the selling prices for its crude grades to all destinations for July, a day after OPEC, led by Riyadh, and its allies agreed to extend record output cuts to the end of July.

For Asian buyers, Aramco raised the July official selling price (OSP) for its Arab light crude to Asia to plus USD0.20 a barrel, up USD6.10 from June.

Other Middle East producers will likely follow Aramco in increasing OSPs, trade and refinery sources told Reuters on Monday.

Higher OSPs would push companies to diversify oil supply from the Middle East to other regions, the source said, adding IOC wants to increase its annual intake of U.S. oil in this fiscal year.

The tenders will close on June 12 with validity on the same date.

As MRC informed before, Haldia Petrochemicals’ plant and Indian Oil’s refinery in East Midnapore district have been put on high alert in the wake of cyclone Amphan.

Several measures have been taken by the Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL) management in view of the cyclone, said its plant head Ashok Ghosh.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 721,290 tonnes in the first four month of 2020, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments grew partially because of the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 347,440 tonnes in January-April 2020 (calculated by the formula production minus export plus import). Supply exclusively of PP random copolymer increased.
MRC

Gazprom ready to talk 2021 gas supply with Belarus subject to 2020 deal 'compliance'

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia's Gazprom said June 8 it was prepared to begin talks with Belarus over gas supply to its western neighbor Belarus in 2021 provided that Minsk fulfils the terms of the current year's agreement, said S&P Global.

Moscow and Minsk have had regular disagreements over the terms of Russian gas supply to Belarus over the past two decades, with disputes leading to interruptions to deliveries in 2004 and 2010.

Gazprom and Belarus signed an agreement on gas supply and transit for 2020 at the end of December, but only agreed on the pricing element of the contract in mid-February.

Now, Belarus has requested that discussions resume over the terms of 2020 pricing, citing disagreements over the calorific value of Russian gas.

However, Gazprom -- which claims Belarus also owes it some USD166 million in unpaid gas bills -- seems to be standing firm. "The price terms of gas supply to the end of this year were agreed on February 14, 2020," it said.

"Subject to full compliance by Belarus with the agreements reached in 2020, Gazprom confirms its readiness to start negotiations on the terms of gas supply from January 1, 2021," it said.

Belarus has denied it owes any money to Gazprom and has asked for new information regarding the cost of Russian gas.

As MRC informed earlier, in 2019, SIBUR and Gazprom Neft have consolidated 100% of the authorised capital in Poliom, a polypropylene plant in Omsk. Sibgazpolimer, a joint venture of the two companies, has signed an agreement to acquire a 50% stake in Poliom from the Titan Group.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing PE and 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

Borealis reaches important milestone in construction of PDH plant in Belgium

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Borealis said that it has reached an important milestone in the construction of its propane dehydrogenation (PDH) plant at Kallo, Belgium, said Chemweek.

The propylene splitter, one of the largest equipment items ever delivered to the port of Antwerp in one piece by ship, was successfully transported from the quay to the Borealis site at Kallo. The splitter is a distillation column, needed to split propane from propylene. It has a length of 105 meters, width of 10 meters and weight of 1,600 metric tons.

The PDH plant is Borealis’s most significant investment in Europe. The plant will have a targeted production capacity of 750,000 metric tons/year of propylene, making it one of the largest and most efficient facilities in the world. Production is expected to start by the end of 2022.

As MRC informed earlier, Borealis would not proceed with the development of a multi-billion-dollar integrated steam cracker and polyethylene (PE) project in Kazakhstan.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 557,060 tonnes in the first three month of 2020, up by 7% year on year. High density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments rose because of the increased capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. Demand for LDPE subsided. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market was 267,630 tonnes in January-March 2020, down 20% year on year. Homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers accounted for the main decrease in imports.
MRC