Clariant licenses sunliquid technology to company in Bulgaria

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Clariant said today that it has licensed its sunliquid cellulosic ethanol technology to Eta Bio, a recently established company owned by the Pavlovi family, running a leading business in the agricultural sector in Bulgaria, according to Chemweek.

Eta Bio was established to construct, own and operate a commercial plant for the production of cellulosic ethanol from agricultural waste. The deal represents Clariant’s fourth agreement to license the technology and is another significant step towards its commercialization.

Eta Bio will be responsible for the project’s development and plant operation at a greenfield site in General Toshevo, the north eastern region of Bulgaria, utilizing available land, owned by the Pavlovi family, and existing infrastructure. The facility will be designed to produce 50,000 metric tons/year of cellulosic ethanol by processing around 250,000 metric tons/year of wheat straw, which is an abundant resource in the region, also known as the granary of Bulgaria.

“Our sunliquid technology is trendsetting for the development of sustainable and advanced biofuels. The…technology meets the market needs for sustainable solutions and gives us a competitive edge”, said Hans Bohnen, Clariant’s COO. “After signing license agreements with first-generation ethanol producers, as well as mineral oil players, we are excited to also gain a foothold in another important customer segment – the
agricultural sector – with our sunliquid® technology”, adds Christian Librera, Clariant’s head of biofuels and derivatives business line.

“The realization of the first Bulgarian cellulosic ethanol production project will help solve one of the main challenges agricultural producers face in the region – the removal of straw from the fields. This project will give us the chance to have an additional revenue stream from agricultural leftovers,” said Kiril Pavlov, managing director of Eta Bio.

The cellulosic ethanol will be used as a gasoline additive to fulfil the country’s blending mandate for advanced biofuels, as laid out in the Renewable Energy Directive II. The agreement covers the supply of the license, basic engineering, provision of technical services, as well as the supply of starter cultures from Clariant’s proprietary enzyme and yeast platform to process Eta Bio’s feedstock into cellulosic ethanol.

As MRC reported earlier, in June 2020, TechnipFMC and Clariant Catalysts entered into a joint development agreement for the demonstration and commercialisation of Clariant’s new state-of-the-art AcryloMax propylene ammoxidation catalyst for the production of acrylonitrile (ACN).

Besides, in May 2020, Clariant’s CATOFIN catalysts was selected by Advanced Global Investment Co. (AGIC), a joint venture between Advanced Petrochemical Company (APC) and SK Group, to build a PDH facility in the Middle East.

Propylene is the main feedstock for the production of polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's DataScope report, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.

Clariant AG is a Swiss chemical company and a world leader in the production of specialty chemicals for the textile, printing, mining and metallurgical industries. It is engaged in processing crude oil products in pigments, plastics and paints.
MRC

Chinese June crude imports from Saudi Arabia, Russia, Brazil hit fresh highs

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China's crude imports from main suppliers Saudi Arabia, Russia and Brazil all hit fresh highs in June, boosting the country's total crude imports to a record high - and almost touching 13 million b/d in a month for the first time, reported S&P Global with reference to General Administration of Customs's data released July 26.

Main supplier Saudi Arabia delivered 2.17 million b/d of crude to China in June, edging up 0.2% from the previous record high in May on barrel-per-day basis, while imports from Russia reached 1.95 million b/d, inching closer to the 2 million b/d mark and surpassing the previous high in May of 1.82 million b/d.

Fourth-largest supplier Brazil delivered 1.22 million b/d in the month, up 20.9% from the previous record high of 1.01 million b/d last November, the GAC data showed.

China's crude imports from US hit an eight-month high of 143,452 b/d in June, despite being down 23.7% year on year.

There were no Iranian crude imports in June for the first time since January 2007, when S&P Global Platts began tracking GAC data.

China's total crude oil imports surged 34.4% year on year to record high of 12.99 million b/d, or 53.18 million mt, in June as the Chinese buyers who had rushed into the market to secure cheap crudes in late March received their deliveries in the month.

Over January-June, crude imports from OPEC+ suppliers rose 7.5% year on year to 8.71 million b/d as members competed to secure outlets in China during the COVID-19 pandemic, the data showed. However, the group's market share in China fell to 80.5% in the first half of the year from 82.3% a year earlier.

OPEC's market share fell to 52.1% in H1 from 56.6% a year earlier due to the supply shortfall from Iran and Venezuela.

The GAC data recorded no crude arrivals from Venezuela over January-June, compared with 350,711 b/d in H1 2019, while imports from Iran slumped 84.7% on year to 68,453 b/d in H1.

The customs release data in metric tons, which S&P Global Platts converts to barrels using a 7.33 conversion factor.

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.

And 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 DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.
MRC

Japan May crude imports fall to 53-year low as COVID-19 cuts oil demand

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Japan's crude imports dropped 25% year on year to 2.28 million b/d in May, the lowest for the month in 53 years as refiners had slashed their crude throughput in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, which sank domestic oil products demand, said S&P Global.

The May crude imports, which were the lowest for the month since 1967, also dropped 17.3% from April as refiners had reduced their crude throughput by 25.6% year on year and 19.9% month on month to 2.07 million b/d, according to preliminary data released June 30 by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

Japanese refiners reduced crude imports year on year from almost all of its key suppliers in the Middle East, Russia, Americas, including zero imports from the US in May.

"With tanks having been filled up, we are getting left with an option to cut refinery runs as it is increasingly getting difficult to purchase crude," Takashi Tsukioka, then president of the Petroleum Association of Japan said April 17.

"While [Japanese] refiners are lifting their term contractual volumes by May, there is a chance that the refiners might not be able to lift the term contractual volumes after June," Tsukioka said.

The Japanese crude imports from its top five crude suppliers -- Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar and Russia -- all fell year on year in May, when the imports from the suppliers accounted for 94.1% of the total supply in the month.

Japan's Saudi crude imports slid 5.5% year on year to 931,733 b/d in May, while its crude imports from the UAE fell 28.9% from a year ago to 729,935 b/d. Crude imports from Kuwait slipped 3.2% on the year to 241,270 b/d in May, crude from Qatar plummeted 39.3% year on year to 153,143 b/d, and Russian crude imports dropped 34.7% from a year ago to 91,837 b/d.

As MRC informed before, 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 DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.
MRC

Asian toluene demand likely to wane before second wave of COVID-19 strikes

MOSCOW (MRC) — The Asian toluene market, having basked in the warmth of China's buying spree over the past two months despite the demand destruction caused by the coronavirus to other markets, may see this respite end quicker than the onslaught of the second wave of COVID-19 infections, said S&P Global.

Over March to late May, China had ramped up its toluene imports as the price of the blendstock had slumped to attractive lows, incentivizing refiners to import octanes. At end-February, China's toluene stockpile stood at 35,500 mt, but by early June, China had accumulated nearly double that with the weekly average at eastern ports at 60,375 mt, alleviating several Asian producers of their supply glut.

Nonetheless, the slow draw down of China's domestic stocks, together with the growing logistical constrains of bringing in toluene cargoes, and the return of refineries from maintenance could throttle China's new found affection for toluene.

Of late, especially along the eastern ports of China, local importers risk being slapped with demurrage charges by shipowners as they attempt to bring in toluene. Besides the widely known congestion, local traders said the draw down of toluene in storage has been slowing despite a spike in gasoline blending within China. A handful of toluene cargoes that were previously meant for May arrival had been postponed for delivery next month.

"Changjiang port is now inundated with a few thousand tons of toluene. We should monitor whether the situation can be relieved in July," an end-user in China said. Chinese traders are only willing to consider buying toluene that can arrive from August onwards, in view of the steep contango in China's domestic market, suggesting that there may be intense competition locally.

While the upward revision will aid the absorption of refinery throughput, it will also result in the resumption of refining activity among local refiners.

China's Sinopec Zhenhai Refining & Chemical returned from the maintenance of its 10 million mt/year CDU at its mega integrated complex by July or August. The complex has a 1 million mt/year aromatics facility that includes a toluene plant of at least 410,000 mt/year capacity.

As MRC informed earlier, Sinopec Tianjin Co (Tianjin United Chemical) is in plans to bring on-stream its naphtha cracker following a turnaround. The company was to resume operations at the cracker by early-July, 2020. The cracker was shut for maintenance on May 9, 2020. Located at Tianjin, China, the cracker has an ethylene production capacity of 240,000 mt/year and propylene capacity of 100,000 mt/year.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 595,170 tonnes in the first five month of 2020, up by 10% year on year. Deliveries of all ethylene polymers, except for linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), rose partially because of an increase in capacity utilisation at ZapSibNeftekhim. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market was 457,930 tonnes in January-May 2020 (calculated by the formula production minus export plus import). Deliveris of exclusively PP random copolymer increased.

MRC

Ovintiv lays off 25% of workforce after oil demand slumps

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Ovintiv Inc said it laid off 25% of its total workforce this month as the oil and gas producer grapples with plunging fuel demand and lower prices due to the COVID-19 crisis, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The company said it now has around 2,100 employees and contractors. Ovintiv, formerly known as Encana, completed a change of base from Calgary to Denver in January, which Chief Executive Officer Doug Suttles had reasoned would allow the company access to a deeper capital market.

However, that vision was shattered as the pandemic eroded oil demand, while prices tumbled further after Saudi Arabia and Russia in March threatened to flood the market with more oil. Many shale producers have lately reduced their workforce, slashed budgets and cut dividends in efforts to save enough cash for survival as investors turn their backs on the industry.

Ovintiv’s shares have more than halved in value so far this year, while U.S. oil prices have fallen about 38%. The company in May cut bit.ly/3hIwrAc its second-quarter planned capital spending by 60%, or USD500 million, and estimated to have curtailed net volumes of about 65,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).

Chevron Corp, the second-largest U.S. oil producer, and oilfield services providers Schlumberger NV and Halliburton Co are some of the biggest names among many that have announced job cuts.

Ovintiv, once among Canada’s largest companies, bought Texas-based Newfield Exploration Co for USD5.5 billion last year to boost acreage in the United State, as it prepared to move away from Canada.

A company spokeswoman had earlier said the job cuts would be equally spread across its offices in Calgary, Denver and The Woodlands, Texas.

As MRC informed earlier, Chevron Corp restarted the 112,229 barrel-per-day (bpd) Pasadena, Texas, refinery night after completing a multi-unit overhaul that was extended because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We remind that US-based Phillips 66 remains open to developing another ethane cracker for its Chevron Phillips Chemical (CP Chem) joint venture, the refiner's CEO said in March 2018.

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

According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.
MRC