Sabic set up JV for wood-plastic composite profiles

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Through its Nusaned Investment vehicle, Saudi Arabian petrochemicals and plastics producer Sabic (Riyadh) has set up a joint venture said to be worth SAR 37m (EUR 8.4m) to own and operate a production facility for wood-plastic composite (WPC) profiles, said Plasteurope.

JV partner is Suhul Alkhalej, a Saudi industrial development and investment company. A location for the facility was not announced. The composites are used for decking and cladding, sheets and doors, and the portfolio will also extend to window and door profiles made of unplasticised PVC. Sabic will supply the polymer for manufacturing the products that it bills as more energy efficient than traditionally used construction materials.

Faisal Al-Bahair, who is VP for local content & business development in addition to being CEO of Nusaned Investment, said the new project fulfils Sabic’s strategy of investing in industrial SMEs, within the kingdom’s "Saudi Vision 2030".

The new joint venture is Nusaned’s second project, following an agreement signed in May 2019 with the Schmid Group (Freudenstadt / Germany) to establish the JV, Advance Energy Storage System Investment. Its focus is on manufacturing vanadium redox flow batteries at the third industrial city in Dammam / Saudi Arabia.

According to Sabic, Nusaned Investment through several projects contributed approximately SR 6.1 bn (EUR 1.4 bn) to Saudi Arabia’s GDP in 2019 and created more than 3,000 jobs. Nusaned Investment secured six deals in 2019 together worth SR 143m.

As MRC informed earlier, Sabic said that its polycarbonate manufacturing facility at Cartagena, Spain, is set to become the world’s first large-scale chemical production site to be run entirely on renewable power, following the signing of a major agreement.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PC consumption (excluding imports and exports to/from Belarus) rose in January-May 2020 by 19% year on year to 38,900 tonnes (32,700 tonnes a year earlier).

Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) ranks among the world"s top petrochemical companies. The company is among the world"s market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Solvay says it has signed a worldwide distribution agreement with Strem Chemicals (Newburyport, Massachusetts), a manufacturer of specialty products, to fulfill commercial sampling and research requests for Solvay's specialty phosphorus products, said Chemweek.

The agreement covers a range of products developed and manufactured by Solvay’s technology solutions, used in applications such as catalysts and catalyst ligands, extraction reagents, electronic materials, genomics reagents, and in various materials/formulations, the company says.

"Like Solvay, [Strem] is committed to providing high-purity phosphorus specialty chemicals, short lead times enabled by its global supply chain, and strong technical support," says Eamonn Conrad, development manager/phosphorus specialties, technology solutions at Solvay.

Ephraim Honig, CEO at Strem Chemicals, says, "Strem serves many of the same end-use markets and applications with phosphorus-based chemicals our customers will now be able to start their projects by sourcing phosphorus-based Solvay chemicals from Strem."

As MRC informed earlier, Solvay SA said it will close two plants making composites for Airbus SE and Boeing Co. in a sign the deepening aerospace crisis is hitting suppliers of even the latest aircraft materials. The Belgian chemical maker is adding to savings achieved in the past year following the grounding of Boeing’s 737 Max.

As MRC informed earlier, Russia's output of chemical products rose in June 2020 by 2.6% year on year. However, production of basic chemicals increased year on year by 4.9% in the first six months of 2020. According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, polymers in primary form accounted for the greatest increase in the output in January-June. Production of benzene was 106,000 tonnes in June 2020, compared to 110,000 tonnes a month earlier. Overall output of this product reached 721,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 3.9% year on year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Versalis, the chemicals subsidiary of Eni (Rome, Italy), reports an adjusted operating loss of €66 million (USD77 million) in the second quarter, compared with a EUR28-million adjusted operating loss in the corresponding period of last year, said Chemweek.

Eni cites lower sales and production volumes caused by lower demand “in connection with the ripple effects on the economy” of the COVID-19 pandemic. A revenue figure for Versalis has not been disclosed.

Versalis’s petrochemical sales volume was 1.02 million metric tons in the second quarter, down by 9% year on year (YOY). The reduction was seen mainly in the business’s intermediates and elastomers product lines due to weaker demand from their main end-markets, particularly the automotive sector, as a result of the worldwide economic downturn following the lockdown measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. These trends have been partly mitigated by higher sales volumes for polyethylene (PE) and styrenics due to brisk demand for certain sub-segments tied to the COVID-19 emergency, such as packaging and single-use plastics, Eni says.

Versalis achieved a strong rebound in margins in the intermediates and PE segments driven by higher demand and lower availability of products imported from outside Europe. Styrenics and elastomers reported flat margins YOY as a result of the economic downturn. In particular, steam cracker margins had a strong recovery in March and April when oil market fell abruptly, driving down naphtha feedstock prices. This trend nevertheless began to reverse after the implementation of OPEC+ cuts, which supported feedstock prices, Eni says.

Eni says there was lower availability of products from Versalis's plants due to longer maintenance standstills at its main production hubs in response to the COVID-19 emergency, particularly at the Priolo and Brindisi, Italy, complexes. The average operating rate at Versalis’s petchem plants was 60% in the second quarter, down from 69% in the year-earlier period, Eni says.

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

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Tosoh Corporation is pleased to announce its consolidated results for the first quarter of fiscal 2021, from April 1, 2020, to June 30, 2020, said the company.

The company’s consolidated net sales totaled 156.5 billion (USD1.4 billion), down 36.3 billion, or 18.8%, compared with consolidated net sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2020. The decrease was attributable to a global-scale contraction in demand caused by the spread of coronavirus infection, which led to sudden decreases in naphtha prices and deterioration in overseas market conditions.

Operating income also decreased, ?17.0 billion, compared with operating income in the same period the preceding year, resulting in a loss of 900 million (USD8.4 million). The decrease resulted from the worsening trade conditions, which included a decline in sales volume and sales prices that exceeded the effect of decreasing raw fuel prices. Despite a decrease in foreign exchange losses, ordinary income fell 15.9 billion compared with ordinary income for the first quarter of fiscal 2020, resulting in a loss of 500 million (USD4.6 million). And net profit attributable to owners of the parent company decreased 11.1 billion, resulting in a loss of 2.0 billion (USD18.6 million).

During the first quarter of fiscal 2021 (April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020), the Japanese economy has been impacted by the spread of coronavirus infection. Economic and social activity has been restricted, personal consumption and exports plunged suddenly, and employment conditions and capital spending have weakened. The impact of the coronavirus has also affected the global economy, pushing it rapidly toward a recession. As it is extremely difficult to predict when the situation will begin to normalize, there are concerns over potentially prolonged economic stagnation on a global scale.

Shipments of olefin products, such as ethylene and propylene, decreased in line with scheduled maintenance. Shipments were also affected by decreased demand—particularly for cumene—due to the impact of the spread of coronavirus infection. And product prices also fell, reflecting decreased prices for raw materials such as naphtha and declining overseas product market conditions.

Both domestic and export shipments of polyethylene resin decreased in line with falling demand caused by the spread of the coronavirus. And product prices decreased, reflecting lower prices for naphtha. Exports of chloroprene rubber, particularly to Asia, decreased due to demand being suppressed by the spread of the coronavirus.

As MRC reported previously, Japan's Tosoh Corp has brought on-stream its naphtha cracker following a planned outage. The company resumed operations at the cracker on April 20, 2020. The cracker was shut for maintenance on March 4, 2020. Located at Yokkaichi in Japan, the cracker has an ethylene production capacity of 527,000 mt/year and a propylene production capacity of 315,000 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.

Tosoh is one of the largest chlor-alkali manufacturers in Asia. The company supplies the plastic resins and an array of the basic chemicals that support modern life. Tosoh's petrochemical operations supply ethylene, polymers, and polyethylene.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Oiltanking North America (ONA; Houston), a wholly owned subsidiary of Oiltanking (Hamburg, Germany), says it has completed the sale of its Joliet chemical terminal at Channahon, Illinois, to bulk liquid terminals operator Omega Partners Illinois, said Chemweek.

An initial agreement for the sale was announced in June. Following completion of customary preparatory steps, the transaction was completed with effect from 31 July, it says. Omega Partners (St. Louis, Missouri) owns and operates bulk liquid petroleum terminals in Illinois, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Nevada, and Kentucky. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed.

The Joliet terminal is dedicated primarily to the storage of specialty chemicals and has a capacity of approximately 44,600 cubic meters. Oiltanking acquired the facility from Dow Chemical in 2009.

As MRC reported earlier, Dow Chemical restarted three polyethylene (PE) plants it shut in April on improving demand after widespread economic shocks in April and May, confirmed a company spokeswoman July 23.

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.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene (PS), polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber.
MRC