Momentive to sell consumer sealants business to Henkel

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Momentive Performance Materials Inc. (Waterford, N.Y.) outlined a series of steps to accelerate its global transition from commodity basics chemicals to specialty silicones – actions that will focus the company’s strengths and expertise on advanced technologies, said Chemengonline.

The steps include a USD15-million investment in specialized Electronic Materials Production and the sale of its Consumer Sealants Business. The company also envisions a two-year transition away from basics chemicals production at its Waterford facility, which began operations in 1947.

"’m excited about Momentive’s future, enabled by innovation that will provide creative solutions to our customers,” said President and CEO Sam Conzone, Ph.D. “We are continuing to prioritize and invest in specialty businesses where we have unique capabilities to win. Everything we do is focused on creating a stronger, more sustainable future for our employees, our customers and our communities."

Momentive will invest USD15 million in Advanced Electronic Materials Production at the Waterford site to serve rapidly growing high-tech applications. This investment in new capabilities and production will be operational starting in mid-2021 and is part of a USD40 million global investment to drive Electronic Materials growth in areas including advanced aerospace, 5G telecommunications, automotive electronics and advanced display applications.

"This investment is a major step in advancing the uniqueness of Momentive’s value, technologies and applications for customers around the world,” said Sandip Tyagi, President and General Manager of Formulated Specialties. “Moreover, investing in Waterford focuses our talent and expertise, and solidifies its future as a global center for innovation. We are very excited about the opportunities ahead."

Over the past five years, Momentive has invested approximately USD100 million in growth, technology, productivity, safety and reliability at the Waterford site.

Momentive also announced the sale of its Consumer Sealants Business to Henkel, encompassing GE-branded consumer sealants sold under license from General Electric Company and available through home-improvement centers, major retailers and hardware stores. Momentive will continue to manufacture consumer-line products through 2021 under a transition supply agreement. The move away from consumer sealants will enable greater focus on unique silicones and specialty applications where Momentive has a strong ability to win. This transaction excludes the GE-branded construction sealants product line, which will remain a Momentive focus.

"Millions of homeowners and commercial builders have relied on GE-branded consumer sealants for decades, and we remain very proud of that legacy,” Conzone said. “Selling this business to Henkel allows Momentive to fully focus our attention and resources on innovating and growing with advanced products that enable our customers’ success."

The anticipated sale remains subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory clearances. Momentive also outlined a two-year vision to phase out basics chemicals production at its Waterford, New York site. The move would position the facility as a sustainable, global center specializing in advanced silicone technologies. These envisioned changes will be discussed with IUE-CWA union leadership and would not begin until 2021, continuing into 2022.

As MRC informed earlier, Henkel AG & Co. KGaA (Dusseldorf, Germany) announced that Henkel Adhesives Technologies has officially inaugurated its new production facility in Kurkumbh, India.

Henkel are also partnering with Borealis and plastics solutions company Borouge to develop flexible packaging solutions for detergents containing both virgin polyethylene (PE) and high amounts of post-consumer recyclate (PCR) in efforts to increase sustainability.

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.
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SONGWON enters a new distribution agreement with Biesterfeld Spezialchemie

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SONGWON Industrial Co., Ltd. announced today that it has signed an exclusive distribution agreement with Biesterfeld France, said the company.

As from May 1, 2020, Biesterfeld France has been exclusively distributing the SONGWON polymer stabilizer range in France.

Based in Rueil Malmaison near Paris, France, Biesterfeld France is part of the German Biesterfeld Group, ranked by ICIS as one of the Top Ten chemical distributors worldwide. The company focuses especially on plastics, rubber and specialty chemicals.

"At SONGWON, we are committed to continually enhancing our product availability and level of customer service. Partnering with Biesterfeld France further strengthens our distribution network and is a significant step toward achieving our aim of delivering solutions that exceed the expectations of our French customers,” said Albert Dantuma, Leader Sales Polymer Stabilizers Greater Europe.

Peter Wilkes, Managing Director, Biesterfeld Spezialchemie GmbH, added: "With our highly experienced and technically qualified sales team, we are well placed to supply customers promptly with SONGWON’s products and provide them with excellent service."

As MRC informed earlier, SONGWON Industrial Co., Ltd. said it entered into a partnership with Disheng Technology Co., Ltd, (Jiangsu Province, China) for the production of some of its UVA light stabilizers. Disheng is currently in the process of building a new state-of-the-art factory dedicated to light stabilizers in Fujian Province, China.

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.

SONGWON will leverage its global reach and leading position in polymer and coatings stabilizers to market the products, while Disheng will focus on managing the manufacturing side. In this way we can make the best use of both companies’ complementary strengths” added Xingping Pan, president of Disheng Group.
MRC

SCG latest operating results highlight agility and strategies to overcome COVID-19

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SCG, a leading conglomerate in the ASEAN region, has amped up business strategies to triumph in the dragged out COVID-19 battle with agility and solid business continuity management, said Vir.

The group will continue to focus on maintaining long-term business stability with developments of total solutions and innovations to fulfill needs in the new normal, leveraging digital channels to push online purchases to shine in the ASEAN market.

SCG’s profit in the second quarter of 2020 reached VND6.860 trillion (USD297.83 million), up 33 per cent on-year, due to the improved performance at all three of SCG’s key business units – cement-building materials, chemicals, and packaging – driven by cost optimisation efforts and business continuity. Additionally, it reported an increase of 35 per cent on-quarter mainly attributed to improved chemicals business performance.

The group’s sales revenue for the first half of 2020, however, dropped 9 per cent on-year to VND148.6 trillion (USD6.46 billion), due to lower chemicals prices. Profit for the period declined by 13 per cent on-year to VND12.052 trillion (USD524 Million), which is mainly attributed to decreased chemicals margins during the first quarter.

SCG’s revenue from sales of high-value-added products and services (HVA) for the first half of 2020 reached VND67.062 trillion (USD2.9 billion) or 45 per cent of its total sales revenue. As of June 30, 2020, the total assets of SCG amounted to VND530.5 trillion (USD23 billion), while the total assets of SCG in the ASEAN (ex-Thailand) amounted to VND192 trillion (USD8.35 billion), which is 36 per cent of SCG’s total consolidated assets.

Based on its recently-released second-quarter report, SCG in Vietnam owned VND88.8 trillion (USD3.86 billion) worth of total asset, an increase of 59 per cent on-year mainly from its chemicals business. During the period, the group reported sales revenue of VND6.976 trillion (USD303.3 million) which includes sales from both operation in the country and imports from the Thai operations. This represents a decrease of 6 per cent on-year. For the first half of this year, SCG’s Vietnamese market reported revenue from sales of VND13.086 trillion (USD568.96 million), down 5 per cent on-year mainly from all businesses.

Regarding to the current COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam, SCG have been continuing on implementing full-blown business continuity management. Regarding to the current COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam, SCG have been continuing on implementing full-blown business continuity management. To keep employees and their family safe from COVID-19, SCG has applied a new way of work called "Hybrid Workplace" that allows much greater flexibility for employees.

They can work on site, work from home, or work from anywhere the company considers safe and apply physical distancing guidelines. Furthermore, SCG and its subsidiaries realise that the health and safety of stakeholders are the most important aspect of having a good quality of life in times of COVID-19 pandemic, and so they continuously support communities across the nation by donating 400 tonnes of cement to build 45 playgrounds in the central province of Quang Binh and provided mobile clinics for health checks and safe transportation education programmes for communities in Long Son commune and Ba Ria-Vung Tau province in southern Vietnam.

Notably, SCG’s subsidiary Binh Minh Plastic was ranked amongst the Top 50 Best-Performing Companies on the Vietnamese stock exchange in 2019 by by Nhip Cau Dau Tu Magazine for in financial results for three fiscal years in a row, based on three indicators: revenue, return on equity (ROE), and earnings per share (EPS).

As MRC informed earlier, SCG has no plans to delay development projects, including the Long Son Petrochemicals complex in Vietnam, with construction 45% complete. The project is worth USD5.4 billion. The start-up of Vietnam's first fully integrated petchems facility is scheduled for 2023.

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

Sinopec Maoming Petrochemical resumes production at No. 1 PP plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sinopec Maoming Petrochemical, part of Sinopec Corporation, has brought on-stream its No.1 polypropylene (PP) unit in Guangdong, according to Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that, the company resumed operations at the unit following turnaround on July 27, 2020. The PP unit was shut on July 15, 2020.

Located in Guangdong, China, the No. 1 PP unit has a capacity of 170,000 mt/year.

As MRC wrote before, Sinopec Maoming Petrochemical has brought on-stream its No. 2 low density polyethylene (LDPE) unit in Guangdong. The company resumed operations at the unit on May 22, 2020. The unit was shut for a brief maintenance on May 18, 2020. Located at Guangdong in China, the No. 2 LDPE unit has a production capacity of 280,000 mt/year.

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.

Sinopec corp. is one of the world's largest integrated energy and chemical companies. Business Sinopec Corp. includes oil and gas exploration, production and transportation of oil and gas, oil refining, petrochemical production, production of mineral fertilizers and other chemical products. In terms of refining capacity, Sinopec Corp. ranks second in the world, in terms of ethylene capacity - fourth.
MRC

Russia says July oil output in line with OPEC+ deal

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia’s Energy Ministry said that the country’s oil output in July was unchanged from levels seen in June, in line with an OPEC+ agreement, said Reuters.

The ministry added that its level of compliance with the deal in July was close that recorded in June, when it stood at 99%. Energy ministry data published earlier on Sunday by Interfax news agency showed that Russia’s oil and gas condensate production had increased to 9.37 million barrels per day (bpd) in July, up from 9.32 million bpd in June. Oil output cuts, agreed between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other major producers including Russia, a group known as OPEC+, are due to be eased in August. Under the OPEC+ agreement, Moscow pledged to reduce its output to around 8.5 million bpd in May-July to support oil prices.

The deal does not include output of gas condensate, a light oil. The cuts under the global deal should be eased starting from August because of a recovery in oil prices. Russia has said it would increase its oil production by 400,000 bpd.

The ministry data showed that Russian oil and gas condensate production rose to 39.63 million tonnes in July from 38.16 million tonnes in June, the Interfax news agency reported. Russia usually produces 700,000 to 800,000 bpd of gas condensate. That means that excluding gas condensate, Russia could have produced around 8.57 million to 8.67 million bpd of crude oil in July.

Russian oil exports outside the former Soviet Union stood last month at 15.72 million tonnes, down 27.1% from July 2019. In barrels per day, exports reached 3.72 million, according to Interfax. The news agency also said on Sunday that Russian natural gas output reached 50.33 billion cubic metres in July, down 7.9% from a year earlier.

As MRC informed previously, data collected and tabulated by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) show that due to growth in China, global chemicals production rose by 0.6 percent in June, an improvement from the 0.5 percent decline in May, Production has been declining throughout this year, with the last monthly gain occurring in December 2019. During June, chemical production fell in major regions except Asia-Pacific. Headline global production was off 7.2 percent year-over-year (Y/Y) on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis and was off 7.4 percent from the peak December level. Global output stood at 109.8 percent of its average 2012 levels.

At the same time, 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. June production of polymers in primary form fell to 791,000 tonnes from 820,000 tonnes in May partially because of a scheduled shutdown for maintenance at ZapSibNeftekhim. Output of polymers in primary form totalled 4,900,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 14.8% year on year.

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