US Gulf Coast refiners, petrochemical producers shut down as Laura approaches

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US Gulf Coast refiners and petrochemical producers are battening down the hatches in preparation for Hurricane Laura, which is forecast to make landfall near the Texas-Louisiana border Wednesday night or Thursday, according to Chemweek.

The National Hurricane Center has declared a hurricane watch for the stretch of coast extending from San Luis Pass, Texas, just south of Houston, to Intracoastal City, Louisiana, east of Lake Charles, a region that includes almost 70% of US olefins production capacity.

Several chemical producers are shutting down in advance of the hurricane, according to air emission event reports submitted to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). CPChem intends to shut down its Pasadena plastics complex, where the company has about 1 million metric tons/year (MMt/y) of polyethylene capacity. Motiva Chemicals is shutting down its steam cracker at Port Arthur, which has 0.7 MMt/y of ethylene capacity and 0.2 MMt/y of polymer-grade propylene (PGP) capacity. INEOS is shutting down its Olefins 1 steam cracker at Chocolate Bayou, which has 0.9 MMt/y of ethylene capacity and 0.3 MMt/y of PGP capacity.

In Lake Charles, there are approximately 850,000 b/d of refining capacity. On Tuesday, Phillips 66 said it is shutting down its Lake Charles complex, which includes a 273,000 b/d refinery. CITGO confirmed that it is shutting down its 440,000-b/d refinery in Lake Charles.

Port Arthur-Beaumont, Texas, has more than 1.6 million b/d of refining capacity. OPIS reported on Monday that Motiva has filed a shutdown report with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for its 607,000-b/d refinery as well as its chemical plant. Total's 225,000-b/d Port Arthur facility was reportedly reducing runs to minimum levels.

ExxonMobil said it was preparing for severe weather at its 384,400-b/d Beaumont refinery, but as of late Monday afternoon the company said operations were normal. Market sources say Valero's 415,000-b/d Port Arthur refinery is also shutting down, but the company has not yet offered confirmation. Calcasieu has idled its 137,000-b/d refinery.

Tuesday the Port of Houston said it expects to be fully closed Wednesday and possibly Thursday, depending on the storm track.

As MRC reported earlier, Motiva Enterprises may shut the largest crude oil refinery in the United States for the passage of Hurricane Marco and Tropical Storm Laura later this week. The company’s 607,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery in the coastal city of Port Arthur, Texas, could be drenched by both storms between Tuesday and the end of the week based on current forecasts.

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

Chinese July diesel exports hit five year low amid weak demand overseas

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China’s diesel exports fell for a fourth straight month in July,hitting their lowest level in five years, as tepid demand overseas due to the COVID-19 pandemic forced Chinese refiners to focus on domestic consumers, reported Reuters.

China shipped out only 550,000 tons of diesel, about half of 1.04 million tons in June and a third of 1.58 million tons in July 2019, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Sunday night.

Gasoline exports were down 28% from a year earlier at 1.12 million tons last month, while jet kerosene exports were down 77% to 320,000 tons.

Analysts expect diesel demand in China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer, to hit a record this year powered by trucking activity.

Profit margins for diesel production had been higher than for gasoline this year until recent weeks, as industrial activity had been recovering faster than domestic travel with the easing of China’s coronavirus outbreak.

Still, the historically high crude throughput is weighing on fuel inventory and refining profits.

Diesel margins were around 86 yuan (USD12.43) a tonne and gasoline 92 yuan a tonne as of mid-August, analysts reckon, down from around 900 yuan a tonne in May.

“State-backed refineries are seeing high stockpiles, while teapots are slashing sales prices and cutting fuel prices to reduce inventory,” said Ding Xu, an analyst at Longzhong consultancy.

Analysts at JLC consultancy expect China’s diesel and gasoline exports to reach 1.56 million tons and 1.37 million tons, respectively, in August.

Customs data also shows that China’s July liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports were 5.03 million tons, up 3% from the same month last year.

As MRC informed earlier, China is set to expand its commercial crude storage capacity by at least 15.11 million cubic meters, or 95.04 million barrels, by the end of 2020. The new capacity, which will create more space to stockpile imports, comes as recent customs data showed China's crude imports hit an all-time high of 11.37 million b/d in May.

Chinese refiner Sinopec started operations at its new Baisha Bay Phase II storage facility in Shanghai from June 1, according to Shanghai Petrochemical's WeChat platform. In addition to the 950,000 cu m of storage that is already under operation at the site, the startup of the Phase II storage facility brings the total capacity of the Baisha Bay facility to 1.4 million cu m, Shanghai Petrochemical said. Sinopec also completed construction of a 800,000 cu m storage facility in central China's Luoyang city in May. This is expected to be online from second-half of 2020, Platts has reported. Another 800,000 cu m of storage capacity will be added to the Luoyang site by June 2021. The Luoyang storage facility will support Sinopec Luoyang Petrochemical's requirements as it expands refining capacity from the current 160,000 b/d to 200,000 b/d in 2021.

We remind that Sinopec Zhongyuan Petrochemical, part of Sinopec Group, is in plans to bring on-stream its cracker following a maintenance turnaround. The company is likely to resume operations at the cracker by mid-September, 2020. The cracker was shut for maintenance on August 1, 2020. Located at Henan in China, the cracker has a ethylene capacity of 220,000 mt/year and propylene capacity of 95,000 mt/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

Motiva shuts Port Arthur olefins plant ahead of storm

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Motiva Chemicals at Port Arthur, Texas, began shutting down light olefin operations Monday to prepare for the arrival of Tropical Storm Laura, reported Chemweek with reference to the company's statement in a midday report to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

Emissions from the controlled shutdown of the olefins unit are seen lasting five days, according to the filing.

Motiva filed a similar shutdown report on Monday covering its nearby oil refinery at Port Arthur, with a capacity of 607,000 b/d the largest refinery on the Gulf Coast and in the US. Emissions from the refinery shutdown are seen lasting two days, the filing says.

ExxonMobil was also reportedly considering a precautionary shutdown of its 369,024-b/d refinery at nearby Beaumont, Texas, and Total's 225,500-b/d Port Arthur refinery was reported to have begun taking operating rates to minimum levels to weather the storms. Market talk about Valero's 335,000-b/d Port Arthur refinery included accounts of both shutdown and no plans for shutdown.

In response to OPIS queries about the reports, ExxonMobil said only that it was preparing for severe weather, and downstream operations are currently normal. A Total spokesperson declined to comment on operations at the refinery.

Reports of slackening refinery operations bolstered US Gulf Coast spot gasoline values and extended the nearly 5-cents/gallon lift of October RBOB futures, the reference month for Gulf Coast spot trading.

Tropical Storm Marco, closing in on southeastern Louisiana as of 14.00 ET, was weakening, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported. Maximum sustained winds were at 40 mph and all tropical storm warnings and watches had been discontinued. Total rain accumulations were seen at 2-4 inches, with isolated maximums of 7 inches possible across parts of the northeast and north-central Gulf Coast through Tuesday.

Tropical Storm Laura, still in the Caribbean, is being more closely watched due to NHC forecasts for intensification to hurricane strength. According to Jeff Masters, a meteorologist whose blog appears on the Yale Climate Connections website, Laura could make landfall along the Texas or Louisiana coastlines as a Category 2 or stronger hurricane. In addition, the storm "will likely grow into a larger-than-average storm capable of generating a very large storm surge," he wrote in a Monday post.

Refiners in or near the path of Tropical Storm Laura represent the country's largest concentration of crude oil processing. The 26 refineries can process a total of 7,359,375 bbl of crude per calendar day, or 39.5% of total US capacity. Capacity by region is 2,474,846 b/d for the New Orleans area; 813,500 b/d in western Louisiana; 1,536,524 b/d in Beaumont/Port Arthur; and 2,534,505 b/d in the Houston area.

Phillips 66's Sweeny refinery in Texas and its plants at Belle Chasse and Lake Charles, Louisiana, "continue with their hurricane planning processes," based on the current path projections of the storms, the company said in an emailed statement to OPIS. "At this time, there is no impact on refinery operations nor other assets in the Gulf Coast region," the statement said.

CITGO made a similar statement about its Gulf Coast operations, which include a 167,500-b/d refinery at Corpus Christi, Texas, and a 418,000-b/d refinery at Lake Charles.

OPIS notes that the 135,500-b/d Calcasieu Refining plant in the Lake Charles region was idled at the beginning of August for at least one month due to fuel demand significantly weakened by fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Further downstream, Placid Refining notified customers that the Opelousas Buckeye terminal would close the rack at midnight Monday ahead of Tropical Storm Marco. Another Placid notification went out regarding product unavailability at the Phillips 66 Lake Charles terminal beginning at noon on Wednesday "in anticipation of hurricane impacts." Downtime of 24 hours was expected, depending on damage and power availability.

As MRC informed previously, in late 2019, Motiva Enterprises acquired 100% of Flint Hills Resources chemical plant, adjacent to its Port Arthur, Texas, oil refinery. The Flint Hills plant operates a 1.57 billion-pound-per-year ethylene cracker, a unit producing nylon component cyclohexane, and a network of pipelines and storage caverns. Saudi Aramco, in its IPO prospectus, said the cash payment will be determined as per the project value at SAR 7.13 billion (USD1.9 billion).

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing 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.

Motiva Enterprises, LLC, is a fully owned affiliate of Saudi Refining Inc. and headquartered in Houston, Texas, United States with revenue of USD24 billion. Previously, it was a 50–50 joint venture between Shell Oil Company (the wholly owned American subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell) and Saudi Refining Inc. (controlled by Saudi Aramco).
MRC

Novozymes to use energy solely from renewable sources in Kalundborg, Denmark

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Novozymes says that with the inauguration ceremony of the new biomass-based block at the Asn's Power Station, all energy to Novozymes in Kalundborg, Denmark, comes from sources other than oil and coal, reported Chemweek.

This has become possible through an agreement among Novozymes, Novo Nordisk, Kalundborg Forsyning, and Orsted to phase out coal from Denmark's largest coal-fired power station unit, the Asn's Power Station, which is owned and operated by Orsted, and replace it with wood chips, the company says. Novozymes sources steam from the power station, it says.

"Today, we complete a circle of investments into energy efficiency and sustainability. Now, our entire supply of electricity, heat, and steam in Kalundborg comes from other sources than coal and oil,” says Thomas Videbk, executive vice president and COO at Novozymes. “This new agreement gives us a stable supply of green steam at competitive terms. In this way, it also supports an efficient production in Kalundborg with good jobs."

Novozymes uses electricity, heat, and steam as energy sources for its production operations in Kalundborg. The company has made significant investments over the years to increase energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact, it says. Prior to the addition of the new biomass-based block at the Asn's Power Station, steam was the only remaining energy source it used that was not based on renewables, Novozymes says.

As MRC wrote earlier, in 2012, BASF, Cargill and Novozymes signed an agreement to develop technologies to produce acrylic acid from renewable raw materials. Presently, acrylic acid is produced by the oxidation of propylene derived from the refining of crude oil. BASF – The Chemical Company, Cargill and industrial biotechnology company Novozymes were tol develop bio-based technologies to produce acrylic acid from renewable feedstocks.

We remind that BASF-YPC, a 50-50 joint venture of BASF and Sinopec, undertook a planned shutdown at its naphtha cracker on 30 April 2020. The company initially planned to start turnaround at the cracker on April 5, 2020. The plant remained under maintenance unitl 18 June, 2020. Located in Jiangsu, China, the cracker has an ethylene capacity of 750,000 mt/year and propylene capacity of 400,000 mt/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

LyondellBasell announces quarterly dividend

MOSCOW (MRC) -- LyondellBasell, one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world, has announced that it has declared a dividend of USD1.05 per share, to be paid September 8, 2020, as per the company's press release.

The dividend will be paid to shareholders of record August 31, 2020, with an ex-dividend date of August 28, 2020.

As MRC reported earlier, LyondellBasell came out with quarterly earnings of USD0.71 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of USD0.61 per share. This compares to earnings of USD2.75 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.

We remind that in early August, 2020, China’s Bora LyondellBasell Petrochemical, a JV between the privately owned Bora Enterprise Group and the world's petrochemical major - LyondellBasell, started up its new steam cracker at the Panjin complex in northeast China. The steam cracker, when fully operational, is able to produce up to 1 mln mt/year of ethylene.

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.

LyondellBasell is one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world. Driven by its 13,000 employees around the globe, LyondellBasell produces materials and products that are key to advancing solutions to modern challenges like enhancing food safety through lightweight and flexible packaging, protecting the purity of water supplies through stronger and more versatile pipes, and improving the safety, comfort and fuel efficiency of many of the cars and trucks on the road. LyondellBasell sells products into approximately 100 countries and is the world's largest licensor of polyolefin technologies.
MRC