Formosa Taiwan unit indefinitely delays USD9.4 billion Louisiana petrochemical complex

MOSCOW (MRC) -- FG LA, a division of Taiwan's Formosa Plastics Group, has indefinitely suspended construction on a USD9.4 billion petrochemical complex in Louisiana until the global coronavirus pandemic subsides and/or a vaccine is widely available, reporte S&P Global with reference to a spokeswoman's statement Nov. 23.

"The widespread impacts of a global pandemic, including the challenge it creates in evaluating construction costs and the restrictions it has placed on international travel, are being felt across all industries and businesses, including FG," said Janile Parks, director of community and government relations, said in an email. "As a result, FG has deferred major construction until the pandemic has subsided and/or an effective vaccine is widely available."

Work on multiple major petrochemical projects in the US was temporarily suspended or slowed in April and May, during the height of pandemic-related shutdowns that stymied construction activity. Startup dates were pushed back as much as a year for some projects, while others saw delays of a quarter or more.

But FG LA's deferral of a final investment decision on what the company has dubbed the "Sunshine Project" project marks the first indefinite delay of a major project because of pandemic fallout.

The announcement came after the US Army Corps of Engineers earlier in November suspended a key permit issued for the project in 2019, according to federal court filings. The Corps of Engineers informed the company of the permit suspension Nov. 10, pending a reevaluation.

On Nov. 20, FG LA said in a statement that the Corps told the company that some activity related to the project could resume despite the permit suspension, such as relocation of a local water line and highway improvements.

"FG will continue to comply with all notices and guidance from the Corps during the permit suspension and re-evaluation process," the company said.

The permit suspension emerged in a federal lawsuit filed against the Corps in January by the Center for Biological Diversity and other groups. The lawsuit alleges that the Corps issued a permit in September 2019 allowing dredge and fill activity without fully examining environmental fallout from wetland destruction and discharge of pollutants from the complex.

The Corps did not prepare an environmental impact statement and issued the permit based on an inadequate environmental assessment that "failed to take the legally required 'hard look' at the direct, indirect and cumulative impacts of the Corps' decision to authorize the construction of the plastics facility and failed to analyze a reasonable range of alternatives to that decision," the lawsuit said.

The case had been headed for summary judgment, where a judge issues a decision without a trial, when the Corps Nov. 4 asked for a stay until the agency could notify FG LA of its intent to suspend the permit pending re-evaluation of alternatives analysis under Clean Water Act provisions.

The Corps told the company that any work authorized by the permit had to cease pending results of the re-evaluation, which would include a decision "either to reinstate, modify or revoke" it, according to a Corps letter to the company dated Nov. 10 included in the Nov. 13 filing.

In March, FG LA suspended major construction activity at the complex because of coronavirus pandemic concerns, to reduce the number of workers on site.

By May, the company had resumed work on a rail line and re-opened the site's office, but more substantive work remained on hold pending the final investment decision expected in the second half of 2020.

The first of the Sunshine Project phase, originally targeted for a 2024 startup, includes a 1.2 million mt/year ethane-fed cracker, a 600,000 propane dehydrogenation plant, a 600,000 mt/year polypropylene unit, linear-low-density (LLDPE) and high-density polyethylene (HPE) plants with capacities of 400,000 mt/year each, and a 900,000 mt/year ethylene glycol unit.

The second phase, originally targeted for startup by 2029, includes a 1.2 million mt/year cracker, LLDPE and HDPE plants with capacities of 400,000 mt/year each, and a second 900,000 mt/year ethylene glycol unit.

Permitting documents showed the EG plants will make monoethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, and polyethylene glycol.

As MRC informed before, Formosa Plastics USA, part of Formosa Petrochemical, has left a force majeure on polyvinyl chloride (PVC) supplies from its Texas and Louisiana plants in force as of 9 November. The force majeure circumstanses were announced in mid-August, 2020, due to difficulties to produce the product amid upstream steam cracker problems.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia"s estimated PE consumption totalled 1,594,510 tonnes in the first nine months of 2020, up by 1% year on year. Only high denstiy polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 880,130 tonnes in the nine months of 2020 (calculated using the formula: production minus exports plus imports, exluding producers" inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply increased exclusively of PP random copolymer.

Formosa Petrochemical is involved primarily in the business of refining crude oil, selling refined petroleum products and producing and selling olefins (including ethylene, propylene, butadiene and BTX) from its naphtha cracking operations. Formosa Petrochemical is also the largest olefins producer in Taiwan and its olefins products are mostly sold to companies within the Formosa Group. Among the company's chemical products are paraxylene (PX), phenyl ethylene, acetone and pure terephthalic acid (PTA). The company"s plastic products include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resins, polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP) and panlite (PC).
MRC

COVID-19 - News digest as of 26.11.2020

1. PetroVietnam says annual output unaffected by COVID-19 pandemic

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Vietnam's state oil firm PetroVietnam said it was on track to meet its targeted rate of production this year, despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the fall in global crude oil prices, reported Reuters. The company, formally known as Vietnam Oil and Gas Group, produced 18.12 million tons of crude oil and gas equivalent in the year to Nov. 15, meeting 89% of the yearly target set before the pandemic, it said in a statement. It produced 10.2 million tons of refined petroleum products during the period, meeting 86.5% of its yearly target, the company added. PetroVietnam is the largest contributor to Vietnam's state budget and often accounts for more than 10% of the Southeast Asian country's gross domestic product.




MRC

Saudi Aramco raises USD8 billion bond

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil firm, returned to the debt markets for the first time since April of last year, selling USD8 billion of bonds to help fund the world’s biggest dividend, reported Bloomberg.

The state oil and gas firm issued the debt on Tuesday after slumping crude prices caused profit to fall by 45% in the third quarter. That’s left it unable to generate enough cash to fund shareholder payouts it’s promised will reach USD75 billion this year. Almost all of those will go to the Saudi Arabian government, which needs the money to plug a widening budget deficit and prop up a slumping economy.

Aramco’s deal was the largest from a company in emerging markets this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The firm sold tranches maturing in three, five, 10, 30 and 50 years. Investors placed more than $50 billion of orders, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Pricing ranged from 1.32% for the shortest notes to 3.65% for the 50-year portion. The spreads over US Treasures were between 110 basis points and roughly 200.

Benchmark Brent oil has dropped almost 35% this year to around USD44 a barrel, with the coronavirus pandemic and lockdowns sapping demand for energy. Still, yields in the developed world are so low that investors have rushed to buy highly-rated emerging-market assets, including those of Aramco, the world’s biggest oil company. The yield on the firm’s USD3 billion of bonds due in 2029 has dropped to 2.11% from 3.04% at the start of 2020. That’s only slightly higher than the rates on the Saudi government’s equivalent bonds.

Tuesday’s deal was also helped by the more bullish sentiment among investors following this month’s progress on coronavirus vaccines. And while some bond traders are wary that U.S. President-elect Joe Biden might regulate oil and gas companies more, Aramco benefits from having such low production costs, according to Todd Schubert, head of fixed-income research at Bank of Singapore.

The Dhahran-based company, rated A1 by Moody’s Investors Service, has slashed spending, cut jobs, and is considering selling some assets as it looks to save money for its shareholder payouts. Despite these efforts, its gearing -- a measure of debt as a percentage of equity - has increased to 21.8%, above its target range of 5% to 15%. Debt also rose because the company took on loans to pay for a USD69 billion acquisition of Saudi Basic Industries Corp., a chemical maker, earlier this year.

Aramco listed shares on the Saudi stock exchange last December. It said it would pay an annual dividend of USD75 billion for at least five years after the initial public offering. It may need to tap the bond market again, given the size of those commitments, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

The dividend pledge has helped prop up Aramco’s shares. They’ve risen 0.7% this year, while those of rivals such as BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc have fallen more than 40%.

Still, Saudi Arabia’s reliance on Aramco to support its fiscal needs will weigh on the company’s balance sheet and “risks placing increasing stress on its credit profile,” said Jaimin Patel, a BI analyst.

The lead banks on Tuesday’s bond sale were Citigroup Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley and NCB Capital.

Aramco raised USD12 billion in its debut Eurobond sale last year and attracted around USD100 billion of orders.

As MRC wrote before, Saudi Aramco and Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) have decided to reevaluate their crude-oil-to-chemicals project in Yanbu on the kingdom's west coast, according to an Oct. 18 statement on the Tadawul stock exchange, as they slash spending due to low prices. The USD20 billion project may be downsized to use Aramco's existing facilities in the port city, instead of building a new plant, the statement posted by SABIC said.

We remind that in June, Aramco said it had completed the share acquisition of a 70% stake in SABIC from the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, for a total purchase price of Riyals 259.125 billion (USD69.1 billion). Combined, in 2019 Aramco and SABIC recorded petrochemicals production volume of nearly 90 million mt, including agri-nutrient and specialty products.

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

According to MRC"s ScanPlast report, Russia"s estimated PE consumption totalled 1,594,510 tonnes in the first nine months of 2020, up by 1% year on year. Only high denstiy polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 880,130 tonnes in the nine months of 2020 (calculated using the formula: production minus exports plus imports, exluding producers" inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply increased exclusively of PP random copolymer.

Saudi Aramco, officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, is a Saudi Arabian national oil and natural gas company based in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Aramco"s value has been estimated at up to USD10 trillion in the Financial Times, making it the world"s most valuable company. Saudi Aramco has both the largest proven crude oil reserves, at more than 260 billion barrels, and largest daily oil production.
MRC

US specialties market volumes gain in October

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Specialty chemical market volumes in the US increased 1.2% on a sequential basis in October, according to Chemweek with reference to the American Chemistry Council (ACC).

This is a higher growth rate than a revised 0.1% gain for September, and 1.1% increase in August. Of the 28 specialties segments tracked by ACC, 25 posted volume increases in October.

The largest sequential volume gain came in rubber processing chemicals, at 5.0%. Plasticizers, printing inks and plastic additives also posted sequential gains of 3.0% or more. Oilfield chemicals saw the largest volume decline, at 0.6%.

On a year-on-year (YOY) basis, US specialties volumes were down 6.5%, with 23 of the 28 segments tracked by ACC posting decreases. Oilfield chemicals posted the biggest YOY volume drop, at 22.5%, while the biggest increase was in electronic chemicals, at 8.0%.

As MRC reported earlier, Russia's output of chemical products rose in September 2020 by 6.7% year on year.
At the same time, production of basic chemicals increased year on year by 6.1% in the first nine months of 2020, according to Rosstat's data. According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, polymers in primary form accounted for the greatest increase in the January-September output. September production of primary polymers decreased to 852,000 tonnes against 888,000 tonnes in August due to shutdowns in Tomsk, Ufa and Kazan. Overall output of polymers in primary form totalled 7,480,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 16.4% year on year.
MRC

Kumho Petro Chemical Q3 net profit up 207.3 pct. to 146.2 bln won

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Kumho Petro Chemical Co. has reported its third-quarter net income of 146.2 billion won (USD130.5 million), up 207.3 percent from a year earlier, according to YONHAP News Agency.

The company said in a regulatory filing that it posted 213.8 billion won in operating profit for the quarter, compared with 68.4 billion won a year ago. Revenue fell 2.3 percent to 1.18 trillion won.

The operating profit was 12.2 percent higher than the average estimate, according to the survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency. The estimate of net profit was not available.

As MRC reported earlier, in H1 2016, Kumho P&B Chemicals (KPB) completed its phenol, acetone and cumene capacity expansion. KPB is one of the largest producers of benzene derivatives such as phenol, bisphenol-A (BPA), acetone and cumene in South Korea.

Before the expansion, the company operated two phenol/acetone units in Yeosu that were able to produce 380,000 mt/year of phenol 450,000 mt/year of BPA, 235,000 mt/year of acetone and 430,000 mt/year of cumene. With the completion of the capacity expansion, the company had added 300,000 mt/year of phenol, 470,000 mt/year of cumene and 185,000 mt/year of acetone by June 2016.

Phenol is the main feedstock component for the production of bisphenol A (BPA), which, in its turn, is used to produce polycarbonate (PC).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated consumption of PC granules (excluding imports and exports to/from Belarus) rose in the first three quarters of 2020 by 32% year on year to 75,600 tonnes (57,200 tonnes a year earlier).

KPB is an offshore joint venture created by the joint investment of South Korea’s Kumho Petrochemical and Japan’s Nippon Steel Chemical Company in 1976.
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