Fire breaks out at Tehran oil refinery

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A huge fire broke out at an oil refinery in the southern part of the Iranian capital Tehran on Wednesday, reported Reuters with reference to Iranian state media, saying there were so far no reports of casualties.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency said all operations had been suspended at the facility, known as the Tondguyan refinery, as firefighters tried to contain the blaze.

“A leak at a liquid gas pipeline at the facility sparked the fire,” Mansour Darajati, the head of Tehran’s crisis management organisation, told state TV.

The cause of fire will be investigated, he added. Shaker Khafaii, head of the Tehran Oil Refining Co, which runs the refinery, ruled out the possibility of sabotage, Iran’s state TV reported.

We remind that, as MRC informed before, Indian Oil Corp, the country's top refiner, said in late May that it would resume purchases of Iranian oil if Washington lifts sanctions against Tehran over its disputed nuclear programme. The European Union official leading talks to revive Iran's nuclear deal said he was confident an agreement would be reached as the negotiations adjourned, although European diplomats said success was not guaranteed with very difficult issues remaining.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Raizen Argentina, Shell licensee, has selected Axens for the modular supply of a FCC gasoline hydrodesulphurization unit Prime-G+ in its Buenos Aires refinery, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Raizen Argentina is developing a modernization and expansion program for its existing 110,000 BPSD Buenos Aires refinery to meet more stringent motor fuels specifications by January 1st 2024.

Part of this program, downstream the FCC unit, a smart integrated solution based on the Prime-G+ technology was selected to upgrade the gasoline pool quality along with high performance catalysts. This 10,200 BPSD Prime-G+ unit will be delivered in module to enable Raizen to execute the project in a very competitive schedule.

This modular solution supplied by Axens derisks project schedule, and typically save up to 6 months while ensuring the adequate performance of the unit. This is achieved by high degree of pre-fabrication and pre-commissioning. On top of that, risks inherent to site activities, including safety, are drastically reduced using this execution strategy.

As MRC informed before, Royal Dutch Shell has just agreed to sell its stake in an offshore gas field in the Philippines for USD460m as part of its strategy to narrow its oil and gas operations.

Besides, last week, Shell agreed to sell its controlling interest in a Texas refinery to partner Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) for about USD596 million. And in early May, Shell announced the sale of its 149,000 barrel per day (bpd) refinery in Washington to Hollyfrontier Corp.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

Royal Dutch Shell plc is an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the biggest company in the world in terms of revenue and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors". Shell is vertically integrated and is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Christian Kullmann, who has been chairman of German Evonik's executive board since May 2017, will head this Essen-based specialty chemicals company for another five years, as per the company's press release.

At its meeting on 2 June, the supervisory board extended Kullmann's contract until May 2027.

“Christian Kullmann has shown excellent leadership during his present term of office as chairman of the executive board. He has played a key role in driving forward the company, and successfully kept it on track in challenging times. The supervisory board has therefore decided that it is important and right to enable Christian Kullmann to continue what he has started. We have great confidence in his ability to transform Evonik into a best-in-class specialty chemicals company and look forward to continuing to work with him,” says Bernd Tonjes, chairman of the supervisory board of Evonik. Extending Kullmann's contract enables the company to drive forward and strengthen its strategy: concentrating on specialty chemicals, pooling innovative capability, focusing on sustainability, and profitable growth.

Kullmann has announced further steps to increase growth and profitability. Sustainability will play an extremely important role in this. “Profitable and sustainable growth is the toughest discipline in industry,” says Kullmann. “We want to rank right at the top, and that is what our customers want, too. They are increasingly choosing our solutions in order to achieve their own sustainability targets.”

Besides, Kullmann announced that further steps will be taken to optimize the portfolio in the coming years: “We will be investing specifically in our three growth divisions and focusing our combined innovative capability on developing new products."

As MRC informed earlier, in February, 2020, Dow and Evonik entered into an exclusive technology partnership. Together, they plan to bring a unique method for directly synthesizing propylene glycol (PG) from propylene and hydrogen peroxide to market maturity.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

Evonik is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. The focus on more specialty businesses, customer-oriented innovative prowess and a trustful and performance-oriented corporate culture form the heart of Evonik’s corporate strategy. They are the lever for profitable growth and a sustained increase in the value of the company. Evonik benefits specifically from its customer proximity and leading market positions. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world with more than 33,000 employees.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Albemarle Corporation, a leader in the global specialty chemicals industry, has announced that it has completed the sale of its Fine Chemistry Services business to W. R. Grace & Co. for approximately USD570 million, consisting of USD300 million in cash, and the issuance to Albemarle of preferred equity of a W. R. Grace & Co. subsidiary having an aggregate stated value of USD270 million, reported CISION.

The sale includes Albemarle's operations in Tyrone, Pennsylvania and South Haven, Michigan.

"The sale of our Fine Chemistry Services business has enabled us to unlock substantial value from our portfolio of quality assets," said Albemarle's CEO Kent Masters. "With the proceeds from this transaction, we have enhanced our available resources to execute our long-term growth strategy."

As MRC wrote previously, in 2018, W. R. Grace & Co. completed the USD416 million acquisition of the Polyolefin Catalysts business of Albemarle Corporation. The acquired business primarily develops and manufactures proprietary and custom-manufactured single-site catalysts as well as metallocenes and activators used in the production of plastic resins. The transaction also includes a comprehensive series of highly optimized Ziegler-Natta catalysts for polyethylene (PE) production.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 576,270 tonnes in the first three month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market totalled 410,890 tonnes in January-March 2021, up by 56% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

Albemarle Corporation, headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is a global specialty chemicals company with leading positions in lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. The company actively pursues a sustainable approach to managing our diverse global footprint of world-class resources.

A leader in polyolefin catalysts and licensing, W. R. Grace has the world’s broadest portfolio of PP and PE catalyst technologies used to produce thermoplastic resins for a variety of applications. A leading innovator and strategic partner to its customers, Grace supplies catalyst solutions for all polyolefin processes, as well as PP process technology and process controls. Grace employs approximately 3,700 people in over 30 countries.
MRC

1. Indian state refiners reduce daily gasoline and gasoil sales by about fifth in May on COVID-19 lockdowns

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indian state refiners’ daily gasoline and gasoil sales declined by about a fifth in May from a month earlier as lockdowns to curb the second deadly wave of COVID-19 hit industrial activities and consumption, reported Reuters with reference to preliminary data. Daily gasoline sales in May fell by about 19% from April while diesel consumption, which is linked to industrial activity and accounts for over two-fifths of India’s fuel demand, fell by 19.9%, data compiled by state refiners showed. India’s factory activity growth slowed significantly in May as a rise in coronavirus cases whacked new orders and output, the Nikkei Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index compiled by IHS Markit showed.

MRC