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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Trinseo, a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex binders, and synthetic rubber, and its affiliate companies in Europe, have announced a price decrease for all polystyrene (PS) and acrylonitrile-styrene copolymer (SAN) in Europe, according to the company's press release as of June 2.
Effective June 1, 2021, or as existing contract terms allow, the contract and spot prices for the products listed below went down as follows:
- STYRON general purpose polystyrene grades (GPPS) -- by EUR290 per metric ton;
- STYRON and STYRON A-Tech and STYRON X- Tech and STYRON C- Tech high impact polystyrene grades (HIPS) - by EUR290 per metric ton;
- TYRIL SAN resins - by EUR170 per metric ton.
As MRC informed before, Trinseo raised its prices for all PS, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and SAN grades on May 1, 2021, as stated below:
- STYRON GPPS -- by EUR105 per metric ton;
- STYRON and STYRON A-Tech and STYRON X- Tech and STYRON C- Tech HIPS - by EUR105 per metric ton;
- MAGNUM ABS resins - by EUR160 per metric ton
- TYRIL SAN resins - by EUR170 per metric ton.
According to ICIS-MRC Price report, Russian plants reduced their PS prices this month under the pressure from foreign markets and lower feedstock prices. Nizhnekamskneftekhim reduced its June prices of polymer by a larger amount than other plants.
Trinseo is a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex and rubber. Trinseo's technology is used by customers in industries such as home appliances, automotive, building & construction, carpet, consumer electronics, consumer goods, electrical & lighting, medical, packaging, paper & paperboard, rubber goods and tires. Formerly known as Styron, Trinseo completed its renaming process in 1Q 2015. Trinseo had approximately USD3.0 billion in net sales in 2020, with 17 manufacturing sites around the world, and approximately 2,600 employees.
MRC
Trinseo reduces June PS and SAN prices in Europe
Austrian petrochemicals major OMV appoints former Borealis head as its new CEO
MOSCOW (MRC) -- Austrian energy and petrochemicals major OMV has appointed Alfred Stern as its new CEO, effective 1 September, said the company in its press release.
Stern, a former CEO of OMV’s Borealis chemicals and plastics business, is currently OMV executive board member with responsibility for Chemicals & Materials. He will be OMV’s CEO for a three-year period, with an extension option for a further two years.
Alfred Stern succeeds Rainer Seele, who will resign “by mutual agreement” on 31 August. Seele is leaving OMV earlier than expected. His current term of office was due to end on 30 June 2022. In April, Seele said he would not seek an extension.
In commenting on the leadership change, OMV supervisory board chairman Mark Garrett said that Stern has the "specialist expertise" and the experience in the chemical industry to lead OMV at a time of "major transformation in the direction of chemicals and a circular economy".
As MRC wrote before, OMV is investing EUR40 million (USD48 million) to expand and modernize a steam cracker and associated units at its refining and petrochemicals complex at Burghausen, Germany. The upgrade will increase the site’s ethylene and propylene production capacity by 50,000 metric tons/year. Following a planned turnaround of the refinery, the revamped cracker and petchem units are expected to start operations in the third quarter of 2022. Initial groundwork is already underway ahead of the upgrade.
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.
OMV produces and markets oil and gas, innovative energy and high-end petrochemical solutions – in a responsible way. With Group sales of EUR 23 bn and a workforce of around 20,000 employees in 2019, OMV Aktiengesellschaft is one of Austria’s largest listed industrial companies.
MRC
Adani Group to invest USD4 bln in new coal-to-PVC plant in Gujarat
MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Adani Group will be developing a new coal-to-polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant in Mundra, Gujarat, India, according to Kemicalinfo with reference to an application by the company to India’s Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change.
The plant is expected to produce 2 million metric tons per year PVC grades such as suspension PVC (SPVC), chlorinated PVC (CPVC) and emulsion PVC (EPVC).
The company also intends to establish a vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) plant to produce PVC. This unit is projected to have a capacity of 2.002 million tons per year.
The company expects to complete the project within the next four years after receiving all the necessary approvals, it added.
The group stated that coal of about 3.1 million tonnes per year for the project will be sourced mainly from Australia, Russia and other countries.
According to the company, the project will produce 2.86 million metric tons per year of lime, 2.9 million metric tons per year of calcium carbide, and 860,000 metric tons per year of acetylene, and hydrate lime sludge from coal feedstock which are then processed to produce PVC.
In addition, the conglomerate also expects to produce 1.3 million metric tons per year of caustic soda, 1.23 million metric tons per year of hydrochloric acid (HCL), and 16,000 metric tons per year of sodium hypochlorite as byproducts. The facility is also expected to produce 130,000 metric tons per year of caustic potash, 100,000 metric tons per year of potassium carbonate, and 200,000 metric tons per year of sodium bicarbonate.
The proposed project will also help to reduce import dependence for polymers by promoting domestic production, the company concluded.
As MRC reported earlier, Technip Energies has been recently awarded a significant Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning (EPCC) contract by Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) for its BR9 Expansion Project in Barauni, Bihar, in the Eastern part of India. This EPCC contract covers the installation of a new Once-through Hydrocracker Unit (OHCU) of 1 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) capacity, a Fuel Gas Treatment Unit (FGTU) and the associated facilities.
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's overall PVC production reached 346,100 tonnes in the first four months of 2021, down by 1% year on year. All producers decreased production volumes over the stated period, with the exception of Bashkir Soda Company.
MRC
Russian PVC prices increased again and broke another record in June
MOSCOW (MRC) - Limited supply from producers and still high price levels for suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) in several regions of the world continue to push prices up in Russia as well. Russian producers achieved an increase in prices of Rb2,000-25,000/tonne for June shipment, according to the ICIS-MRC Price Report.
PVC prices began slowly decrease in some regions of the world in May - early June, but are still at a fairly high level.
As a result, there was still no import alternative for Russian converters, with the exception of China. At the same time, the possibilities for the supply of domestic PVC producers to the domestic market were limited, including due to the upcoming scheduled maintenances in July of two plants. Because of this PVC prices in Russia continued to grow; domestic producers announced a price increase of Rb2,000 - 25,000/tonnes for June shipments.
High price levels in several regions of the world have led to an increase in export sales of PVC from some Russian producers in the past few months. Although on a cumulative basis since the beginning of the year, the total export sales of Russian producers were lower than in 2020. Nevertheless, in fact, it was only in June that PVC prices approached export sales in some areas in the domestic market.
In 2021, Russian producers and converters entered with a minimum PVC warehouse stock. Some producers have been shipping PVC to consumers with delays in the past three months, and converters, in turn, cannot replenish their inventories in full. In addition, it is worth noting that in July it is planned to shutdown the facilities of SayanskKhimPlast and the Bashkir Soda Company, the total nominal capacity of which is 590,000 tonnes/year.
Some converters have already reported that producers informed them about the impossibility of supplying PVC to them in July.
PVC imports have increased this year, with a surge in supplies in March and May, but external supplies were still not sufficient to meet demand, which, despite record high PVC prices, is strong. From the point of view of an alternative to Russian PVC, Chinese PVC remains the only option, although PVC in the United States has been dynamically becoming cheaper in the past few weeks. Export prices from Chinese producers for acetylene PVC were currently more attractive than prices from Russian producers.But complex logistics and a long time lag between the conclusion of the contract and the receipt of PVC do not allow us to speak of the possibility of a serious replacement of domestic raw materials with supplies from China.
Discussions on prices for June shipment of Russian PVC began in the second half of last week, but most of the deals were agreed upon in the first days of negotiations. At the same time, the primary issue was the availability of PVC volumes. The price did not matter for many converters for several months. In general, deals for the supply of Russian PVC with K64 / 67 were done in a very wide range: Rb145,000-171,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT for volumes up to 500 tonnes, against Rb135,000-150,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT in May.
PE production in Russia up by 9% in January-April
April total PE production in Russia fell to 256,700 tonnes, whereas this figure was 283,900 tonnes a month earlier. Russian producers reduced the production of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE). Thus, overall PE production reached 1,080,500 tonnes in the first four months of 2021, compared to 993,000 tonnes a year earlier. The main increase in production volumes accounted on linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), while the production of LDPE decreased.
The structure of PE output by grades looked the following way over the stated period.
April HDPE production reached 147,700 tonnes versus 175,900 tonnes a month earlier, Kazanorgsintez and ZapSibNeftekhim raised their HDPE output. Russian plants' overall HDPE output reached 653,500 tonnes in January-April 2020, up by 9% year on year.
Last month, the total output of LDPE decreased to 50,100 tonnes against 60,100 tonnes in March, Tomskneftekhim and Kazanorgsintez reduced their capacity utilisation (due to a shutdown for scheduled preventive maintenance). Thus, overall production of this PE grade totalled 228,400 tonnes over the stated period, down by 2% year on year.
April LLDPE production rose to 58,900 tonnes from 47,800 tonnes a month earlier, all producers increased their output. Overall LLDPE output rose to 198,600 tonnes in January-April 2021 from 159,100 tonnes a year earlier.
MRC