PVC imports to Ukraine fell by 41% in January-May, exports remained steady

MOSCOW (MRC) - Imports of suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) into Ukraine decreased by 41% in the first five months of this year, compared to the same period in 2020 and reached about 10,600 tonnes. Export sales of Ukrainian PVC did not grow, despite record-high price levels in several regions of the world, according to MRC' DataScope.

Last month's SPVC imports to the Ukrainian market increased to 2,000 tonnes from 2,200 tonnes in April, with European producers continuing serious export restrictions. Overall SPVC imports reached 10,600 tonnes in January-May 2021, compared to 17,800 tonnes a year earlier.
Limited export quotas from European producers and high prices at North American ones were the main reason for such a serious drop in imports.
European producers with the share of about 98% of the total imports over the stated period were the key suppliers of PVC to the Ukrainian market. Last month, Karpatneftekhim decreased the volume of external sales significantly, the export sales of Ukrainian PVC amounted to 10,500 tonnes against 19,100 tonnes in April.

Overall, a little more than 90,000 tonnes were shipped for export in the first five months of 2021, compared to 89,600 tonnes a year earlier.


MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PPG, US coatings major, has completed its acquisition of all of the shares in Finnish Tikkurila, a leading Nordic paint and coatings Company, as per PPG's press release on Thursday.

Tikkurila shareholders received EUR34.00 in cash for each of the 38,711,646 million shares of Tikkurila tendered. Together with the shares it previously acquired, PPG now controls 97.1% of Tikkurila’s issued and outstanding shares. The remaining 2.9% will be acquired through a squeeze out process, which will be initiated promptly.

“We look forward to welcoming Tikkurila employees and leveraging the company’s complementary geographic footprint and strong portfolio of decorative brands to drive future growth,” said Michael McGarry, PPG chairman and chief executive officer. “Our teams will work as One PPG to provide customers with expanded paint and coatings options that will now include Tikkurila’s environmentally friendly decorative products and high-quality industrial coatings.”

“The combination of Tikkurila with PPG will give customers access to a broader portfolio of new technologies and resources. Together, we look forward to an even more colourful tomorrow, and working with the PPG team to leverage their scale and industry expertise to accelerate our development,” said Elisa Markula, CEO of Tikkurila.

As MRC reported earlier, PPG Industries received approval from the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) of Russia on May 21, 2021, and thus, it received all necessary regulatory approvals to complete the tender offer to acquire Tikkurila. The company had announced that the tender offer will expire on June 4, 2021. PPG expected to complete the tender offer and close the transaction on or about June 10, 2021.

Tikkurila was established in 1862, and is headquartered in Vantaa, Finland. The company is a leading producer and distributor of decorative paint and coatings with operations in 11 countries and more than 80% of its revenue coming from Finland, Sweden, Russia, Poland, and the Baltic states. Its brands include Tikkurila, ALCRO, Teks, Vivacolor, and Beckers. Tikkurila uses the Beckers brand only in its decorative paints in Scandinavian countries as well as in some parts of Eastern Europe under a license from Aktiebolaget Wilh. Becker, obtained in conjunction with its acquisition of Alcro-Beckers Ab in 2001. Tikkurila’s industrial paint business produces paints and coatings for the wood and metal industries, among others. The company employs approximately 2,400 people globally and reported sales of approximately EUR582 million in 2020.

PPG has developed and delivered the paints, coatings and materials for more than 135 years. With headquarters in Pittsburgh, the company operates in more than 70 countries and reported net sales of USD13.8 billion in 2020. The company serves customers in construction, consumer products, industrial and transportation markets and aftermarkets.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Norway's Equinor has agreed to sell its Danish Kalundborg refinery as well as an oil terminal to Geneva-based Klesch Group for an undisclosed sum, said Reuters.

The companies declined to reveal the value of the deal, which will require approval by Danish authorities. Built in 1961 and acquired by Equinor in 1986, the facility can process 107,000 barrels a day of crude oil and condensate for gasoline, diesel, propane and heating oil, with an annual capacity of 5.5 million tonnes of oil products, Equinor said.

"This transaction supports Equinor's strategy to focus its portfolio around core areas," said Irene Rummelhoff, head of the Norwegian firm's Marketing, Midstream and Processing unit. Equinor will now concentrate its refining business at Norway's Mongstad, she added.

Klesch, which is involved in the production and trading of oil and metals, as well as the trading of financial derivatives, already owns northern Germany's Heide refinery, acquired a decade ago from Shell.

"Given the proximity of our refinery in Germany, I'm sure there will be lots of opportunities for both refineries to work together; especially when it comes to deploying our decarbonisation strategy," Klesch Group Chairman A. Gary Klesch said in a statement.

We also remind that BP and Equinor confirmed they are shutting in production on their platforms, while Chevron, BHP and others said they are evacuating some personnel and considering decisions on production reductions.

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 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US refining company Citgo Petroleum expects to continue increasing its refinery utilisation rates after weather events hit its facilities last year and in the first quarter, reported Reuters with reference to Chief Executive Carlos Jorda's statement.

Citgo's utilisation rate rose in March for an average of 83% in the first three months of the year, a quarter when a winter storm that severely affected refiners in the US Gulf Coast contributed to the company's net loss of USD180 million, the firm said last month.

As MRC wrote before, in September 2020, Citgo Petroleum Corp said it did not plan to idle its 418,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Lake Charles, Louisiana, refinery damaged by Hurricane Laura. Rumors have circulated since Laura’s passage over the Lake Charles area on Aug. 27 that Citgo was considering shutting the refinery for an indefinite period because of the extent of the damage and continuing low demand for motor fuels in the COVID-19 pandemic.

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 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Axens has signed a license agreement for its Vegan renewable hydroprocessing technology with Aemetis, Inc. for its “Carbon Zero 1” project in Riverbank, California, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Axens is also providing the basic engineering, catalyst supply, as well as the proprietary equipment for the conversion of ultra-low carbon intensity, non-edible vegetable and other non-edible oils along with renewable hydrogen in partnership with Gulf Process Gases to produce a flexible mix of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel fuel.

“Today Axens is pleased to announce yet another key step in the deployment of Aemetis’ Carbon Zero 1 project. While we are excited to renew our support to Aemetis vision, today also marks another significant milestone for Axens’ Vegan technology position in the sustainable and renewable biofuels market,” stated Romain Lemoine, VP of Process Licensing, Axens Americas.

As MRC reported previously, earlier this month, Raizen Argentina, Shell licensee, selected Axens for the modular supply of a FCC gasoline hydrodesulphurization unit Prime-G+ in its Buenos Aires refinery.

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