Chevron Phillips to make final investment decisions on new cracker in 2022

Chevron Phillips to make final investment decisions on new cracker in 2022

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chevron Phillips Chemical will make a final investment decision on a new cracker in far southeast Texas in 2022, followed by an FID in 2023 on an USD8 billion joint venture petrochemical complex along the US Gulf Coast in 2023, reported S&P Global with reference to Phillips 66 CEO Greg Garland's statement in early August.

An analyst asked during Phillips 66's second-quarter earnings call about the status of the projects, each of which include a new cracker.

He said during the company's Q2 2021 earnings call that CP Chem was "looking at FID next year" for a possible new cracker on the US Gulf Coast, "and the Qatar project is about a year behind that."

Garland said market fundamentals have "improved dramatically" since the company initiated the projects in 2019, and it would take about four years from FID to startup.

"We've got our foot forward on these," he said. "We are ready to move, and we're working with contractors to make sure that we're getting the capital costs right."

While global markets are seen improving after coronavirus' worst effects in 2020, Garland noted some disruption remains in the world economy. The delta variant's spread has increased uncertainty amid uneven vaccination rates worldwide.

"We'd like to see a little clearer path to a fully resolved economic recovery from COVID. Get the delta variant and any other variants behind us," Garland said. "But we are leaning in and ready to move with FID on that project next year."

The potential southeastern Texas cracker project, with at least one derivative unit, has an estimated cost of $2.9 billion, according to documents dated December 2018 that were made public by the Texas Comptroller's Office in January 2019.

The documents did not reveal capacities for the plants or further details but noted that the company was evaluating other proposed sites in Texas and Louisiana.

The CP Chem and Qatar Petroleum in July 2019 announced plans to build their USD8 billion joint venture on the US Gulf Coast, without further specifying a location. That project's proposed 2 million mt/year cracker would be one of the two largest crackers in the world, along with Dow Chemical's 2 million mt/year facility at its Freeport, Texas, complex. The complex also would, as proposed, including two 1 million mt/year high density polyethylene (HDPE) plants.

As MRC informed earlier, Phillips 66 in July 2020 announced that FID on the joint venture was deferred from 2021, but did not specify a new FID target date at that time.

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 1,176,860 tonnes in the first half of 2021, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 727,160 tonnes in the first six months of 2021, up by 31% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased. Supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.

CP Chem is a joint venture of Phillips 66 and Chevron.

Headquartered in San Ramon, California, Chevron Corporation is the the second-largest integrated energy company in the United States and among the largest corporations in the world. Chevron is involved in upstream activities including exploration and production, downstream activities including refining, marketing and transportation, and advanced energy technology. Chevron is also invested in power generation and gasification processes.
MRC

MEGlobal nominates ACP for September 2021 at USD870 per tonne

MEGlobal nominates ACP for September 2021 at USD870 per tonne

MOSCOW (MRC) -- MEGlobal has announced its Asian Contract Price (ACP) for monoethylene glycol (MEG) to be shipped in September 2021, according to the company's press release.

Thus, on 11 August, the company said ACP for MEG would be at USD870/MT CFR Asian main ports for arrival in September 2021, up by USD30/tonne from the previous month.

The August 2021 ACP reflects the short term supply/demand situation in the Asian market.

As MRC reported earlier, MEGlobal announced its August ACP for MEG at USD840/MT CFR Asian main ports, up by USD10/tonne from July.

MEG is one of the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, Russian producers raised their July contract PET prices to the range of Rb102,000-114,000/tonne CPT Moscow, including VAT. In the absence of sharp fluctuations in the rouble exchange rate in August, contract prices are likely to continue rising in September.

MEGlobal is a fully integrated supplier of monoethylene glycol (MEG) and diethylene glycol (DEG), collectively known as ethylene glycol (EG).
MRC

COVID-19 infection halts China second-busiest container port in Ningbo

COVID-19 infection halts China second-busiest container port in Ningbo

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A terminal at China's second-busiest container port, Ningbo Zhoushan, suspended operations Aug. 11 after a port worker tested positive for COVID-19, fueling worries that export cargoes will be further delayed heading into the August-November peak season for shipments to the US and Europe, reported S&P Global.

Meidong Container Terminal halted inbound and unloading services from 3:30 a.m. local time Aug. 11. A similar outbreak at Shenzhen's Yantian port in May curtailed operations for a month, contributing to severe congestion at nearly all major North American ports in early August as Yantian ramped up operations to clear backlogs of cargo.

"With this sudden suspension, we expect a delay in planned sailings that might affect your cargo planning," German shipping firm Hapag-Lloyd said in an advisory Aug. 11. "Please know that we are working on alternatives and hope for your understanding on a matter that is beyond our control."

Meidong terminal is part of the Meishan bonded area used regularly by Ocean Alliance members Cosco, Evergreen and CMA CGM.

A US-based freight forwarder noted that any halt of Ningbo port operations is likely spill over to the world's busiest container port complex at Shanghai, which sits just opposite of Ningbo in the Hangzhou Bay in East China and is the likely alternative for some export cargoes that were planned to depart from Ningbo, as well as many arriving ships.

"Shippers are already getting very antsy about Black Friday coming up," a US-based freight forwarder said, referring to the typical late-November start of the year-end holiday shopping season. "We are all dreading any further canceled sailings."

As MRC informed earlier, China's crude oil imports rebounded in July from a six-month low as state-backed refiners ramped up output after returning from maintenance, though independent refineries slowed restocking amid probes by Beijing into trading and taxes.

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 1,176,860 tonnes in the first half of 2021, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 727,160 tonnes in the first six months of 2021, up by 31% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased. Supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.
MRC

Limetree Bay refinery gets USD10 mln debtor-in-possession funds to unwind

Limetree Bay refinery gets USD10 mln debtor-in-possession funds to unwind

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Limetree Bay refinery can get another USD10 million in debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing this month, a Houston bankruptcy court judge said, cash that will go toward unwinding operations, reported Reuters.

The St. Croix, US Virgin Islands, refinery filed for bankruptcy in July after investors poured USD4.1 billion into an unsuccessful revival of the aging facility. An initial restart had to be abandoned after its stacks spewed oil on homes and contaminated drinking water.

The 210,000 barrel per day refinery is due to receive up to USD25 million in interim financing while seeking to restructure nearly USD2 billion in debt. It thus far has received USD5.5 million from DIP lender Arena Investors LP.

On Monday, Jefferies Financial Group Inc said it has not found a buyer for the facility despite reaching out to several parties. But Jefferies co-head of US restructuring, Michael O’Hara, said if a buyer was found, there were parties available to replace BP Plc as the facility’s crude oil provider.

The company sought cash to pay workers to remove oil from the nearly-shuttered facility and to reimburse former employees for travel costs.

US prosecutors are investigating potential criminal violations of the Clean Air Act, Limetree bankruptcy counsel Elizabeth Green said on Monday. The investigation has deterred potential investors, Limetree’s lawyers have said.

Judge Jones, who is a veteran of refinery restructurings in the Southern District of Texas court, said in July he was concerned about Limetree’s ability to through Chapter 11 with the existing DIP loan.

The process of decommissioning the refinery will take several months, the company’s owner, a consortium led by EIG Global Energy Partners, told the Texas court this month.

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 1,176,860 tonnes in the first half of 2021, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 727,160 tonnes in the first six months of 2021, up by 31% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased. Supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.
MRC

Bapco awards largest catalyst management agreement in its history to Grace and Chevron JV

Bapco awards largest catalyst management agreement in its history to Grace and Chevron JV

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Advanced Refining Technologies LLC (ART), the joint venture of US speciality chemicals and materials company W. R. Grace & Co. and US energy company Chevron, announced the award of an FCM agreement by state-owned Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco), according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The exclusive, 5-year agreement, which includes an option to renew for an additional five years, is valued at USD240 million, the largest catalyst management agreement ever signed in Bapco’s history.

As part of the BMP, Bapco will boost Bahrain’s oil refinery processing capacity from 267,000 (b/d) to 380,000 (b/d). In addition, ART will supply its Resid Hydrocracking catalyst technology for a wide variety of feedstocks to maximize bottom of the barrel upgrading. The technology is the industry-leading catalyst for metals capacity and sediment control. In addition, ART will provide FCM services for the reclamation of metals from spent catalysts.

When fully operational in 2023, the new Resid Hydrocracking unit known as 1RHCU will be the main profit centre for the Bapco Refinery. 1RHCU utilizes LC-FINING process technology licensed from Chevron Lummus Global (CLG), a joint venture between Chevron and Lummus Technology.

The unit is a two-train design with a processing capacity of 65,000 barrels per day. Bapco’s application of this state-of-the-art technology will be the first within the Middle East. Less than a dozen of these units exist globally, and the Bapco unit will be one of the largest examples.

As MRC reported earlier, in May 2019, Bapco completed multi-billion-dollar financing aimed at expanding its refining capacity to 380,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 267,000 bpd.

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 1,176,860 tonnes in the first half of 2021, up by 5% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 727,160 tonnes in the first six months of 2021, up by 31% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased. Supply of statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) subsided.
MRC