US crude and gasoline stockpiles slightly down

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude oil stockpiles fell modestly last week, while gasoline inventories dipped to their lowest level since November, reported Reuters with reference to the US Energy Information Administration's statement.

Crude inventories fell by 447,000 barrels in the week to Aug. 6 to 438.8 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.3 million-barrel drop. Overall crude inventories have been on the decline for several weeks due to increased demand.

Fuel consumption, as measured by product supplied, fell in the most recent week, led by declines in gasoline and jet fuel supplied.

The weekly figures are volatile, however, and over the last four weeks produced supplied sits at 20.6 million barrels per day (bpd), roughly in line with 2019 levels. Analysts said if fuel demand starts to decline as a result of the Delta variant of the coronavirus, it would be negative for energy prices.

"We did see a fairly decent setback in overall product demand. That's the point in today's report that could cause the most concern considering the backdrop of the Delta variant and overall uncertainty," said Tony Headrick, energy market analyst at CHS Hedging.

Oil prices were lower on the day, though roughly in line with the market's level prior to the news. As of 10:45 a.m. EDT (1445 GMT), US crude fell 51 cents to USD67.78 a barrel while Brent dropped 56 cents to USD70.06 a barrel.

Refinery crude runs rose by 277,000 bpd in the last week, while refinery utilization rates rose by 0.5 percentage point.

US gasoline stocks fell by 1.4 million barrels to 227.5 million barrels, compared with expectations for a 1.7 million-barrel drop.?

Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 1.8 million barrels, versus expectations for a 472,000-barrel drop.

Net US crude imports fell last week by 796,000 bpd.

As MRC informed previously, US crude oil production is expected to fall by 160,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2021 to 11.12 million bpd, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a monthly report, a smaller decline than its previous forecast for a drop of 210,000 bpd.

We remind that BP raised Aug. 3 its 2025 oil price assumption by USD5/b to USD60/b to reflect an expected supply constraint, while promising a recovery in its own production volumes following a maintenance-related slump in the second quarter.

We also remind that BP and Lukoil want to quit their Iraqi energy projects due to the current investment environment, the country's oil minister said earlier this month, as OPEC's second biggest producer faces an exodus of international oil companies that want to exit unattractive contracts. Lukoil wants to sell its stake in West Qurna 2 to Chinese companies.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indian refining giant Reliance Industries (RIL) posted robust crude throughput growth in April-June as oil products demand witnessed healthy year-on-year growth, the company said, adding that it had started investing on its clean energy initiatives keeping in mind its vision to achieve net carbon zero by 2035, reported S&P Global.

While the company has also raised its gas production, a revival in demand for packaging and hygiene products was helping demand for petrochemical products to also bounce back, it added.

"In our oils-to-chemicals business, we generated strong earnings through our integrated portfolio and superior product placement capabilities," said Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries.

The biggest private refiner recorded a 6.74% year-on-year rise in crude throughput in its April-June fiscal first quarter to 19 million mt at its Jamnagar refineries complex, it said.

The higher processing level reflected a healthy operational performance of its refining segment during the challenging time of the second wave of coronavirus pandemic in India, the company said, adding that Reliance processed 17.8 million mt of crude in the year-ago period.

Reliance operates one of the world's biggest oil refinery complexes in the western state of Gujarat. At its Jamnagar complex, Reliance has an older 660,000 b/d domestic-focused refinery and a 704,000 b/d export-oriented refinery.

Reliance said India's domestic oil products demand in April-June was lower on a quarter-on-quarter basis because of the resurgence of the second COVID-19 wave. But demand was up 18.8% year on year.

Gasoline, diesel and jet demand increased by 35.1%, 22.5% and 142.6%, respectively over the year-ago quarter. Indian domestic air travel has been increasing in most regions, while the international travel into and out of India is still muted, Reliance said.

Commenting on the global outlook, Reliance said oil demand during April-June recovered to 94.7 million b/d, up 1.2 million b/d from the previous quarter, while it was 11.8 million b/d higher compared to the same quarter in 2020.

While new COVID outbreaks saw global oil demand fall in April and May this year by y 510,000 b/d and 880,000 b/d month-on-month respectively, a sharp uptick in demand by 3.2 million b/d in June contributed to robust demand growth in the quarter.

"Oil supplies remained tight due to the strong compliance to production targets by OPEC plus countries. Stronger oil fundamentals, vaccination programs and better demand outlook have resulted in a steady rise in crude prices throughout Q1 of financial year 2021-22," Reliance said.

Reliance said domestic polymer demand in its fiscal Q1 grew by 28% year on year on a lower base in the year-ago quarter due to lockdown with sustained demand from essential sectors like food and FMCG packaging, e-commerce packaging, health and the hygiene segment.

Domestic polyester demand improved by 203% in fiscal Q1 year on year over the pandemic-hit Q1 of 2020-21. Polyester filament and fiber markets witnessed high growth rates with improved domestic downstream operations supported by firm global markets, the company said.

As MRC informed before, RIL is doubling its polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling capacity by setting up a recycled polyester staple fiber (PSF) manufacturing facility in Andhra Pradesh. The move is part of RIL's commitment to lead the industry on circular economy, enhance its sustainability quotient and bolster the entire polyester and polymer value chain.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PET consumption totalled 411,200 tonnes in the first six month of 2021, up by 12% year on year. Russian companies processed 62,910 tonnes in June, compared to 85,890 tonnes a month earlier.

Reliance Industries is one of the world's largest producers of polymers. Thus, the company produces among others polypropylene, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Enterprise Products Partners reported flaring at its propane dehydration, or PDH, unit in Mont Belvieu, Texas, reported S&P Global with reference to the company's statement in a filing to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, or TCEQ.

According to the filing made public Aug. 10, the 750,000 mt/year PDH unit was shut down following a leak on Aug. 9.

Sources confirmed on Aug. 10 that the unit was offline, but did not give an estimated timeframe of when the unit is expected to come back online.

As MRC informed previously, Enterprise Product Partners' PDH unit in Mont Belvieu was taken off-line for a turnaround in early February. Thus, the PDH unit was shut for scheduled maintenance on Feb. 1 for approximately six weeks. This PDH unit has the capacity of 750,000 mt/y of propylene.

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

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, 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.

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. is an American midstream natural gas and crude oil pipeline company with headquarters in Houston, Texas. It acquired GulfTerra in September 2004. The company ranked No. 105 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- An oil spill off Russia's Black Sea coast over the weekend spread over an area of nearly 80 square kilometres and was much larger than initially thought, reported Reuters with reference to the statement of scientists at Russia's Academy of Sciences (RAN) that cited satellite imaging.

A leak occurred as the Greek-flagged Minerva Symphony tanker took on oil at the Yuzhno-Ozereyevka sea terminal near Novorossiysk in southern Russia, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium that owns the terminal said on Monday.

The consortium, which transports oil from Kazakhstan, said on Monday the spill had spread over 200 square metres and involved 12 cubic metres of oil. It said the spill was quickly contained and posed no threat to people or wildlife.

But on Wednesday, RAN's space research institute said a satellite image taken on Sunday and studied by two RAN scientists showed the leak had covered a much bigger area.

"The oil slick stretched from the shore into the open sea over a distance of 19 kilometres on Aug. 8," said the company.

The CPC consortium did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

As MRC wrote earlier, in June 2021, Taiwan's state-owned refiner CPC Corp started cleaning up an offshore oil spill caused by a pipeline that cracked during the discharging of oil from a vessel at its Talin refinery. The oil leak occurred on Tuesday, 22 June, at 2:18 a.m. (1818 GMT) and was likely caused by bad weather, the company said in a statement. CPC immediately halted oil discharge following the incident.

We remind that in January, 2021, CPC Corp bought a piece of land in Kaohsiung on which it plans to build a new naphtha cracker to replace its No. 4 cracker at a cost of NTD82.3 billion (USD2.94 billion). CPC's No. 4 cracker in Kaohsiung's Linyuan District has been in operation for 37 years and has an annual ethylene production capacity of 380,000 metric tons, which cannot meet the demand of its customers, CPC spokesman Chang Ray-chung said then.

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

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Mammoet has executed its first operation using low-carbon HVO fuel. The operation, to transport two topsides, is another step towards more sustainable operations for the world’s leading heavy lifting and transportation company, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

In the past, Mammoet’s worldwide fleet has run on conventional diesel. With new diesel products entering the market, Mammoet has been at the forefront of adoption of these new fuels, embracing the benefits they bring for the environment. This began in 2015 with its fleet in the Netherlands moving to GTL fuel, which emits fewer particulates.

This latest development involves the use of low-carbon HVO in Mammoet’s SPMT powerpacks. HVO is an alternative to traditional diesel, made primarily from waste and residues, such as waste cooking oil. Because this diesel is both derived from renewables and reduces waste it is considered 90% carbon free. It also gives off fewer direct exhaust emissions, including a reduction in nitrogen oxides.

Since 1984, when Mammoet and Scheuerle jointly launched the first SPMT, Mammoet has led the industry in new technologies and ways of working. When launched, the SPMT had a significant impact on the way construction and maintenance projects in heavy industries are executed. More recently, the partnership with Scheuerle has led to a number of developments in more sustainable trailer technology such as the Trailer Power Assist and an electric SPMT power pack, currently in its testing phase.

Mammoet is working to improve sustainability across its business, by lowering its own carbon footprint and also supporting and enabling heavy renewable energy projects. The use of HVO fuel to power the SPMT transport for HSM Offshore is a further demonstration of Mammoet’s commitment to leading the field in more sustainable operations.

As MRC informed previously, tasked by company Grupa Azoty ((Tarnow, Poland), one of the main players on the European fertilizer and chemical market, Mammoet has recently completed the first scope of work that will lead to the construction of the propane dehydrogenation and polypropylene (PDH/PP) blocks of its client’s chemical facility. The project took place in the town of Police, in the northwest of Poland, and involved the lifting and transport of more than 480 items from a small port to the construction site six kilometers away.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, 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