Revenue of Kazanorgsintez reached Rb52.7 bn in H1

Revenue of Kazanorgsintez  reached Rb52.7 bn in H1

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Kazanorgsintez PJSC has published consolidated interim financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards for the six months of 2021, said the company.

According to the reported data, the profit of the enterprise amounted to Rb14.7 bns, which is 3.6 times higher than the similar indicators of the crisis in the first half of 2020.

Revenue of Kazanorgsintez PJSC for the first half of this year reached 52.7 billion rubles, which is 68% higher than the results for the same period last year. The export volume amounted to 8.4 billion rubles. The domestic market sold products worth 44.3 billion rubles. Compared to the comparable period, the share of exports in the first half of 2021 decreased from 23% to 16%. The enterprise made such a reorientation in the face of reduced supply on the Russian market from foreign polymer producers.

Plastics accounted for Rb46.3 bn in the total revenue of the enterprise. For other petrochemical products - Rb5.2 bn. Sales of other petrochemical products include the sale of bisphenol A, ethylene glycol, monoethanolamine, acetone and other petrochemical products.

Funds allocated for investment activities in the first half of 2021 amounted to Rb13.3 bns. This is 5.6 times higher than investment costs for 6 months of 2020.

Earlier it was reported that the subsidiaries of the Italian engineering company Maire Tecnimont S.p.A. received a contract for the construction of a new Kazanorgsintez plant (KOS, part of TAIF) for the production of high-pressure polyethylene (LDPE) / ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) at the existing KOS complex in Kazan (Tatarstan, Russia). The capacity of the new enterprise will be 100,000 tonnes of LDPE / EVA per year.

According to MRC's ScanPlast, in June the estimated consumption of LDPE in Russia fell to 45,190 tonnes against 47,780 tonnes a month earlier. Russian manufacturers have increased export sales of polyethylene (PE). In the first six months of the year, the estimated consumption of LDPE in Russia amounted to 280,850 tonnes, which is 2% less than a year earlier. PE output decreased, while export volumes increased.

Kazanorgsintez PJSC is one of the largest enterprises in the Russian Federation (TAIF Group of Companies). It produces 40% of all Russian polyethylene and is its largest exporter. Currently, PE, polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene pipes, phenol, acetone, bisphenol A are produced. KOS is the only Russian PC manufacturer. There are 170 types of products in total. The annual production volume is 1.6 million tonnes. The enterprise is the largest Russian manufacturer of low-pressure polyethylene (HDPE) pipes. The annual production capacity of HDPE is 540,000 tonnes, and LDPE - 225,000 tonnes.
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COVID-19 - News digest as of 30.08.2021

1. Asian PET recycling companies report feedstock shortage due to COVID-19 pandemic

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Southeast Asian polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling companies will continue facing challenges with the availability of raw materials, due to the low collecting and processing rate, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, reported S&P Global with reference to market sources. Many manufacturers are still looking to shift more volumes for local sales, as exports are restricted by container shortage and higher freight costs, sources said.

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US energy companies prepare for severe weather during landfall of tropical storm Ida

US energy companies prepare for severe weather during landfall of tropical storm Ida

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US energy companies on Thursday began airlifting workers from Gulf of Mexico oil platforms and moved vessels ahead of a powerful hurricane forecast for the weekend, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Gulf of Mexico offshore wells account for 17% of US crude oil production and 5% of dry natural gas production. Over 45% of total US refining capacity lies along the Gulf Coast.

Exxon Mobil Corp said it was preparing its 520,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Baton Rouge, Louisiana refinery for severe weather, but operations were normal on Thursday.

Phillips 66 operations at refineries in Lake Charles and Alliance, Louisiana, “will be adjusted based on the storm’s progression,” spokesman Bernardo Fallas said.

BP PLC, BHP, Chevron, Equinor and Royal Dutch Shell removed workers from offshore facilities, spokespeople said. BHP and Chevron evacuated non-essential staff while Equinor said it is preparing to move workers off its Titan platform.

BHP, BP and Shell said they have begun to shut in production at offshore platforms. Chevron said its production remained at normal levels on Thursday, while Occidental Petroleum and Hess Corp said they are monitoring weather conditions.U.S. Gulf Coast gasoline prices rose in the past two trading sessions because of concerns around the storm, traders said.

Tropical Storm Ida was swirling in the Caribbean Sea and forecast to march through the main oil-producing region of the Gulf on Friday. Louisiana declared a state of emergency and called on residents to prepare for a major hurricane. Ida is expected to strike the central Gulf Coast with a life-threatening storm surge, damaging winds and heavy rains, the National Hurricane Center said. It could make landfall as a category 3 hurricane packing winds of up to 111 miles (178 km) per hour.

As MRC reported before, the fourth-largest US refiner Phillips 66 said earlier this month that it put the smaller of its two Louisiana refineries up for sale amid continued losses and an uncertain future for motor fuels. The company is holding talks with a potential buyer on the sale of its 255,600 barrel-per-day (bpd) Alliance refinery in Belle Chasse, Louisiana, according to two people familiar with the matter. The identity of the potential buyer could not immediately be learned. US refiners have closed or sold oil processing plants as the COVID-19 pandemic slashed demand for gasoline and jet fuel, generating losses for the industry.

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

Asian PET recycling companies report feedstock shortage due to COVID-19 pandemic

Asian PET recycling companies report feedstock shortage due to COVID-19 pandemic

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Southeast Asian polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling companies will continue facing challenges with the availability of raw materials, due to the low collecting and processing rate, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, reported S&P Global with reference to market sources.

Many manufacturers are still looking to shift more volumes for local sales, as exports are restricted by container shortage and higher freight costs, sources said.

As MRC informed earlier, Alpek (Monterrey, Mexico) expects to finish commissioning and begin production at a Reading, Pennsylvania, recycled PET facility in the third quarter of 2021, reported. DAK Americas, Alpek's US subsidiary, bought the facility in late-May for USD98.1 million at an auction in the bankruptcy case of California recycled PET producer CarbonLite.

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.
MRC

Sika to bivest European Industrial Coatings Business to Sherwin-Williams

Sika to bivest European Industrial Coatings Business to Sherwin-Williams

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Sherwin-Williams Company will acquire the European industrial coatings business of Sika AG, said Ccoatingsworld.

The acquired business will become part of the Sherwin-Williams Performance Coatings segment and that includes approximately 130 Sika employees. The transaction is expected to close in the beginning of 2022.

Based in Germany, with additional sales and technical support in Poland, Austria and Switzerland, the Sika European industrial coating business engineers, manufactures and sells corrosion protection coating systems for high-value interior and exterior steel infrastructure, bridges, airport and rail, wind and energy, chemicals, power transmission and stations, interior linings for oil and gas tanks, vessels, and pipework, and water and wastewater applications, along with fire-protection coating systems to protect and preserve steel, wood and concrete building components. The business generated approximately CHF 75 million (USD82 million) in sales for the year ended Dec. 31, 2020.

"This transaction fits our strategy of acquiring complementary, high-quality, differentiated businesses that add to our profitable growth momentum,” said John G. Morikis, Sherwin-Williams chairman, president and chief executive officer. “The business brings us scale, unique technology, a strong sales and marketing team, technical service capabilities, strategically located manufacturing, and leading specification and approval positions, all of which we can leverage further throughout Europe and other regions across the world."

As per MRC, Swiss specialty and construction chemicals company Sika has acquired Shenzhen Landun Holding, a manufacturer of waterproofing systems in China, for an undisclosed sum. Shenzhen Landun has a range of waterproofing products and technologies that "perfectly" complement Sika’s portfolio. The acquisition provides a platform for Sika to further grow and strengthen its position in the fast-growing Chinese waterproofing market.

We remind that Russia's output of chemical products rose in June 2021 by 10.2% year on year. However, production of basic chemicals increased year on year by 8.2% in the first six months of 2021, according to Rosstat's data. June production of polymers in primary form was 937,000 tonnes versus 956,000 tonnes in May. Russia's overall output of polymers in primary form totalled 4,460,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 12.8% year on year.

Sika is a specialty chemicals company with a leading position in the development and production of systems and products for bonding, sealing, damping, reinforcing, and protecting in the building sector and motor vehicle industry. Sika has subsidiaries in 101 countries around the world and manufactures in over 200 factories. Its more than 20,000 employees generated annual sales of CHF 7.09 billion in 2018.
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