Sinochem refiners in Shandong Province told to self-inspect and self-rectify any irregular fuel tax practices

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China's Shandong province has ordered its refineries, including three plants under state-run Sinochem Holdings, to self-inspect and self-rectify any irregular fuel tax practices, a document reviewed by Reuters on Thursday showed.

The move is part of a national clamp-down on smaller and mostly independently run refineries related to crude oil import quota usage and tax payments, as Beijing works to consolidate its bloated industry.

The plants were asked to complete a self-check and come up with rectification plans within five days from Nov. 15, the document, issued by the provincial government of Shandong, said.

The provincial government of Shandong, which is home to some 60 independent refineries, did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment.

Sinochem did not immediately respond to an email request for comment.

Shandong authorities did not elaborate in the document on how many refineries are included in this round of inspections, but stated that plants should reveal all relevant irregular tax issues dating back to January 2019.

"In the case of failing to submit factual reports on time, the highest degree of punishment will be applied and relevant individuals will be held responsible according to relevant laws," the document said.

A special audit team has been dispatched to three Sinochem plants, according to the document, without naming the plants or giving any details of their tax situation.

Two industry sources suggested that Changyi refinery, Huaxing refinery and Zhenghe refinery, with a combined annual primary crude oil processing capacity of 20 MM tons (400,000 bpd), might be among those under scrutiny. The three plants are under China National Chemical Company, or ChemChina, which was merged earlier this year with state-run Sinochem Group to form a new entity called Sinochem Holdings.

As MRC informed before, in February, 2020, ChemChina annnounced plans to invest CNY50 billion in the construction of a cracking unit in Dongying, Shandong Province. If approved by the government, ChemChina will build its first cracker.

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 1,868,160 tonnes in the first nine months of 2021, up by 18% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,138,510 tonnes in January-September 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) decreased significantly.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chinese petrochemicals corporation Jiangsu Sailboat Petrochemicals Co. ltd has signed an agreement with Icelandic technology company Carbon Recycling International - CRI hf., to design a chemical plant based on CRI’s Emissions to Liquids (ETL) technology, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The plant will recycle approximately 150,000 metric tons of CO2 and 20,000 metric tons of H2 per yr from other onsite processes to produce 100,000 tons of methanol annually.

The Jiangsu Sailboat Green Methanol plant will be built in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province on the east coast of China, integrated into their 15 km2 Shenghong petrochemical industrial park.

Methanol is the main raw material used in Jiangsu Sailboat’s existing 2.4 MM metric tons per year production of a wide product range of polymers and plastics. These include products used for making solar panels and plexiglass.

The CRI ETL plant’s direct use of 150,000 metric tons of CO2 annually, will equal the effect of taking 53,000 fossil fueled cars off the roads. Indirect emission savings from avoiding the use of fossil raw materials is even larger, estimated to be as high as 550,000 tons per year. This is equivalent to 37,000 hectares of forest planting area, or 370 square kilometers of land.

The plant will be owned and operated by Jiangsu Sailboat and is expected to begin its operation in 2023. The cost of the project is estimated around USD35 MM (RMB 225 MM).

This project will be the second in China based on CRI’s ETL technology. The first CRI project, the Shunli plant in Anyang, Henan province, is currently in the final stages of construction and expected to be in operation early next year.

As MRC reported earlier, in July 2021, LyondellBasell announced that Jiangsu Sailboat Petrochemical Co. Ltd. will use again LyondellBasell Lupotech T high-pressure polyethylene technology at their facility located in Lianyungang City, Jiangsu Province, P.R. of China. The process technology will be used for a 200 KTA ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE) line to produce EVA products with vinyl acetate comonomer.

In 2013, Jiangsu Sailboat Petrochemical Co. Ltd. (JSPCL) also selected LyondellBasell’s Lupotech T and Lupotech A process technologies for a new plant scheduled to be built in Lianyungang, China.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,868,160 tonnes in the first nine months of 2021, up by 18% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,138,510 tonnes in January-September 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) decreased significantly.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - The Belarusian petrochemical company Mogilevkhimvolokno is at full capacity, orders are scheduled until the end of the year, BelTA informs.

“The situation with the coronavirus and the pandemic did not play a negative role for the enterprise - in recent months, quotations for our products have only been growing,” said Vitaly Zenkov, Deputy General Director for Ideological Work and Social Issues. - initial material for the production of medical masks and gowns, as well as wet and sanitary napkins. all the main indicators were fulfilled, as a result of which the salary was increased: in the first quarter the rate of the first category increased by 25%. "

The advantage of the enterprise, according to Vitaly Zenkov, is its unique geographic location, due to which transport costs are reduced and the speed of fiber delivery to the consumer increases. In recent years, the line of products of the enterprise has been significantly replenished with the release of "thin" assortments - in particular, conjugate, which is used as a universal filler and insulation for pillows, mattresses, blankets, outerwear. Previously, this type of polyester fiber was not produced in Belarus and the CIS countries.

In future plans Mogilevkhimvolokno - progressive development of the enterprise, implying the introduction of investment projects that can bring significant economic benefits. So, to date, agreements have been signed on the implementation of two projects. One of them concerns the modernization of the production of industrial threads. The second project aimed at import substitution will be the production of spunlace. Today this material is made in Russia from the threads of the Mogilev enterprise. Then the raw material goes back and only then is used by Belarusian producers.

In January 2019, Mogilevkhimvolokno put into operation the production of polyester fiber by the direct molding method. The new equipment with a capacity of 50 thousand tons per year will make it possible to obtain a new assortment of synthetic fibers, which is in demand in the markets of far and near abroad.

According to the ICIS-MRC Price Report, the cost of material on the Belarusian market has not changed this week. Consumer activity in the domestic PET market is moderate to high. There is still a shortage of raw materials on the domestic market. The cost of material for Russian manufacturers in the current month is 125,000 rubles / t, FCA Mogilev, excluding VAT.

JSC "Mogilevkhimvolokno" is the only large producer of dimethyl terephthalate, PET polyester granules, including food grade, polyester fibers and threads in the Republic of Belarus, and the main supplier of raw materials for the light industry. The state's share is 90.53%.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - The Arbitration Court of Bashkiria has terminated proceedings on the claim of the South Ural Department of Rosprirodnadzor against JSC Polief (Bashkiria, part of SIBUR) to recover Rb105.8 mln from the enterprise as compensation for damages for the spill of industrial untreated wastewater directly on the ground, Interfax reports.

Leakage of 8 thousand cubic meters of industrial wastewater in JSC "Polief" occurred on October 9, 2019. Waste got into the territory adjacent to the enterprise, no one was hurt. According to rescuers, the cause of the leak was the collapse of a part of the wall of a concrete tank with industrial effluents in the volume of 20,000 cubic meters.

The company's press service reported that one of the possible reasons for the leak, according to preliminary estimates by a special commission, was the hidden design features of the facility. On the fact of the leakage of industrial wastewater, the regional Investigative Directorate of the ICR opened a criminal case under Part 2 of Article 247 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (violation of the rules for the circulation of environmentally hazardous substances and waste, resulting in environmental pollution).

A dam was built to protect water bodies from industrial waste. Near the enterprise, pits were built to collect storm water, one of which was diverted to the channel of the local river Kazmyshl, where the drains could get. The Kazmyshla River flows into the Izyak River, which then flows into the Ufa River, where the Ufa water intakes are located.

Earlier it was reported that Polief continues to implement the project to launch the production of "green" PET pellets containing secondary raw materials. The enterprise loaded the first pile into the base of the production foundation. It is planned to launch the line in the first half of 2022.

According to MRC's ScanPlast, the estimated PET consumption in Russia increased in September this year by 10% compared to the previous year and amounted to 56,960 tonnes. In the first nine months of 2021, 592,560 tonnes of PET were processed in Russia, which is 12% more than in the same period last year.

Polyef is the largest producer of terephthalic acid (PTA) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in Russia (raw material for polymer food packaging). The PTA production capacity is 350 thousand tons per year, PET - 219,000 tonnes SIBUR owns 100% of the company's shares. PJSC "SIBUR Holding" is the largest petrochemical company in Russia and Eastern Europe with full coverage of the industry cycle from gas processing, production of monomers, plastics and synthetic rubbers to plastics processing.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A coalition of 19 countries including Britain and the United States have agreed to create zero emissions shipping trade routes between ports to speed up the decarbonization of the global maritime industry, reported Reuters with reference to officials involved.

Shipping, which transports about 90% of world trade, accounts for nearly 3% of the world's CO2 emissions.

U.N. shipping agency the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has said it aims to reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions from ships by 50% from 2008 levels by 2050. The goal is not aligned with the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change and the sector is under pressure to be more ambitious.

The signatory countries involved in the 'Clydebank Declaration', which was launched at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, agreed to support the establishment of at least six green corridors by 2025, which will require developing supplies of zero emissions fuels, the infrastructure required for decarbonization and regulatory frameworks.

"It is our aspiration to see many more corridors in operation by 2030," their mission statement said.

Britain's maritime minister Robert Courts said countries alone would not be able to decarbonize shipping routes without the commitment of private and non-governmental sectors.

US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the declaration was "a big step forward for green shipping corridors and collective action".

Other signatory countries are Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Republic of Ireland, Japan, Marshall Islands, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden.

As MRC wrote before, ExxonMobil last Wednesday offered to lease 500,000 acres off the Texas coast, securing space for what could become a massive project to capture and store carbon emissions. Under pressure by investors to address climate change, Exxon in April floated an up to USD100 B industry hub to collect planet-warming emissions from Gulf Coast petrochemical plants and bury them under the Gulf of Mexico.

Besides, ExxonMobil said earlier this month it is on track to meet its 2025 emissions reduction targets by the end of this year - four years earlier than planned - and has vowed to ramp up investments to further cut emissions.

We remind that ExxonMobil plans to build its first, large-scale plastic waste advanced recycling facility in Baytown, Texas, and is expected to start operations by year-end 2022. By recycling plastic waste back into raw materials that can be used to make plastic and other valuable products, the technology could help address the challenge of plastic waste in the environment. A smaller, temporary facility, is already operational and producing commercial volumes of certified circular polymers that will be marketed by the end of this year to meet growing demand.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,868,160 tonnes in the first nine months of 2021, up by 18% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,138,510 tonnes in January-September 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding statistical copolymers of propylene (PP random copolymers) decreased significantly.
MRC