Mexican finance ministry concludes near-term Pemex debt refinancing

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A debt refinancing operation for Mexican national oil company Pemex that swapped the highly-indebted firm's short-term bonds for a new 10-year bond has been completed, said Reuters, citing the finance ministry.

In a statement, the ministry said the near-term debt management scheme lowers Pemex's overall debt load by USD3.2 B, while reducing "financial pressure" on the company between 2024 and 2030 by USD10.5 B.

The joint operation between the finance ministry and Pemex benefited from a USD3.5 B infusion from the federal government, the statement added, and will result in an annual USD180 MM reduction in the state-owned Pemex's financing costs.

The reduction stems from lowering the gap between the interest rate Pemex pays to service its debt and the government's sovereign debt by 50 basis points, according to the statement. Pemex, one of the world's most indebted oil companies, has struggled with 17-years of declining crude production and in 2020 lost its coveted investment-grade rating.

Halfway through his six-year term, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has sought to boost the company's operations and finances while simultaneously canceling oil auctions open to private producers as well as tenders to pick joint venture partners for Pemex, a common tool used to share risks and rewards in the international industry.

Lopez Obrador, a leftist who favors a state-controlled energy industry, also seeks to end Pemex's crude exports in the next few years and instead refine the oil at home in a bid to make Mexico more energy independent.

As per MRC, Mexico's attorney general has requested a prison sentence of up to 39 years for the former chief executive of state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) for his role in a corruption scandal. Emilio Lozoya is accused of having requested money from scandal-plagued Brazilian construction conglomerate Odebrecht to partially finance the presidential campaign of former President, Enrique Pena Nieto in exchange for contracts.

As MRC informed before, Pemex Petroquimica, a subsidiary of the Mexican state oil company Pemex, has resumed production of high-density polyethylene (LDPE) on line 2 in Cangrejera, Mexico after an unscheduled renovation. Earlier it was noted that Pemex postponed the restart of the second line with a capacity of 200,000 tonnes per year for the production of LDPE until August 10. It was originally planned that the launch of this production will begin at the end of July. The line was closed on 10 July.

Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) is a Mexican state-owned oil and gas and petrochemical company. Since the nationalization of the Mexican oil industry in 1938, Pemex has remained a state-owned company and, by law, has exclusive rights to explore and produce oil in the country. Almost 60% of the company's revenues go to the state budget. Petrochemical products include, but are not limited to, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited (IVL), a global sustainable chemical company, announces that it is in the process of acquiring shares in Ngoc Nghia Industry - Service - Trading Joint Stock Company (NN), as per the company's press release.

NN is a leading polyethylene terephthalate (PET) converter in Vietnam with long-standing relationships with major brands. It has four manufacturing sites in both the North and South of Vietnam. It has a total production capacity of approximately 5.5 billion units of PET preforms, bottles and closures, or equivalent to a PET conversion of 76,000 tons per annum.

Operating with high quality standards, NN is a trusted provider of PET packaging products to major multinational and Vietnamese brands in the beverage and non-beverage industries. Its business operations are run by an experienced management team with strong industry knowledge as well as local market exposure and understanding. These competitive advantages are strategic fits for IVL and would complement the company’s long-term growth after integration. This proposed acquisition will strengthen IVL’s market position in the packaging business in high growth markets of the Asia-Pacific region.

The acquisition process is required to follow the Law on Securities, its guiding decrees and circulars as required by the State Securities Commission of Vietnam and regulations of the Hanoi Stock Exchange. Through its affiliate, Indorama Netherlands B.V., IVL would be required to do the tender offer of all of NN’s shares. The transaction is expected to be completed by the first half of 2022.

As MRC wrote before, in November 2021, the board of directors of IVL, a large producer of recycled PET for beverage bottles, approved the purchase of land, buildings and utility machinery from Aurus Specialty to utilize for a proposed PET recycling facility in Thailand. The assets, valued at a total of 112.90-million baht, will be acquired by Indorama Polyester Industries and Indorama Holdings, direct subsidiaries of IVL. Subject to approval from the board of investment, the transaction is expected to be com-pleted in the first quarter of 2022.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PET consumption grew to 737,590 tonnes in the first eleven months in 2021, up by 14% year on year. PET consumption in Russia grew by 25% in November and reached 75,760 tonnes versus 60,520 tonnes a year earlier.

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, listed in Thailand (Bloomberg ticker IVL.TB), is one of the world’s leading petrochemicals producers, with a global manufacturing footprint across Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe and Americas. The company’s portfolio comprises Integrated PET, Olefins, Fibers, Packaging and Specialty Chemicals. Indorama Ventures products serve major FMCG and automotive sectors, i.e. beverages, hygiene, personal care, tire and safety segments. Indorama Ventures has approx. 24,000 employees worldwide and consolidated revenue of US$ 11.4 billion in 2019. The Company is listed in the Dow Jones Emerging Markets and World Sustainability Indices (DJSI).
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A fire broke out at SK Energy’s Ulsan plant on Wednesday morning, 12 January, and a fire brigade was dispatched to extinguish it, according to Archyde.

At 6:22 am that day, the fire broke out in the battery room energy storage system (ESS) of SK Energy’s Ulsan plant in Gosa-dong, Nam-gu, Ulsan. This storage device is a system that supplies power to facilities for emergencies when power supplied from KEPCO to factory facilities is cut off.

Upon receiving the report, the fire brigade issued the first stage of response, mobilizing all fire department personnel and equipment, and dispatched 89 firefighters and 29 firefighting equipment to the scene. The fire brigade is carrying out firefighting activities while blocking the spread of flames from the fire station to other oil refineries.

The fire has not yet spread to other facilities. However, the fire brigade said that it would take some time for the complete extinguishment to take place due to the characteristics of the facilities at the fire site. As of 8:20 a.m. that day, the big fire has been put out, and work is being done to clean up the fire and remove the flame.

It is reported that there were no casualties in the fire that day.

We remind that, as MRC informed earlier, South Korea's SK Global Chemical shut its small No. 1 naphtha-fed steam cracker in Ulsan permanently on Dec. 10, 2020, due to aging-related issues. The No. 1 steam cracker was able to produce 200,000 mt/year of ethylene and 140,000 mt/year of propylene. The company will keep normal operations of its No. 2 steam cracker at the same location. The No. 2 unit is able to produce 660,000 mt/year of ethylene, 350,000 mt/year of propylene and 110,000 mt/year of butadiene.

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 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

SK energy began in 1962 as Korea Oil Corporation, the first oil refinery in the country. The company has since contributed to national economic development by producing, exporting, and distributing petroleum products. SK energy's Ulsan Complex can process up to 840,000 barrels of crude oil per day, supplying petroleum products to both domestic and international markets.
MRC

1. Crude oil prices hit two-month high on tight supply and easing concerns about Omicron impact on demand

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Oil prices hit two-month highs on Wednesday on tight supply and easing concerns about the potential hit to demand from the Omicron coronavirus variant, reported Reuters. US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Tuesday said that the economy of the United States, the world's biggest oil consumer, should weather the current COVID-19 surge with only "short-lived" impact and is ready for the start of tighter monetary policy. Brent crude futures were up 47 cents, or 0.6%, at USD84.19 a barrel by 1430 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 66 cents, or 0.8%, at USD81.88.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Exxon Mobil Corporation’s Baytown refinery in Texas continues to produce at reduced rates after a fire broke out at a reformer feed hydrotreater on Dec 23,2021, reported Reuters.

The Baytown refinery is one of the largest refining and petrochemical facilities in the United States, with a crude processing capacity of 560,500 barrels per day.

The fire took place at the refinery’s hydrotreater unit, which had been closed due to a leakage in the bypass line. Reformer feed hydrotreater eliminates sulfur and other contaminants from partially refined oil to produce refined products.

The fire affected a gasoline-producing unit, which could affect premium gasoline prices. The fire could hinder the Baytown refinery’s production for months, in turn, affecting the gasoline supply when the US refining capacity has already been reduced. Beside this, it affected a toluene benzene unit and a nearby cooling tower.

Although there were no fatalities, a few workers were hospitalized with injuries. While workers were relocated from that refinery section, the rest of the facility continued its operations.

This is the second fire incident at the Baytown refinery in two years. In 2019, a fire broke out at a polypropylene (PP) recovery unit, in which plastic is purified for production.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

Exxon's Baytown facility is home to a chemical plant, an olefins plant and the country's fourth-biggest oil refinery, with capacity to process 560,500 bpd of crude.

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 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world's oil and about 2% of the world's energy.
MRC