TotalEnergies to stop purchasing oil and petroleum products from Russia

TotalEnergies reaffirms its firmest condemnation of Russia's military aggression against Ukraine, which has tragic consequences for the Ukrainian population and threatens peace in Europe, said the company.

To act responsibly, as a European company and in accordance with its values, TotalEnergies has defined clear principles of conduct for managing its Russian related business: eEnsure strict compliance with current and future European sanctions, no matter what the consequences on the management of its assets in Russia, and gradually suspend its activities in Russia, while assuring its workforce's safety.

TotalEnergies recalls that, contrary to remarks made by several commentators, it does not operate any oil and gas fields or any liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants in Russia.

TotalEnergies is a minority shareholder in a number of non-state-owned Russian companies: Novatek (19.4%), Yamal LNG (20%), Arctic LNG 2 (10%) and TerNefteGaz (49%). These companies are managed by their own staff with a limited number of secondees from TotalEnergies. TotalEnergies is also a 20% partner in the Kharyaga joint venture operated by Zarubezhneft. The Company did indeed contribute to the construction phase of these companies' projects but has no activity or operational responsibility on those sites.

TotalEnergies had only 11 seconds in these companies as of February 24, 2022, and only 3 seconded expatriates are in Russia as of today. TotalEnergies has thus initiated the gradual suspension of its activities in Russia, while assuring its teams’ safety. Similarly, TotalEnergies has decided to put on hold its business developments for batteries and lubricants in Russia.

Provide no further capital for the development of projects in Russia. Concerning the Arctic LNG 2 project in particular, given the uncertainty created by technological and financial sanctions on the ability to carry out the Arctic LNG 2 project currently under construction and their probable tightening with the worsening conflict, TotalEnergies SE has decided to no longer record proved reserves for Arctic LNG 2 in its accounts and will not provide any more capital for this project.

TotalEnergies already announced that it halted all spot market trading since February 25, 2022, on Russian oil and petroleum products. This is also the case for spot trading transactions concerning Russian natural gas or liquefied natural gas.

TotalEnergies has term contracts to purchase Russian oil and petroleum products that end, at the very latest, on December 31, 2022. These term contracts primarily cover supplies for the Leuna refinery in eastern Germany, which is served by the Druzhba pipeline from Russia. They also concern Europe's gasoil supply, which is short of this product (around 12% of Russian gasoil imports in Europe in 2021).

In close cooperation with the German government, TotalEnergies will terminate its Russian oil supply contracts for the Leuna refinery as soon as possible and by the end of 2022 at the latest, and will put in place alternative solutions by importing oil via Poland. Already, a first contract will not be renewed at the end of March 2022.

Concerning the gasoil shortfall in Europe, absent any instructions to the contrary from European governments, TotalEnergies will also terminate its Russian gasoil purchase contracts as soon as possible and by the end of 2022 at the latest. TotalEnergies will import petroleum products from other continents, notably its share of gasoil produced by the Satorp refinery in Saudi Arabia.

TotalEnergies is a global multi-energy company that produces and markets energies: oil and biofuels, natural gas and green gases, renewables and electricity.

As MRC informed previously, Total Petrochemicals and Refining USA, the US petrochemical major and part of TotalEnergies, restarted all of its three polypropylene (PP) units in La Porte as of 17 June 2021. At the same time, the force majeure (FM) at this plant with an annual capacity of 1.15 million tons/year remains in place as the company attempts to stabilize operating rates and build inventories ahead of the hurricane season. Previously, Total Petrochemical declared FM on its PP output after an abrupt loss of electricity supply during a severe weather condition on 18 May, 2021.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 1,494.280 tonnes, up by 21% year on year. Deliveries of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whreas.shipments of PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

Total is a major energy player, which produces and markets fuels, natural gas and low-carbon electricity. Our 100,000 employees are committed to better energy that is safer, more affordable, cleaner and accessible to as many people as possible. Active in more than 130 countries, our ambition is to become the responsible energy major.

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Ascend Performance Materials (Houston) has reached an agreement to acquire Formulated Polymers Ltd., a leading engineered materials manufacturer in Chennai, India, said the company.

Expected to close on May 1, this acquisition will establish Ascend’s first manufacturing base in the subcontinent and strengthen Ascend’s global reach in the electrical and e-mobility application space. The deal includes a world-scale manufacturing facility in Chennai, as well as several warehouses throughout India. Formulated Polymers is currently a licensee of Ascend’s Starflam flame-retardant polyamides.

“Demand for our materials in India is strong and growing,” said Phil McDivitt, Ascend’s president and CEO. “The team at Formulated Polymers has built an excellent, diversified business with a proven track record of technology development in polyamides. We are excited to build on their expertise to drive additional value-added growth in India and beyond."

Ascend, a fully integrated producer of durable engineered materials, has grown its global production footprint with five acquisitions over the last four years, each focused on specific synergies with the company’s core business. This acquisition provides a significant growth opportunity for Ascend in India, one of the highest growth economies in the world.

“Being customer-focused is one of our values,” said John Saunders, Ascend’s vice president for Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and India. “We look forward to supporting our customers in a fast-growing market by continuing to invest in capacity, technical resources and product development to meet their needs."

Ascend is set to close on its previously announced acquisition in San Jose Iturbide, Mexico on April 1. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

As MRC reported earlier, in January 2021, Ascend Performance Materials acquired Eurostar Engineering Plastics (Fosse, France), a compounder with a broad portfolio of flame-retardant (FR) engineered plastics and expertise in halogen-free formulations.

And in June 2020, Ascend acquired the assets of NCM (Changshu) Co. and Tehe Engineering Plastic (Suzhou) Co. located in Changshu Yushan High-tech Industrial Park near Shanghai. Ascend intends to expand the compounding assets at the site and to establish a global research and development center.
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Univar Solutions, a global chemical and ingredient distributor and provider of value-added services, announced an agreement to distribute Dow Organics' portfolio in Brazil, said the company.

The new agreement covers brands such as CELLOSIZE™, FOAMYSENSE™, ECOSENSE™, ACULYN™, VERSENE™ and more, which are used in the beauty and personal care market.

By distributing the Dow Organics product lines in Brazil, Univar Solutions formulation and application experts located throughout a global network of Solution Centers can help customers with application and product development, quality testing, performance benchmarking, rapid prototyping and more. Partnering with suppliers like Dow allows the Company to provide hair care, sun care, skin care and cleansing market customers with more sustainable, unique, inspiring, and authentic beauty and personal care ingredient solutions and formulations based on the latest market trends, functional needs and industry regulatory requirements.

The Dow Organics' portfolio for beauty and personal care products includes 13 brands connected with the growing social conscience calling for products that impart minimal environmental impact, without compromising performance. These products range from multifunctional polymers and cellulose derivatives to chelating agents, used to impart eco-friendly textures in shampoos, conditioners, body washes, hair colorants, creams, lotions, skin cleansers and more.

"Through our relationship with Univar Solutions, customers have access to the specialty ingredients and formulation expertise needed to innovate and grow their business. With Univar Solutions' technical knowledge and distribution capabilities, we're well-positioned in Brazil to support product innovation in the beauty and personal care sector. As trends come and go and consumers become more demanding, innovative technologies are needed and we're confident we found the right partner to help customers navigate these challenges," added Flavia Venturoli, Dow's Latin America commercial director for Consumer Solutions.

As MRC wrote previously, in late October, 2020, Univar Solutions Inc. and PVS Chloralkali Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of PVS Chemicals Inc. (PVS), announced a new agreement where PVS will transfer railcars located in Ohio, Illinois and Virginia and sourcing agreements for Hydrochloric Acid (HCL) to Univar Solutions.

Univar Solutions creates value by bringing ingredients to life through pioneering concept formulas, technical expertise and industry-leading distribution reach. Whether operating on a global or regional level, Univar Solutions has the capability to consistently provide customers with the latest comprehensive technical, regulatory, market trend and sourcing support in Beauty & Personal Care markets such as color and makeup, hair care, skin care and cleansing.
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The board of directors of Exxon Mobil Corporation said that lead independent director Kenneth C. Frazier has announced his intention not to stand for re-election to the board at the annual meeting of shareholders on May 25, said the company.

Joseph (Jay) L. Hooley, former chairman and CEO of State Street Corp. and ExxonMobil director since 2020, has been selected by the independent directors to serve as lead director, effective after the annual meeting. “The board of directors thanks Ken for his tireless work on behalf of the corporation and owes him a deep debt of gratitude,” said Darren Woods, chairman and chief executive officer. “I look forward to working closely with Jay as we continue to strengthen ExxonMobil’s industry leadership position, responsibly meeting global needs while leading in the energy transition."

Frazier, executive chairman and former chairman and CEO at Merck & Co., Inc., will remain as independent lead director until the annual meeting. He was appointed to the role in 2020, and has been a member of the board since 2009. The role of the lead director has broad oversight responsibilities that were strengthened under Frazier’s leadership. “ExxonMobil has made significant progress on its strategy to lead in financial and operating performance through the energy transition by leveraging its advantaged portfolio of traditional and lower-emission business opportunities,” said Frazier.

As MRC reported earlier, in February, 2022, ExxonMobil and SABIC successful started up Gulf Coast Growth Ventures world-scale manufacturing facility in San Patricio County, Texas. The new facility will produce materials used in packaging, agricultural film, construction materials, clothing, and automotive coolants. The operation includes a 1.8 MM metric tpy ethane steam cracker, two polyethylene (PE) units capable of producing up to 1.3 MM metric tpy, and a monoethylene glycol (MEG) unit with a capacity of 1.1 MM metric tpy.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of PE and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC''s ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,487,450 tonnes in 2021, up by 13% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 1,494.280 tonnes, up by 21% year on year. Deliveries of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whreas.shipments of PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

ExxonMobil, one of the largest publicly traded international energy companies, uses technology and innovation to help meet the world’s growing energy needs. ExxonMobil holds an industry-leading inventory of resources, is one of the largest refiners and marketers of petroleum products, and its chemical company is one of the largest in the world.
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China’s Zhejiang Sanwei Rubber Item Co has kicked off construction of an integrated degradable materials project that includes feedstock butanediol (BDO) and polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT)/polytetramethylene ether glycol (PTMEG) at Wuhai in Inner Mongolia, said Jlcint.

The facility will initially have 300,000 tonnes/year of BDO, 100,000 tonnes/year of PBAT and 60,000 tonnes/year of PTMEG capacities, as the first phase. The company eyes start-up of the first phase by June 2023.

The project’s eventual capacity is designed as 900,000 tonnes/year of BDO, 600,000 tonnes/year of PBAT and 300,000 tonnes/year of PTMEG.

In August 2021, the Inner Mongolia local government has granted approval to China-based Zhejiang Sanwei Rubber Item Co's Yuan 13 bn (USD2 bn) butanediol (BDO)/polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT)/polytetramethylene ether glycol (PTMEG) project in Wuhai. The two-phased project will involve Yuan 8.7 bn and Yuan 4.3 bn of investments, respectively.

Inner Mongolia Sanwei Resources Group Co. Ltd. manufactures base metals. The Company produces ferrosilicon, silicomanganese, magnesium metals, and other products. Inner Mongolia Sanwei Resources Group also operates import and export businesses.
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