GAIL plans USD4.9-B ethane cracker in West India

GAIL (India) Ltd, the country's top gas supplier, plans to build a USD4.89-B ethane cracker near its liquefied natural gas (LNG) import plant in Western India, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, as it seeks to meet an expected surge in demand, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Indian companies are boosting their petrochemical production capacity as the expanding economy boosts the need for goods ranging from plastics to paints and adhesives. A cracker produces ethylene, required for products such as plastics.

Demand for petrochemicals could nearly triple by 2040, according to estimates by top refiner Indian Oil, forcing companies to make big investments to set up new facilities across the country.

GAIL is looking for land in the coastal region of Dabhol in Maharashtra state for the 1.5 million tons a year (mtpa) cracker project, one of the sources told Reuters. GAIL operates a 5 mtpa LNG plant at Dabhol. The company plans to import ethane from the United States for the project, the source said.

GAIL's communications office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. "We are trying to sort out challenges around acquiring land, most likely, in or around Dabhol ... we are hoping to receive financial support from the state government," the source said.

GAIL is also exploring the possibility to acquire land in Madhya Pradesh, which neighbors Maharashtra, if a deal in Dabhol doesn't materialize, the person said. The proposed dual-feed cracker will also have capability to crack up to 40% liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), enabling the option to switch to less expensive feedstock to maximize margins.

India's per capita petrochemical consumption is about one-third of the global average. Asia's third-largest economy annually consumes 25 million to 30 million tons of petrochemicals.

We remind, GAIL Gas Limited is also steering its pricing mechanism in line with the Government of India's guideline to pass on new domestic gas pricing benefits to its customers and has announced a substantial reduction in prices with effect from 9th April 2023. GAIL Gas Limited has announced a reduction in its Domestic PNG prices by Rs. 7 per SCM in Bengaluru and Dakshin Kannada and Rs. 6 per SCM in all its other Geographical areas. The new effective Domestic PNG Prices is Rs 52.50 per SCM in Dewas, Meerut, Sonipat, Taj Trapezium Zone, Raisen, Mirzapur, Dhanbad, Adityapur and Rourkela and Rs 51.50 per SCM for Bengaluru & Dakshin Kannada.

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US-based acetyls and engineered materials producer Celanese reported a Q1 adjusted earnings/share of USD2.01, beating its earlier guidance of USD1.50-1.75, said the company.

Despite the guidance beat, the company's first quarter net income still fell year on year. The following tables show the company's Q1 financial performance. Figures are in millions of dollars. So far, underlying demand in April and May have increased by insignificant amounts over March. The increase has been too small to support higher prices.

In such a market, Celanese is trying to modestly increase volumes in the second quarter given its stronger start when compared with that for the first quarter. Also, the company wants to preserve its pricing spreads over raw-material costs.

Celanese expects adjusted earnings/share to reach USD2.50 in the second quarter, an increase that it attributes to steps taken by the company. Adjusted earnings/share could increase higher if demand increases to the extent that it could support higher prices, particularly in the company's Acetyl Chain business.

For the Acetyl Chain business, adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) should be USD330m-360m. That compares with USD316m in Q1 adjusted EBIT.

For Engineered Materials, Celanese expects to report USD235m-260m in adjusted EBIT. That compared with USD215m in adjusted EBIT that Celanese reported in the first quarter.

We remind, Celanese Corporation, a global chemical and specialty materials company, announced today two joint venture (JV) actions with Mitsui & Co., Ltd. to extend their longstanding strategic partnership. Celanese announced the signing of a term sheet to form a Food Ingredients JV with Mitsui, subject to customary approvals.

Celanese Corporation is a global chemical leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications.

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-Japanese producer Asahi Kasei said it expects to recover from the full-year net loss it registered for the year ending 31 March, with petrochemical demand and prices expected to pick up in the latter half of the fiscal year, said the company.

The company swung to a net loss of Yen (Y) 91.3bn in the year ending 31 March 2023 from a gain of Y161.9bn in the previous year, weighed down by an impairment loss of Y185bn related to its Polypore lithium-ion membrane battery separators business.

Asahi Kasei's operating income fell by 36.7% year on year to Y128.4bn in the year to 31 March, weighed down by lingering semiconductor shortages and lockdowns in China, which resulted in sluggish demand and higher feedstock prices.

However, overall sales rose by 10.8% year on year to a record Y2.73trillion for the year ending 31 March. This was supported by a weaker yen and increased petrochemical prices.

For the first half of its fiscal year ending 30 September, the company expects to generate a net income of Y28bn, with further improvement at Y72bn for the six-month period ending 31 March 2024.

The company said that while high energy costs persist, certain feedstock prices are trending downward at its main material business unit. Asahi Kasei also sees gradual demand improvement for its automotive-related products after it was impacted by the global semiconductor shortage last year.

We remind, Asahi Kasei and Microwave Chemical launched a joint demonstration project in April 2023 with the objective of commercializing a chemical recycling process for polyamide 66 using microwave technology.

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Lummus Technology, a global provider of process technologies and value-driven energy solutions, and Texplore Co., Ltd. , a wholly owned subsidiary of SCG Chemicals Public Co., Ltd., announced a commercial cooperation agreement to license and market EXCENE, Texplore's high-density polyethylene technology, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Leadership from both companies recently participated in a signing ceremony in Bangkok, Thailand. "Licensing Texplore's HDPE technology builds on our recent success of expanding Lummus' comprehensive technology portfolio," said Leon de Bruyn, President and Chief Executive Officer, Lummus Technology. "Lummus has a long history of partnering with industry leading companies like SCGC to leverage our collective strengths and bring innovative technologies to market."

"We are honored to join hands with Lummus Technology in this collaboration, as we see it as a perfect fit for both parties to synergize our strengths and experiences towards a successful long-term partnership," said Dr. Suracha Udomsak, Executive Vice President and Chief innovation Officer of SCGC. "Today's CCA signing is just the beginning of a new chapter in our journey, and we are excited to explore further steps together to boost our sustainable market and bring value to our clients."

Under the agreement, Lummus will exclusively license Texplore's EXCENE HDPE technology. Lummus will also provide engineering design for plant construction, services for plant commissioning and start up, and additional lifecycle services, while Texplore will provide their EL-CAT catalyst supply.

Well suited for high-capacity production, HDPE is a thermoplastic polymer that is one of the most versatile plastic materials. HDPE has a high strength-to-density ratio and is used to make a wide variety of products including large-diameter pipes and films, and more.

EXCENE is a proven proprietary HDPE process commercialized by Texplore. The technology offers HDPE for the use in variety of high-end applications and quality products. It is also reliable and simple process and operation.

We remind, Lummus Technology, a global provider of process technologies and value-driven energy solutions, and Citroniq Chemicals, a world-scale producer of carbon-negative materials, announced that the two companies have signed a letter of intent (LOI) for the development of Citroniq's green polypropylene (PP) projects in North America.

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Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will commission the multi-billion dollar Dangote oil refinery in two weeks, a presidency spokesperson said on Sunday, setting up the plant for its first production since construction started in 2016, said Reuters.

Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil producer, sees the 650,000 barrels-per-day refinery - being built by billionaire industrialist Aliko Dangote's Dangote Group - as a solution to ending the country's reliance on imports for nearly all of its refined petroleum products.

Spokesperson Bashir Ahmad said Buhari will commission the refinery, near Lagos, on May 22, a week before he is due to leave office after serving the maximum two terms allowed by the constitution.

A spokesperson for Dangote confirmed the timing of the commissioning but did not give details.

The Dangote refinery's cost grew to USD19 B from initial estimates of between USD12 B and USD14 B, after years of delays.

We remind, Dangote Industries Limited has completed more than half of a planned USD720.82 MM bond issue to fund its mega-refinery on the outskirts of Lagos. Chiejina said the company had raised 187.5 B naira in the series one issuance, completed last month, and would announce a date for a second series as soon as possible. Proceeds will go toward the USD1.1 B that the company needed as of January for the project, which many view as the solution to years of sclerotic fuel supply in Africa's most populous nation.

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