Chinese authorities shut down plant selling fake Chemours fluoroelastomer

Law enforcement agencies in northern China have shut down large-scale manufacturing of counterfeit Viton™ FreeFlow™ fluoroelastomer, a product falsely bearing Chemours' trademarks, at a local chemical plant, said the company.

During an investigation at the facility, authorities discovered a substantial quantity of the fake fluoroelastomer, including 4.7 tons of finished products and 9 tons of raw materials (expected to produce approximately 20 tons of finished products), as well as packaging materials and related business documents. The value of the counterfeit products was reported to be in the millions of dollars.

The plant and its affiliated entities reportedly purchased genuine Viton™ FreeFlow™ fluoroelastomer from Chemours local subsidiaries to help mask their counterfeiting operations.

Local police, in collaboration with Chemours’ local counsel and a subsidiary, have so far apprehended two individuals who now face charges related to the illegal production and distribution of counterfeit goods. The suspects' identities are being withheld pending further investigation.

“This operation represents a significant stride in our ongoing battle against counterfeit production and the illicit trade of fake goods,” said Eric von Brockdorff, Global Product & Business Director for Chemours. “Counterfeit goods, especially in the chemical sector, pose substantial risks to safety, product quality, and the reputation of authentic products.”

“The success of this interdiction also underscores the importance of our collaborative efforts with law enforcement agencies in combating counterfeit production,” von Brockdorff added. “It’s yet another way we put the interests of our customers and business partners first.”

We remind, Chemours, a global chemistry company with leading market positions in Titanium Technologies, Thermal & Specialized Solutions, and Advanced Performance Materials, today announces that it, along with DuPont de Nemours, Inc. and Corteva, Inc., have reached settlement agreement with the State of Ohio for $110 million to resolve claims associated with the manufacture and sale of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

mrchub.com

A fire at a crude oil distillation unit at a refinery in the central Iranian city of Isfahan injured four people, the official IRNA news agency reported, as per Reuters.

Two of the injured were firefighters, a senior official at Isfahan governorate said, adding that the fire had been extinguished, the semi-official Fars news agency reported.

The official said pipes at the entrance of unit 3 of the refinery caught fire. He did not say what caused the pipes to catch fire.

The semi-official ISNA news site said the unit that caught fire had been under repair.

We remind, the death toll from a blast at an oil terminal in Guinea's capital Conakry on Monday has risen to 13, a senior police source said, as the government warned the incident could have repercussions for the wider population. The explosion at the West African nation's main oil terminal rocked the Kaloum administrative district in downtown Conakry early in the morning, blowing out the windows of nearby homes and forcing hundreds to flee, according to a Reuters witness.

mrchub.com

MEGlobal has nominated its January 2024 monoethylene glycol (MEG) Asian Contract Price (ACP) at $840/tonne, stable from its December ACP, a company source said.

The price is on a CFR (cost & freight) Asia basis.

We remind, MEGlobal has nominated its December 2023 monoethylene glycol (MEG) Asian Contract Price (ACP) at $840/tonne, $10/tonne higher from its November ACP, a company source said. The price is on a CFR (cost & freight) Asia basis.

mrchub.com

The death toll from a blast at an oil terminal in Guinea's capital Conakry on Monday has risen to 13, a senior police source said, as the government warned the incident could have repercussions for the wider population, said Reuters.

The explosion at the West African nation's main oil terminal rocked the Kaloum administrative district in downtown Conakry early in the morning, blowing out the windows of nearby homes and forcing hundreds to flee, according to a Reuters witness.

The head of civil protection, Jean Traore, said 88 people were injured. He earlier gave a death toll of 11.

The extent of the damage to the terminal was unclear. Guinea is not an oil producer and has no refining capacity. It imports refined products, mostly stored in the Kaloum terminal and distributed via trucks across the country.

The origin of the fire was unknown, and an investigation would be launched to determine what caused it and any parties responsible, the government said in a statement. It said the scale of the incident "could have a direct impact on the population," but did not elaborate.

Firefighters had largely contained the blaze by Monday afternoon. Earlier, a massive fire and billowing black smoke were visible from miles away, as several tanker trucks left the Conakry depot, escorted by soldiers and police.

Workers, excluding defense, security and medical personnel, were advised to stay at home. Schools and most gas stations were also closed. The country has a small oil depot at the port in Kamsar, north of Conakry, mostly used by mining firms.

Concerns over a potential fuel shortage prompted residents in the town of Mamou, around 260 km from Conakry, to besiege gas stations. "A liter of gasoline is currently being sold for 20,000 Guinean franc ($2.35) on the black market," said Alpha Bah, a motorcycle taxi rider, told Reuters. That's up from 12,000 Guinean franc previously.

We remind, Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA and joint venture partner Repsol on Monday signed an agreement amending the original terms of a project in the country, aiming to revive its crude and gas output. The agreement for production joint venture Petroquiriquire, which includes the fields Quiriquire, Mene Grande and Barua-Motatan, was signed in Caracas by Venezuela's oil minister Pedro Tellechea and executives from Repsol.

mrchub.com

Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said on Sunday that the government does not yet see grounds for lifting the ban on the export of winter diesel, the Interfax news agency reported, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Russia, the world's top seaborne exporter of diesel, introduced a ban on fuel exports on Sept. 21 to tackle high domestic prices and shortages. It later lifted most of the restrictions.

We remind, India's Russian oil imports in November rose to a 4-month high of 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd), up 3.1% from October, making up about 36% of the nation's overall imports last month, data obtained from trade sources showed. Russia became India's top oil supplier this year as the south Asian nation was drawn to Russian oil discounts after some Western companies shunned purchases from Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine in February last year.

mrchub.com