Nigeria to block oil export permits for producers who do not fill refinery quotas

Nigeria's upstream oil regulator said on Monday it would deny export permits for oil cargoes from producers who fail to meet their stipulated supply quota to local refineries, including the Dangote Refinery, Africa's largest, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Nigeria's oil industry law, the Petroleum Industry Act, mandates oil producers, including international oil companies, to dedicate specific volumes of crude for domestic refineries before exporting, a requirement called the domestic crude supply obligation.

However, oil producers say they have not complied with this stipulation because refiners are not offering competitive prices. This has prompted the Dangote Refinery to call on the regulator to enforce the law.

A statement on Monday from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission said Gbenga Komolafe, its head, wrote to oil exploration and production companies to remind them of their obligations and penalties for default.

The commission said it met last week with producers and refiners. In the meeting, refiners blamed producers for not honoring their obligations under the supply obligation, while the producers said refiners are offering insufficient prices, forcing them to explore other markets, Komolafe said in the statement.

Komolafe warned "the diversion of crude cargo designated for domestic refineries is a contravention of the law and the Commission will henceforth disallow export permits for designated crude cargos for domestic refining."

For the first half of 2025, Nigerian refineries say they will require 770,500 bpd of crude, with the Dangote Refinery forecast to require 550,000 bpd, according to a schedule published by the oil regulator.

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Samsung E&A announced that it had received a Letter of Award (LoA) on January 31 for the EPC of the TA'ZIZ Methanol Project. The contract value is USD1.7 B, with a contract duration of 44 months, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

This project includes the construction of a methanol plant with a production capacity of 1.8 MMtpy at the TA'ZIZ chemicals and transition fuels ecosystem being developed in the Ruwais Industrial Complex, UAE.

Samsung E&A will bring its successful experience of a recently completed methanol plant in Malaysia and the active application of its unique execution system, characterized by modularization and automation, to the project.

Hong Namkoong, President and CEO of Samsung E&A stated, "We plan to actively leverage local resources and our network of partners based on our extensive regional experience in the Ruwais Industrial Complex, UAE." He added, "Samsung E&A will ensure the project's success by applying our differentiated execution system, which integrates our innovative technologies such as modularization and automation."

In November 2024, Ta’ziz announced a series of engineering, procurement and construction contracts worth more than $2 billion to develop a chemicals and transition fuels facility in Al Ruwais Industrial City, UAE. Together with a methanol plant, Ta’ziz will initially produce 4.7 million tonnes of chemicals per year by 2028, including methanol, low-carbon ammonia, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), ethylene dichloride, vinyl chloride monomer and caustic soda.

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Tata Chemicals Ltd. (Mumbai) reported a 3.7% year-over-year decline in revenue to 35.9 billion Indian rupees (USD413.6 million) for the fiscal third quarter ended Dec. 31, as per Chemweek.

The company reported a net loss of 530 million rupees, swinging from a net profit of 1.5 billion rupees in the previous-year quarter.

The company said China and India continue to experience robust growth, while the US and Western Europe are witnessing slight declines due to reduced demand for flat-container and solar glass.

Sales volumes for soda ash rose by 4.3% year over year to 846,000 metric tons in the fiscal third quarter. The company also recorded a 14.5% year-over-year growth in sales volume for sodium bicarbonate to 55,000 metric tons per year.

“Company’s overall performance was down mainly due to lower soda ash pricing across geographies and higher fixed cost in the US due to plant production outage during the quarter,” said R. Mukundan, managing director and CEO, Tata Chemicals.

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Chelyabinsk Electrical Equipment Plant LLC (ChZEO), a major manufacturer of switchboard equipment in the Urals, is switching to using terminals under its own brand, production of which has been set up in China, the company reported on its website, as per Interfax.

"The production of ChZEO terminals is localized in China, where Guangzhou Glenzo Import and Export Trade Co., Ltd, representing the interests of the Chelyabinsk enterprise, has been operating since 2024," the Russian company said.

The processes of manufacturing, assembling, testing, packaging and shipping of terminals are monitored onsite by both Chinese partners and full-time ChZEO specialists working in China on a permanent basis. In the second stage of quality control, the terminals are checked by ChZEO employees upon arrival in Russia.

The first batch of terminals in the amount of more than 300,000 units has already been delivered to Chelyabinsk. Samples were successfully tested, the company said. The line of terminals includes more than 40 positions.

The switch to using terminals under the company's own brand will enable it to optimize production processes and reduce dependence on intermediary suppliers, ChZEO said. There are also plans to sell the terminals to other customers.

ChZEO was founded in 2010 and specializes in manufacturing more than 30 types of electrical products with voltage up to 35 kV, as well as modular boilers, heating stations, water treatment and chemical water treatment units, and industrial uninterruptible power supplies, the company's website said.

ChZEO director Alexei Kamynin owns a 51% stake in the company, according to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities.

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LyondellBasell Industries NV (Houston) swung to a loss during the fourth quarter owing to asset write-downs in Europe and Asia, the company reported on Jan. 31, as per Chemweek.

Higher feedstock costs and seasonally slower demand also cut into earnings. LyondellBasell reported a net loss of $603 million during the fourth quarter of 2024, down from profit of $573 million in the third quarter and profit of $185 million in the year-ago period. Sales totaled $9.497 billion in the fourth quarter, down 8% sequentially from $10.322 billion and down 4% year over year from $9.929 billion. Adjusted earnings per share came to 75 cents, down 60% sequentially, down 40% year over year, and ahead of the analysts’ consensus of 70 cents as compiled by S&P Capital IQ.

Non-cash asset write-downs related to the olefins and polyolefins (O&P) Europe, Asia and International (O&P EAI) and advanced polymer solutions (APS) segments as well as preparations to exit the refining business totaled $852 million. “The write-downs reflect the challenging market conditions for these businesses and include assets in our European strategic review and an Asian joint venture in our O&P EAI segment and the Specialty Powders business in our APS segment,” the company noted.

Margins declined across most businesses as costs for natural gas liquid (NGL) feedstocks and natural gas increased, while seasonally slower demand weighed on product pricing, said the company. Export demand for North American polyethylene (PE) was robust, but sequentially higher ethane costs squeezed integrated PE margins. Outside of North America, seasonally slower demand for olefins and polyolefins and downtime at the company's European assets weighed on volumes and margins.

“LyondellBasell is successfully navigating difficult market conditions while delivering excellent cash performance during what has been the longest and deepest downturn of my career,” said Peter Vanacker, CEO.

LyondellBasell said it “remains watchful and prepared for the macroeconomic catalysts that will eventually drive restocking of supply chains, improve demand for durable goods and support a more broad-based economic recovery.”

The company noted that North American domestic demand for polyolefins rebounded in 2024, after two years of declines, and it expects seasonal improvements during the first quarter. “Reductions in interest rates, moderation of inflation and pent-up demand should be supportive for increased consumption of durable goods, benefiting the company's polypropylene and intermediates and derivatives businesses,” it added.

LyondellBasell said it expects to operate O&P Americas assets at approximately 80% during the first quarter, O&P EAI assets at approximately 75%, and intermediates & derivatives assets at approximately 80%. The company also confirmed that it will cease refining operations during the first quarter.

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