Styrene monomer prices quote higher in Asia

On Tuesday, SM prices increased in Asia, as per Polymerupdate.

An industry source in Asia informed a Polymerupdate team member, "SM prices rose on the back of higher upstream benzene values coupled with improved buying sentiments in the Asian markets."

On Tuesday, FOB Korea SM prices were assessed at the USD 875-885/mt levels, a gain of USD (+10/mt) from Monday.

CFR China SM prices were assessed at the USD 885-895/mt levels, up USD (+10/mt) from Monday?s assessed levels.

Meanwhile, upstream benzene prices on Tuesday were assessed at the USD 720-730/mt FOB Korea levels, a rise of USD (+5/mt).

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The State Duma ratified a protocol on amending the agreement between the Russian and Kyrgyz governments on cooperation in oil and petroleum product supplies at a meeting on Tuesday, as per Interfax.

The government submitted the document (N971280-8) to parliament in July.

The protocol provides for extending and permanently establishing the application of temporary periodic customs declarations for supplies of oil and petroleum products by pipeline transport. According to the explanatory memorandum, this is dictated by the technological features of the transportation process using this type of transport and its customs administration. In the agreement that was previously in effect, the special declaration procedure was envisaged only for 2019-2024.

The document states that from January 1, 2025, it is necessary to ensure the declaration of oil and petroleum products by submitting a temporary declaration upon their export from Russia to Kyrgyzstan by pipeline transport in accordance with indicative balances.

Since the protocol establishes this customs procedure indefinitely and also contains rules that differ from Russian legislation, it was subject to ratification in accordance with the federal law on international treaties of the Russian Federation.

The protocol has been applied temporarily since December 31, 2024.

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JSC KazMunayGas (KMG) and PJSC Tatneft have drilled more than 70% of the planned depth of the exploration well at the Karaton Subsalt block, Kazakh Deputy Energy Minister Kazakhstan Kudaibergen Arymbek said during the Industrial and Energy Forum (TNF 2025), as per Interfax.

"The Karaton Subsalt project. Here, our national company together with Tatneft are conducting exploration of the subsalt block with the involvement of Russian contractors who have experience working in complex geological conditions. The drilling depth of the well is 5,500 meters. Literally two weeks ago, when I checked, they had already reached a depth of 3,900 meters. We expect positive results. Work is currently ongoing," Arymbek said.

He later told journalists at the sidelines of the forum that drilling was expected to be complete by the end of the year.

As reported, the companies began drilling the first exploration well at the Karaton Subsalt block in November 2024.

The Karaton Subsalt block is located in the Atyrau and Mangystau regions near the operating Tengiz and Korolevskoye fields and the group of fields of JSC Embamunaigas. The geological resources of the block are 353 million tonnes of oil, with a 50% probability of confirmation.

Investment in the project could amount to $2.4 billion, under carry financing terms from Tatneft. This principle stipulates that the costs are borne by the investor at the geological exploration stage. If the well turns out to be dry, this risk will be on the Russian company, but if the well yields a positive result, the costs will be compensated.

The project operator is Karaton Operating Ltd. Tatneft acquired a 50% stake in the company in February 2024.

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Transneft has said that reports of possible "radical restrictions" on oil intake from producers are "fake", as per Interfax.

"This type of fake news, in which certain unnamed sources in the Russian fuel and energy industry are cited, does harm to the image of PJSC Transneft. The only explanation can be attempts to destabilize the environment as part of the information war waged against the Russian Federation by the West," the company said in a statement.

Citing sources from within the industry, news agency Reuters reported on Tuesday that Transneft had informed oil producers that it could restrict the intake of oil into its network if attacks on infrastructure continue, and also ceased adding new feedstock to its storage facilities.

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Production of biofuel comes with the highest cost of reducing greenhouse gas emissions at USD250 per tonne of CO2 equivalent, experts at the Russian Energy Ministry's Fuel and Energy Sector Analytics Center found after studying the strategic and reporting documents of the largest foreign oil and gas companies for 2024, as per Interfax.

The combined installed capacity of biofuel production facilities is 11 million tonnes per year, the center said.

Projects to produce hydrogen are the second most expensive at USD230 per tonne of CO2 equivalent. Hydrogen production facilities with combined capacity of 460 MW are at the construction stage.

A tonne of CO2 equivalent reduced using carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology costs USD80. The combined installed capacity of such facilities is 110 million tonnes per year.

Charging stations for electric vehicles make it possible to prevent emissions at a cost of USD59 per tonne. There are 197,000 EV charging stations in operation.

The average cost of reducing emissions by one tonne of CO2 equivalent with renewable energy sources is USD30, including USD32.90 for solar farms and USD27.10 for wind farms.

The cheapest decarbonisation initiatives are projects to reduce methane emissions and increase energy efficiency, which cost $17 and $24 per tonne of CO2 equivalent, respectively.

Oil and gas majors' combined investments in decarbonisation totalled $18 billion, with BP accounting for 20% of this and PetroChina 18%, the center found. The study also looked at reports from Shell, Chevron, TotalEnergies , Aramco, Eni, Equinor, ConocoPhilips, Petronas, OMV, Repsol, Galp, Petrobras, KazMunayGas (KMG) and Socar.

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