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DATE : 2013-10-07
French specialty chemicals producer Arkema is in the process of restarting its Acrylic acid (AA) and acrylate esters facilities, following routine maintenance, a source from the company said late on Sunday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting in Berlin, the source said: “We are in the process of restarting, this will happen over the next few days.”
The company began the planned turnaround in September.
Arkema has a crude AA equivalent capacity of 276,000 tonnes/year at its Carling, France, site.
SOURCE Icis News
French specialty chemicals producer Arkema is in the process of restarting its Acrylic acid (AA) and acrylate esters facilities, following routine maintenance, a source from the company said late on Sunday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting in Berlin, the source said: “We are in the process of restarting, this will happen over the next few days.”
The company began the planned turnaround in September.
Arkema has a crude AA equivalent capacity of 276,000 tonnes/year at its Carling, France, site.
SOURCE Icis News
Date: 2013-10-3
Agropages has recently had a dialogue with Mr. Lykele van der Broek, COO of Bayer CropScience. Mr. Van der Broek shared his viewpoint about sustainable development of agriculture as well as Bayer CropScience’s development strategy.
In recent years, multinational companies have increased the investment in the business of biological, seeds and traits, what kind of industry trends do you think it represents?
There are 7 billion people on the planet today. By 2050, the population is anticipated to be almost 10 billion. Besides population growth, the major global trends including changing of food consumption patterns, more limited arable land, weather fluctuations, insufficient storage, are also affecting the food supply. Contributing to world food security is no means task to all crop protection companies.
Food production needs to increase some 70% by 2050. To meet the growing demand, we must find ways to sustainably increase agricultural productivity. And innovation, only with new technologies, e.g. breeding, biotechnology to develop improved seeds, chemical and biological crop protection solutions, can farmers increase yield at quantities needed. The increasing investment of multinationals represents the trends of driving sustainable agriculture development by new technology and innovation.
How will Bayer CropScience maintain the sustained growth in this round of industry change? Is there any change in Bayer’s crop protection conception?
In this round of industry change, innovation and cooperation are two pillars of Bayer guided by the conception that developing integrated crop solutions to best serve customer needs. We will foster innovation to further develop strong industry position. We offer integrated crop solution, spanning from seeds and traits in key crops like cotton, rice or soybean, to crop protection products based on chemical and biological modes of action for protection against weeds, fungi, insects and nematodes, all the way to services and proactive product stewardship measures.
We are taking on responsibility and bringing our innovation leadership and outstanding expertise in seeds and crop protection to the industry, but we need partners to work together. We are driving aholistic approach that leverages strength of partners both inside and outside our industry, to respond to customer demand that support good agricultural practices,
Could you please detail the development planning or commercial strategy of Bayer CropScience in conventional pesticide, biological, seeds field in the term of investment, merger, cooperation or license?
Regarding conventional pesticides, Bayer's investment are mainly for the expansion of facilities in Europe and North America, and establishment of formulation/production sites in Latin America and Asia, yet will serve our major markets in these areas to meet the growing market demand. In terms of commercial strategy, besides selling our products through Bayer’s channel, we would also like to work with those companies which have technology and distributing channels, to make our products sold as wide as possible. Not limited to chemicals, the products also include biological, seeds and traits.
I regard to biological pesticide which has become more and more important with the rapid development of organic farming and the increasingly prominent of pesticide resistance. The market value of biological pesticides is expected to reach 40 billion Euros. Bayer is the first one among multinationals to access the market in large scale. We will invest more and are expecting to become No. 1 in this field. We have plans to establish biological technology platform in some countries/areas, making the research and commercialization of biological locally developed.
Seeds Business is another growth element of Bayer. We are still not in the dominant position in the market though we have had good performance in the crops such as vegetables, rice, oilseed rape and cotton, and try to build up significant market positions in soybean and wheat. We will target different market and need for product development. We will have some merger plans in this area，or establish joint venture with local companies.
How do you see emerging markets' contribution to Bayer's business growth? How are you going to further expand emerging markets?
In the first half of 2013, Bayer has enjoyed a 12.8% growth in emerging markets, reaching 1.795bio Euro. Latin America has a particularly good development and at the mean time, sales in Asia, Africa and Middle East are gratifying. Sales from emerging markets account for 34.8% of the total and will keep growing.
In recent years, growers in emerging markets have shown greater interests in patented innovative agrochemicals comparing to conventional non-patented products. Apart from providing such areas with high quality crop protection products, Bayer also conducted R&D activities according to local practice and crop situation. Currently, we have established R&D center and greenhouses in many regions and being productive in development work.
How do you see the EU ban of Neonicotinoid? Facing stricter regulatory administration, how will Bayer react to it?
We do not agree with the EU decision which is based on an "inaccurate & incomplete assessment" by EFSA. This decision hasn't obtained support from all member countries. If used according to label, neonicotinoid is safe and highly effective.
Stricter market administration is good for the industry and Bayer. It gives higher requirements and challenges. Our R&D will also be administered to develop better and safer products.
Under current circumstance, we will try to protect our products in other markets and meanwhile considering re-applying registration in EU. Furthermore, we will continue developing substitute products and proactively helping with bee health.
Agropages has recently had a dialogue with Mr. Lykele van der Broek, COO of Bayer CropScience. Mr. Van der Broek shared his viewpoint about sustainable development of agriculture as well as Bayer CropScience’s development strategy.
In recent years, multinational companies have increased the investment in the business of biological, seeds and traits, what kind of industry trends do you think it represents?
There are 7 billion people on the planet today. By 2050, the population is anticipated to be almost 10 billion. Besides population growth, the major global trends including changing of food consumption patterns, more limited arable land, weather fluctuations, insufficient storage, are also affecting the food supply. Contributing to world food security is no means task to all crop protection companies.
Food production needs to increase some 70% by 2050. To meet the growing demand, we must find ways to sustainably increase agricultural productivity. And innovation, only with new technologies, e.g. breeding, biotechnology to develop improved seeds, chemical and biological crop protection solutions, can farmers increase yield at quantities needed. The increasing investment of multinationals represents the trends of driving sustainable agriculture development by new technology and innovation.
How will Bayer CropScience maintain the sustained growth in this round of industry change? Is there any change in Bayer’s crop protection conception?
In this round of industry change, innovation and cooperation are two pillars of Bayer guided by the conception that developing integrated crop solutions to best serve customer needs. We will foster innovation to further develop strong industry position. We offer integrated crop solution, spanning from seeds and traits in key crops like cotton, rice or soybean, to crop protection products based on chemical and biological modes of action for protection against weeds, fungi, insects and nematodes, all the way to services and proactive product stewardship measures.
We are taking on responsibility and bringing our innovation leadership and outstanding expertise in seeds and crop protection to the industry, but we need partners to work together. We are driving aholistic approach that leverages strength of partners both inside and outside our industry, to respond to customer demand that support good agricultural practices,
Could you please detail the development planning or commercial strategy of Bayer CropScience in conventional pesticide, biological, seeds field in the term of investment, merger, cooperation or license?
Regarding conventional pesticides, Bayer's investment are mainly for the expansion of facilities in Europe and North America, and establishment of formulation/production sites in Latin America and Asia, yet will serve our major markets in these areas to meet the growing market demand. In terms of commercial strategy, besides selling our products through Bayer’s channel, we would also like to work with those companies which have technology and distributing channels, to make our products sold as wide as possible. Not limited to chemicals, the products also include biological, seeds and traits.
I regard to biological pesticide which has become more and more important with the rapid development of organic farming and the increasingly prominent of pesticide resistance. The market value of biological pesticides is expected to reach 40 billion Euros. Bayer is the first one among multinationals to access the market in large scale. We will invest more and are expecting to become No. 1 in this field. We have plans to establish biological technology platform in some countries/areas, making the research and commercialization of biological locally developed.
Seeds Business is another growth element of Bayer. We are still not in the dominant position in the market though we have had good performance in the crops such as vegetables, rice, oilseed rape and cotton, and try to build up significant market positions in soybean and wheat. We will target different market and need for product development. We will have some merger plans in this area，or establish joint venture with local companies.
How do you see emerging markets' contribution to Bayer's business growth? How are you going to further expand emerging markets?
In the first half of 2013, Bayer has enjoyed a 12.8% growth in emerging markets, reaching 1.795bio Euro. Latin America has a particularly good development and at the mean time, sales in Asia, Africa and Middle East are gratifying. Sales from emerging markets account for 34.8% of the total and will keep growing.
In recent years, growers in emerging markets have shown greater interests in patented innovative agrochemicals comparing to conventional non-patented products. Apart from providing such areas with high quality crop protection products, Bayer also conducted R&D activities according to local practice and crop situation. Currently, we have established R&D center and greenhouses in many regions and being productive in development work.
How do you see the EU ban of Neonicotinoid? Facing stricter regulatory administration, how will Bayer react to it?
We do not agree with the EU decision which is based on an "inaccurate & incomplete assessment" by EFSA. This decision hasn't obtained support from all member countries. If used according to label, neonicotinoid is safe and highly effective.
Stricter market administration is good for the industry and Bayer. It gives higher requirements and challenges. Our R&D will also be administered to develop better and safer products.
Under current circumstance, we will try to protect our products in other markets and meanwhile considering re-applying registration in EU. Furthermore, we will continue developing substitute products and proactively helping with bee health.
DATE : 2013-10-06
Butadiene (BD) demand is not likely to improve until at least the second quarter of next year, a major BD consumer said on Sunday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting, the consumer said that it did not anticipate any real improvement in demand from the automotive sector – the key end-use industry for BD – until the second quarter and then only because traditionally peak demand comes in the second quarter.
“Historically speaking, demand is best in the second and maybe third quarters of the year,” the consumer said.
Because of this lack of structural demand, it said the current upwards run on BD spot pricing was not sustainable.
Other BD market players echoed this view.
“We are cautiously optimistic for the second half of 2014,” said another consumer, adding “but not before then.”
The EPCA meeting runs for 5-9 October.
SOURCE Icis News
Butadiene (BD) demand is not likely to improve until at least the second quarter of next year, a major BD consumer said on Sunday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting, the consumer said that it did not anticipate any real improvement in demand from the automotive sector – the key end-use industry for BD – until the second quarter and then only because traditionally peak demand comes in the second quarter.
“Historically speaking, demand is best in the second and maybe third quarters of the year,” the consumer said.
Because of this lack of structural demand, it said the current upwards run on BD spot pricing was not sustainable.
Other BD market players echoed this view.
“We are cautiously optimistic for the second half of 2014,” said another consumer, adding “but not before then.”
The EPCA meeting runs for 5-9 October.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-04
INEOS Enterprises will close its vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) plant in Hull, the UK, the company announced on Friday.“Low cost imports and a hostile trading environment made closure inevitable”, INEOS said in a press release, adding that 18 jobs will be lost.
The date on which the plant will cease operations was not disclosed. The plant has a nameplate capacity of 300,000 tonnes/year.
The company’s ethyl acetate (etac) plant at the same site will remain in production, the company said. The etac unit has a nameplate capacity of 245,000 tonnes/year, according to ICIS data.
“INEOS acquired the VAM facility in 2008 and has committed over £40m [€47.6m] trying to make it competitive in world markets,” the statement said.
The company said the VAM market has become increasingly targeted by cheap imports, mainly from Saudi Arabia and the US, both of which benefit from low-cost raw materials. The VAM plant in Hull takes ethylene by pipeline from Grangemouth in Scotland.
INEOS Enterprises CEO Ashley Reed said: “Regrettably, our cost per tonne remains significantly higher than the international competition and as a consequence we have lost a number of important contracts. We will do all we can to help those affected by this announcement.”
INEOS Enterprises acquired the plant from BP in April 2008. The unit was built in 2002 and was the first plant capable of producing 300,000 tonnes/year in a single train reactor, as well as being the only world-scale fluidised bed VAM plant, according to the statement.
SOURCE Icis News
INEOS Enterprises will close its vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) plant in Hull, the UK, the company announced on Friday.“Low cost imports and a hostile trading environment made closure inevitable”, INEOS said in a press release, adding that 18 jobs will be lost.
The date on which the plant will cease operations was not disclosed. The plant has a nameplate capacity of 300,000 tonnes/year.
The company’s ethyl acetate (etac) plant at the same site will remain in production, the company said. The etac unit has a nameplate capacity of 245,000 tonnes/year, according to ICIS data.
“INEOS acquired the VAM facility in 2008 and has committed over £40m [€47.6m] trying to make it competitive in world markets,” the statement said.
The company said the VAM market has become increasingly targeted by cheap imports, mainly from Saudi Arabia and the US, both of which benefit from low-cost raw materials. The VAM plant in Hull takes ethylene by pipeline from Grangemouth in Scotland.
INEOS Enterprises CEO Ashley Reed said: “Regrettably, our cost per tonne remains significantly higher than the international competition and as a consequence we have lost a number of important contracts. We will do all we can to help those affected by this announcement.”
INEOS Enterprises acquired the plant from BP in April 2008. The unit was built in 2002 and was the first plant capable of producing 300,000 tonnes/year in a single train reactor, as well as being the only world-scale fluidised bed VAM plant, according to the statement.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-04
Unigel has restarted its 60,000 tonnes/year acrylonitrile (ACN) plant in the Morelos petrochemical complex in Veracruz, Mexico, sources said on Friday.
The plant, a joint venture between Unigel and Pemex Petroquimica, had been experiencing a propylene supply issue, sources said.
The plant, which began operations in 2009, also shut down in August for planned maintenance.
Sources said the plant is back online and running test material.
Major North American producers of ACN include Ascend Performance Materials, Cornerstone Energy, INEOS, Pemex and Unigel.
SOURCE Icis News
Unigel has restarted its 60,000 tonnes/year acrylonitrile (ACN) plant in the Morelos petrochemical complex in Veracruz, Mexico, sources said on Friday.
The plant, a joint venture between Unigel and Pemex Petroquimica, had been experiencing a propylene supply issue, sources said.
The plant, which began operations in 2009, also shut down in August for planned maintenance.
Sources said the plant is back online and running test material.
Major North American producers of ACN include Ascend Performance Materials, Cornerstone Energy, INEOS, Pemex and Unigel.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-06
Butyl Acrylate (butyl-A) sales control at Germany-based chemicals major BASF will remain in place until the end of October and until further notice, a source from the company said on Sunday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting in Berlin, the source said: “We will keep [sales control] for October, that’s for sure.”
The source added that the company was hoping to lift sales control at the beginning of November.
BASF implemented force majeure on butyl-A on 13 June because of production problems at its Ludwigshafen facility in Germany. It was lifted on 21 June and sales control was put in place.
SOURCE Icis News
Butyl Acrylate (butyl-A) sales control at Germany-based chemicals major BASF will remain in place until the end of October and until further notice, a source from the company said on Sunday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting in Berlin, the source said: “We will keep [sales control] for October, that’s for sure.”
The source added that the company was hoping to lift sales control at the beginning of November.
BASF implemented force majeure on butyl-A on 13 June because of production problems at its Ludwigshafen facility in Germany. It was lifted on 21 June and sales control was put in place.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-06
An acrylates producer expects to see modest growth for the sector in 2014, with demand for acrylic acid (AA) to outperform that of acrylate esters, they said on Saturday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting in Berlin, Alessandro Moraes, acrylates global business director at Dow said: “Globally, we expect acrylate esters [demand] to grow by 2.5-3%, and AA to grow by 6%.”
Moraes estimated growth in Europe in 2014 would be up by 3-4% for AA, while the acrylate esters market is likely to remain flat or improve by 1%.
“The drivers for AA demand are more related to the consumable goods sector. During a crisis, people are postponing the new house, or delaying the renovations. AA continues to grow despite the crisis.”
Moraes said high unemployment rates in most of Europe are resulting in a flat outlook for esters next year.
Regions such as Asia, India and Africa, however, continue to see significant volume growth, he added.
This year, demand for AA and acrylate esters in Europe has largely been in line with that seen in 2012.
“We see the market as a little bit better for 2014,” Moraes said.
AA is used in water treatment and in the manufacture of super absorbent polymer (SAP), which is used to make diapers.
Acrylate esters are used in coatings, adhesives and textiles.
The annual EPCA meeting runs from 5-9 October.
SOURCE Icis News
An acrylates producer expects to see modest growth for the sector in 2014, with demand for acrylic acid (AA) to outperform that of acrylate esters, they said on Saturday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 47th annual European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) meeting in Berlin, Alessandro Moraes, acrylates global business director at Dow said: “Globally, we expect acrylate esters [demand] to grow by 2.5-3%, and AA to grow by 6%.”
Moraes estimated growth in Europe in 2014 would be up by 3-4% for AA, while the acrylate esters market is likely to remain flat or improve by 1%.
“The drivers for AA demand are more related to the consumable goods sector. During a crisis, people are postponing the new house, or delaying the renovations. AA continues to grow despite the crisis.”
Moraes said high unemployment rates in most of Europe are resulting in a flat outlook for esters next year.
Regions such as Asia, India and Africa, however, continue to see significant volume growth, he added.
This year, demand for AA and acrylate esters in Europe has largely been in line with that seen in 2012.
“We see the market as a little bit better for 2014,” Moraes said.
AA is used in water treatment and in the manufacture of super absorbent polymer (SAP), which is used to make diapers.
Acrylate esters are used in coatings, adhesives and textiles.
The annual EPCA meeting runs from 5-9 October.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-03
BASF is raising the long-term sales target for its Crop Protection division and now expects it to achieve sales of more than 6 billion by 2015 and 8 billion by 2020 (previously: 6 billion in 2020). To support this, BASF will invest approximately 1.8 billion to build and upgrade production and formulation capacities between 2013 and 2017. BASF will also continue to expand its portfolio of solutions and increase initiatives that support growers with their overall farm management.
We have made great progress over the past years. We have demonstrated sustainable growth in our sales and earnings and are confident we will continue with this development, said MarkusHeldt, President of BASF s Crop Protection division. This success stems from our commitment to providing innovations that address the importance of having sufficient and high quality food for a growing population. We continue to expand our portfolio, for and beyond crop protection products, to deliver integrated technologies that can help growers run their business more efficiently.
Increased investments in innovative solutions
For the period from 2013 to 2017, BASF will double annual investments in production plants for its Crop Protection division from approximately 150 million to more than 300 million. Amongst others, this figure covers plans to expand production capacities for the blockbuster fungicides F500® and Xemium® in Germany as well as for key herbicides dicamba and Kixor®, which are produced in the United States. BASF is also planning to build new or expand existing formulation plants at several sites around the world, with strong emphasis on Asia.
The total peak sales potential for BASF s crop protection pipeline represented by products launched between 2010 and 2020 is now estimated at 1.7 billion, 500 million more compared to the previous year. The pipeline s value is largely supported by successful product launches in all indications. A significant contribution is expected from Xemium and promising novel herbicides and herbicide tolerant solutions, along with products from the fields in Functional Crop Care. To reach its targets, BASF will maintain its commitment to investing around 9% of the Crop Protection division s sales into R&D activities, targeted towards developing new active ingredients, formulations and solutions beyond crop protection.
Portfolio expansion through Functional Crop Care
Functional Crop Care, BASF s newly-established global unit for solutions beyond the boundaries of traditional crop protection products, will greatly expand BASF s portfolio of solutions for growers. Through the completed structural integration of U.S.-based company Becker Underwood, BASF has become a leading global provider of seed solutions offers, including biological ones, and can further help growers to improve and increase their production.
SOURCE Mena Report
BASF is raising the long-term sales target for its Crop Protection division and now expects it to achieve sales of more than 6 billion by 2015 and 8 billion by 2020 (previously: 6 billion in 2020). To support this, BASF will invest approximately 1.8 billion to build and upgrade production and formulation capacities between 2013 and 2017. BASF will also continue to expand its portfolio of solutions and increase initiatives that support growers with their overall farm management.
We have made great progress over the past years. We have demonstrated sustainable growth in our sales and earnings and are confident we will continue with this development, said MarkusHeldt, President of BASF s Crop Protection division. This success stems from our commitment to providing innovations that address the importance of having sufficient and high quality food for a growing population. We continue to expand our portfolio, for and beyond crop protection products, to deliver integrated technologies that can help growers run their business more efficiently.
Increased investments in innovative solutions
For the period from 2013 to 2017, BASF will double annual investments in production plants for its Crop Protection division from approximately 150 million to more than 300 million. Amongst others, this figure covers plans to expand production capacities for the blockbuster fungicides F500® and Xemium® in Germany as well as for key herbicides dicamba and Kixor®, which are produced in the United States. BASF is also planning to build new or expand existing formulation plants at several sites around the world, with strong emphasis on Asia.
The total peak sales potential for BASF s crop protection pipeline represented by products launched between 2010 and 2020 is now estimated at 1.7 billion, 500 million more compared to the previous year. The pipeline s value is largely supported by successful product launches in all indications. A significant contribution is expected from Xemium and promising novel herbicides and herbicide tolerant solutions, along with products from the fields in Functional Crop Care. To reach its targets, BASF will maintain its commitment to investing around 9% of the Crop Protection division s sales into R&D activities, targeted towards developing new active ingredients, formulations and solutions beyond crop protection.
Portfolio expansion through Functional Crop Care
Functional Crop Care, BASF s newly-established global unit for solutions beyond the boundaries of traditional crop protection products, will greatly expand BASF s portfolio of solutions for growers. Through the completed structural integration of U.S.-based company Becker Underwood, BASF has become a leading global provider of seed solutions offers, including biological ones, and can further help growers to improve and increase their production.
SOURCE Mena Report
DATE : 2013-10-03
Petrochemical Corporation of Singapore (PCS) is likely to construct a new Butadiene plant.
A Polymerupdate source in Singapore informed that the plant is likely to be completed in Q1, 2014. The plant will start commercial production in Q2, 2014.
Located in Pulau Merbau, Singapore, the plant will have a production capacity of 100,000 mt/year.
SOURCE PolymerUpdate
DATE : 2013-10-03
IRPC Public Co will not be undertaking a maintenance turnaround at its Styrene monomer (SM) plant in 2014.A Polymerupdate source in Thailand informed that the plant is presently operating at 80% of production capacity.Located in Rayong, Thailand, the plant has a production capacity of 200,000 mt/year.
SOURCE PolymerUpdate
IRPC Public Co will not be undertaking a maintenance turnaround at its Styrene monomer (SM) plant in 2014.A Polymerupdate source in Thailand informed that the plant is presently operating at 80% of production capacity.Located in Rayong, Thailand, the plant has a production capacity of 200,000 mt/year.
SOURCE PolymerUpdate
Date: 2013-9-23
Syngenta has unveiled plans to increase global crop yields by up to 20 per cent by 2020, while helping farmers use less agrochemicals and put in place measures to boost biodiversity.
In a series of launch events around the world it has outlined six commitments to address the world’s food security and environmental issues in its Good Growth Plan.
The headline commitment is to increase the average productivity of the world’s crops by 20 per cent without using more land, water or crops.
The agro-chemical giant intends to achieve this by pursuing different approaches in different parts of the world, through, for example, crop breeding, development of new and improved inputs and working with agronomists and farmers to improve the way crops and inputs are managed.
The company’s other five commitments focus mainly on boosting the environment and helping farmers in developing countries. They are:
• Rescue more farmland: By improving the fertility of 10 million hectares of farmland on the brink of degradation
• Help biodiversity flourish: By enhance biodiversity on 5 million hectares of farmland
• Empower smallholders: Reach 20 million smallholders and enable them to increase productivity by 50 percent
• Help people stay safe: Train 20 million farm workers on labor safety, especially in developing countries
• Look after every worker: By striving for fair labour conditions throughout its entire supply chain network.
Speaking to Farmers Guardian at the Brussels launch event, Jon Parr, Syngenta European regional director, said the plan could make a ‘radical difference’ to crop production and environmental management of the future.
He acknowledged that the 20 per cent yield increase target was a global average and that not everywhere could expect that ‘overnight’.
But in the UK, for example, he said the company is expecting significant yield boosts from its new hybrid barley and is hoping to apply the same technology to wheat.
Syngenta executives said the company remained committed to GM technology in certain parts of the world, as part of the drive to achieve the aims of its strategy, but said GM was unlikely to play a significant role in Europe to political and public opposition.
Mr Parr stressed said the ‘whole company had been reshaped’ to bring the seeds and the inputs sides together and that this had enabled it to take a more holistic approach to tackling the global issues of food security, land availability and the environmental impact of farming.
“We haven’t got all the answers and we cannot do this alone. We need to work with farmers, agronomists and other organisations to deliver this. The targets are ambitious but I believe they are achievable and that this can make a radical difference,” he said.
The plan received generally positive feedback from around 70 guests invited from all over the world at the Brussels event. But guests urged Syngenta to communicate its strategy fully and transparently to the public and to ensure it engages fully with farmers as it implements it.
Mr Parr refuted suggestions that plan is designed to boost the company’s image as much as production and the environment. He said the company’s targets would be measurable and that it was prepared to be held to account as the plan was put into place.
During the launch, Syngenta senior agronomist Geoff Coates gave a presentation on the company’s Operation Pollinator as an example of how it working with farmers to balance agricultural production with environmental management, through, for example, field margins.
Environmentalists remained caution. Birdlife’s Ariel Brunner welcomed the commitment to enhancing biodiversity but said he would ‘reserve judgement’ and ‘remained sceptical’ until he could what this means in practice.
Mike Mack, chief executive officer of Syngenta, said: “We have always been acutely aware that our business can only grow if we ensure that farming is carried out in a sustainable way.
“Delivering on these commitments won’t be easy given the conflicting views of society on agriculture and food production.
“The Good Growth Plan represents our collective commitment as a company to do things differently and better. We know we can’t solve the challenges alone which is why we are bringing together stakeholders from across the world to share our intent and to benefit from their input.”
Syngenta has unveiled plans to increase global crop yields by up to 20 per cent by 2020, while helping farmers use less agrochemicals and put in place measures to boost biodiversity.
In a series of launch events around the world it has outlined six commitments to address the world’s food security and environmental issues in its Good Growth Plan.
The headline commitment is to increase the average productivity of the world’s crops by 20 per cent without using more land, water or crops.
The agro-chemical giant intends to achieve this by pursuing different approaches in different parts of the world, through, for example, crop breeding, development of new and improved inputs and working with agronomists and farmers to improve the way crops and inputs are managed.
The company’s other five commitments focus mainly on boosting the environment and helping farmers in developing countries. They are:
• Rescue more farmland: By improving the fertility of 10 million hectares of farmland on the brink of degradation
• Help biodiversity flourish: By enhance biodiversity on 5 million hectares of farmland
• Empower smallholders: Reach 20 million smallholders and enable them to increase productivity by 50 percent
• Help people stay safe: Train 20 million farm workers on labor safety, especially in developing countries
• Look after every worker: By striving for fair labour conditions throughout its entire supply chain network.
Speaking to Farmers Guardian at the Brussels launch event, Jon Parr, Syngenta European regional director, said the plan could make a ‘radical difference’ to crop production and environmental management of the future.
He acknowledged that the 20 per cent yield increase target was a global average and that not everywhere could expect that ‘overnight’.
But in the UK, for example, he said the company is expecting significant yield boosts from its new hybrid barley and is hoping to apply the same technology to wheat.
Syngenta executives said the company remained committed to GM technology in certain parts of the world, as part of the drive to achieve the aims of its strategy, but said GM was unlikely to play a significant role in Europe to political and public opposition.
Mr Parr stressed said the ‘whole company had been reshaped’ to bring the seeds and the inputs sides together and that this had enabled it to take a more holistic approach to tackling the global issues of food security, land availability and the environmental impact of farming.
“We haven’t got all the answers and we cannot do this alone. We need to work with farmers, agronomists and other organisations to deliver this. The targets are ambitious but I believe they are achievable and that this can make a radical difference,” he said.
The plan received generally positive feedback from around 70 guests invited from all over the world at the Brussels event. But guests urged Syngenta to communicate its strategy fully and transparently to the public and to ensure it engages fully with farmers as it implements it.
Mr Parr refuted suggestions that plan is designed to boost the company’s image as much as production and the environment. He said the company’s targets would be measurable and that it was prepared to be held to account as the plan was put into place.
During the launch, Syngenta senior agronomist Geoff Coates gave a presentation on the company’s Operation Pollinator as an example of how it working with farmers to balance agricultural production with environmental management, through, for example, field margins.
Environmentalists remained caution. Birdlife’s Ariel Brunner welcomed the commitment to enhancing biodiversity but said he would ‘reserve judgement’ and ‘remained sceptical’ until he could what this means in practice.
Mike Mack, chief executive officer of Syngenta, said: “We have always been acutely aware that our business can only grow if we ensure that farming is carried out in a sustainable way.
“Delivering on these commitments won’t be easy given the conflicting views of society on agriculture and food production.
“The Good Growth Plan represents our collective commitment as a company to do things differently and better. We know we can’t solve the challenges alone which is why we are bringing together stakeholders from across the world to share our intent and to benefit from their input.”
DATE : 2013-10-02
Thailand’s SCG-Dow Group will skip maintenance at its Styrene monomer (SM) and Polystyrene (PS) units at Map Ta Phut in 2014, a company source said on Thursday.
The 300,000 tonne/year SM unit and 200,000 tonne/year PS plant have undergone maintenance this year and are not due for turnaround next year, the source said..
Other SM producers in southeast Asia include Ellba Eastern and Seraya Chemicals in Singapore, Styrene Monomer Malaysia, and Styrindo Mono Indonesia.
SOURCE Icis News
Thailand’s SCG-Dow Group will skip maintenance at its Styrene monomer (SM) and Polystyrene (PS) units at Map Ta Phut in 2014, a company source said on Thursday.
The 300,000 tonne/year SM unit and 200,000 tonne/year PS plant have undergone maintenance this year and are not due for turnaround next year, the source said..
Other SM producers in southeast Asia include Ellba Eastern and Seraya Chemicals in Singapore, Styrene Monomer Malaysia, and Styrindo Mono Indonesia.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-02
Styrindo Mono Indonesia, the country’s sole producer of Styrene monomer (SM), will likely skip maintenance at its plants next year, a company source said on Thursday.
The company, which is a subsidiary of petrochemical major Chandra Asri, operates a 100,000 tonne/year No 1 SM unit and a 250,000 tonne/year No 2 SM plant in Merak.
“We had catalyst change and maintenance this year at our plants, so there might be no need for a shutdown next year,” the source said.
SM is a liquid chemical used to make resins like polystyrene (PS) and acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), as well as sybthetic rubbers such as styrene-butadiene-rubber (SBR) and styrene-butadiene-latex (SBL).
SOURCE Icis News
Styrindo Mono Indonesia, the country’s sole producer of Styrene monomer (SM), will likely skip maintenance at its plants next year, a company source said on Thursday.
The company, which is a subsidiary of petrochemical major Chandra Asri, operates a 100,000 tonne/year No 1 SM unit and a 250,000 tonne/year No 2 SM plant in Merak.
“We had catalyst change and maintenance this year at our plants, so there might be no need for a shutdown next year,” the source said.
SM is a liquid chemical used to make resins like polystyrene (PS) and acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), as well as sybthetic rubbers such as styrene-butadiene-rubber (SBR) and styrene-butadiene-latex (SBL).
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-02
South Africa’s Sasol Acrylates has delayed a planned turnaround on its crude acrylic acid (CAA) unit until November, because of better-than-expected running conditions, a source from the company said on Wednesday.
The company had planned to begin a brief turnaround in October to maintain a reboiler exchange.
However, a source from the company said on Wednesday: “We have delayed the eight-day CAA shutdown by a month, and will now commence on 13 November due to better-than-expected running conditions.”
Sasol Acrylates is based in Sasolburg in the Free State province, South Africa, and has the capacity to produce 80,000 tonnes/year of CAA from the facility.
Acrylic acid and acrylate esters are propylene derivatives.
SOURCE Icis News
South Africa’s Sasol Acrylates has delayed a planned turnaround on its crude acrylic acid (CAA) unit until November, because of better-than-expected running conditions, a source from the company said on Wednesday.
The company had planned to begin a brief turnaround in October to maintain a reboiler exchange.
However, a source from the company said on Wednesday: “We have delayed the eight-day CAA shutdown by a month, and will now commence on 13 November due to better-than-expected running conditions.”
Sasol Acrylates is based in Sasolburg in the Free State province, South Africa, and has the capacity to produce 80,000 tonnes/year of CAA from the facility.
Acrylic acid and acrylate esters are propylene derivatives.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2013-10-01
Brazil's federal oil company Petrobas said its shareholders have approved the sale of styrene business Innova to Brazilian plastic packaging producer Videolar and its major shareholder for 870mn reais (US$388mn).
At an extraordinary general meeting, shareholders also approved the company's decision to restructure and dissolve four wholly owned subsidiaries, Comperj Participações, Comperj Estirênicos, Comperj MEG and Comperj Poliolefinas. Petrobas had established the units to run its petrochemical businesses at the giant Comperj refining and petrochemical complex that is under construction in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
The first refining train at Comperj is due to begin operating in 2016. Brazilian petrochemical company Braskem, in which Petrobas is the second largest shareholder, has still not decided on what petrochemical plants to construct at the site.
According to media reports, Almir Barbassa, chief financial officer of Petrobras, said that because Comperj will be supplied with petrochemical feedstock from natural gas rather than from crude oil, as had originally been planned, Petrobas no longer needs separate subsidiaries for the project.
The sale of Innova was announced in August. Innova is among a number of assets that Petrobas is selling to raise cash and focus on investments in the Brazilian offshore.
Innova is based in Triunfo in southern Brazil and produces ethylbenzene, styrene and polystyrene. It is currently doubling its styrene capacity from 250,000t/y to 500,000t/y, which should be complete by 2016.
Videolar produces polystyrene, biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP), polypropylene film and packaging items.
The transaction is subject to the approval of Brazil's antitrust authority Cade. Innova, Videolar and debt-laden Unigel are Brazil's three largest styrene producers.
SOURCE Business News Americas
Brazil's federal oil company Petrobas said its shareholders have approved the sale of styrene business Innova to Brazilian plastic packaging producer Videolar and its major shareholder for 870mn reais (US$388mn).
At an extraordinary general meeting, shareholders also approved the company's decision to restructure and dissolve four wholly owned subsidiaries, Comperj Participações, Comperj Estirênicos, Comperj MEG and Comperj Poliolefinas. Petrobas had established the units to run its petrochemical businesses at the giant Comperj refining and petrochemical complex that is under construction in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
The first refining train at Comperj is due to begin operating in 2016. Brazilian petrochemical company Braskem, in which Petrobas is the second largest shareholder, has still not decided on what petrochemical plants to construct at the site.
According to media reports, Almir Barbassa, chief financial officer of Petrobras, said that because Comperj will be supplied with petrochemical feedstock from natural gas rather than from crude oil, as had originally been planned, Petrobas no longer needs separate subsidiaries for the project.
The sale of Innova was announced in August. Innova is among a number of assets that Petrobas is selling to raise cash and focus on investments in the Brazilian offshore.
Innova is based in Triunfo in southern Brazil and produces ethylbenzene, styrene and polystyrene. It is currently doubling its styrene capacity from 250,000t/y to 500,000t/y, which should be complete by 2016.
Videolar produces polystyrene, biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP), polypropylene film and packaging items.
The transaction is subject to the approval of Brazil's antitrust authority Cade. Innova, Videolar and debt-laden Unigel are Brazil's three largest styrene producers.
SOURCE Business News Americas