DATE : 2015-03-24
Nippon Shokubai Indonesia is planning to shut its crude acrylic acid (AA) and acrylate esters unit at Cilegon in West Java in end-April for scheduled maintenance, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
The company operates a 60,000 tonne/year crude AA and 100,000 tonne/year acrylate esters unit at the site.
The shutdown is expected to last for around 40-45 days, the source added.
According to several market participants, the impact on spot prices might be limited, especially on the back of softening feedstock propylene values.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2015-03-24
Styrolution’s Texas City, Texas, styrene monomer plant is running at full rates this week more than four months after an unplanned outage late last year, a source close to the company said on Tuesday.
The 450,000 tonne/year unit was shut down on 18 December after a heat-exchanger failure, the source said. While not delineating reasons for the extended down time, the source said repairs were complicated by the location of the heat exchanger.
The last time the unit was off line was for about a week of planned maintenance in August 2014.
Sources said they expected the restart to have little immediate effect on spot pricing, which was in a range of 54.50-55.25 cents/lb ($1,202-1,218/tonne) FOB (free on board) based on recent deals.
The startup should add some liquidity to the market, a source said, but it did not expect any significant pricing effect, especially given talk of other producers’ planned maintenance in April and May.
In the meantime, demand for styrene exports has kept supply snug in the US, and some suggested mostly soft crude-oil values kept players to the sidelines in the past week.
US sources said domestic derivative polystyrene (PS) demand has not yet picked up from middling levels domestically, but contract values were being talked flat to potentially higher for March.
Other major US styrene producers include Americans Styrenics, Shell Canada, Westlake and LyondellBasell.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2015-03-23
Asahi Kasei Corp has restarted its 100,000 tonne/year methyl methacrylate (MMA) plant in Kawasaki, Japan, on schedule following a turnaround since 25 February, a source close to the company said on Monday.
The MMA plant that was restarted on 20 March is in the process of having its operating rates gradually ramped to full capacity, according to the source.
The planned maintenance follows other MMA plants in northeast Asia that either carrying out or will schedule turnarounds over the second quarter.
SOURCE Icis News
Some Comments: This project (that is not yet confirmed from BASF management) could strengthen BASF upstream integration in low price propylene from the Methanol to Propylene technology.
The Freeport Texas BASF acrylic plant is supplied by the BASF Port Arthur steam cracker.
"In 2013, BASF completed the revamp of the Port Arthur cracker that enabled the facility to take advantage the shale gas revolution by using lighter feedstocks, mainly ethane and butane, instead of naphtha. This resulted in a small increase in the ethylene capacity but left the propylene coproduct capacity unchanged, as lighter feedstocks yielded less propylene than naphtha" (Source: SRI Propylene CEH report 2015-02)
The Methanol to Propylene project aims to fill the propylene gap with a focus on BASF captive use (No more propylene merchant sales)
BASF communication about the Methanol to Propylene investment in the US:
BASF continues to evaluate natural gas-based investment on the U.S. Gulf Coast:
- Freeport, Texas, selected as potential site for world-scale, methane-based propylene complex
- Air Liquide chosen as technology provider
- Stronger backward production integration in North America
Ludwigshafen, Germany – March 19, 2015 – BASF has made progress in its plans to build a world-scale methane-to-propylene complex on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The company has selected Freeport, Texas, as the potential site. It will use Air Liquide’s proprietary Lurgi MegaMethanol and Methanol-to-Propylene (MTP) technologies. BASF has contracted Air Liquide to provide basic engineering services for this gas-to-propylene complex.
The plant is planned to have an annual production capacity of approximately 475,000 metric tons of propylene. This project would be BASF’s largest single-plant investment to date and is subject to final approval in 2016 by the BASF Board of Executive Directors.
The Freeport site was founded in 1958 as the first BASF manufacturing facility outside of Europe. With more than 800 full-time employees, the Freeport site is one of two BASF Verbund sites in North America and uses propylene in its manufacturing processes. The on-purpose production of propylene to supply the company’s North American operations would allow BASF to take advantage of low gas prices resulting from U.S. shale gas production. The investment would further strengthen BASF’s backward integration into propylene and grow its propylene-based downstream activities, leading to a stronger market position in North America. Propylene is one of the most important basic chemicals in the petrochemical industry and is used in the production of a wide range of higher-value chemicals. These chemicals are used to manufacture products such as coatings, detergents, and superabsorbent polymers for baby diapers.
About BASF
At BASF, we create chemistry – and have been doing so for 150 years. Our portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. As the world’s leading chemical company, we combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Through science and innovation, we enable our customers in nearly every industry to meet the current and future needs of society. Our products and solutions contribute to conserving resources, ensuring nutrition and improving quality of life. We have summed up this contribution in our corporate purpose: We create chemistry for a sustainable future. BASF had sales of over €74 billion in 2014 and around 113,000 employees as of the end of the year. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.
Source : BASF web site
Attachment(s)
DATE : 2015-03-19
In June 2014, an explosion on Shell's site in Moerdijk, the Netherlands destroyed a styrene monomer and propylene oxide unit. In autumn 2014 the group announced plans to rebuild the unit. According to the journal Chemical Week, the unit should reopen between Dec 2015-Mar 2016. The unit is part of Ellba (the 50:50 joint venture between Shell and BASF). It has capacities of 550,000 tonnes/y styrene and 250,000 tonnes/y propylene oxide.
SOURCE Chimie Pharma Hebdo
Please find an extract of the more complete analysis of the current Butadiene market that Vincent Bordereau (PI) has recently posted in its blog "Petrochemicals Market"
- Demand: demand outlook continues to be low. Some sudden spots demand came in China after Chinese new year. But this could quickly calm down. A more sustainable increase in the demand should nevertheless appears weeks after weeks (impact of low energy and currency effect in Europe)
- Supply: LPG remains preferred than naphtha as feedstock of the steam crackers (slide6). CC4 and so Butadiene availability is good. Some turnaround to be expected in Europe and Asia, but without major impact on CC4 availability.
- Market balance: balanced, as CC4 is probably co-cracked. We do not see any changes in the supply/demand balance in the coming weeks
- Price: for our 2-month outlook, we foresee a stability on the MCP at+/- 50€/t as the best market compromise. Indeed, consumers cannot afford a price increase (fierce competition currently on-going on the synthetic rubber market), while producers are pressurized for recovery of their margins.
Vincent also processed interesting data related to BD exports from EU (with a disappointing 2014 performance) and BD imports in the US (flat situation)
See the attached document.
Attachment(s)
DATE : 2015-03-16
China’s Jilin Petrochemical plans to conduct maintenance at all four of its acrylonitrile (ACN) lines in May, a company source said on Monday.
The four ACN lines, which have a combined capacity of 452,000 tonnes/year, will be shut down for about a month, the source added.
Currently, Jilin Petrochemical is running its four ACN lines at 80% of capacity, the company source said.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2016-03-16
- DSM delivers on the strategic actions it announced for these businesses in November 2014
- CVC is an experienced investor with a proven track record in the chemical industry
Royal DSM, the Life Sciences and Materials Sciences company, and CVC Capital Partners (CVC), one of the world’s leading investment advisory firms, today announced a partnership for DSM’s activities in Polymer Intermediates (Caprolactam and Acrylonitrile) and Composite Resins through the formation of a new company, provisionally called NewCo. Highlights of the transaction:
- NewCo will be 65% owned by CVC and 35% by DSM, with 1,950 employees
- Pro-forma third-party sales of NewCo in 2014 amounted to €2.1 billion with a 2014 EBITDA of €106 million
- The enterprise value of the transaction is €600 million plus an earn-out of up to €175 million
- Financing of NewCo will primarily be through an equity contribution from both shareholders, third party financing and a €100 million bridge loan provided by DSM
- Estimated net cash proceeds at closing to DSM of €300-350 million
- DSM will recognize an initial book loss of approximately €130 million after tax and non-controlling interests, as an exceptional item in Q1 2015
- Closing, subject to customary conditions and approvals, is expected in Q3 2015
Feike Sijbesma, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Managing Board of Royal DSM said: “This proposed transaction delivers on the strategic actions DSM announced for these businesses in November 2014 and is a decisive step in further optimizing our portfolio and reducing our cyclicality. We have found a good partner in CVC after a careful process in which we evaluated all options. We believe the partnership with CVC is the best way forward for these businesses. NewCo will operate as an independent, dedicated company under the leadership of CVC. DSM can now focus fully on improving the operational performance of its Nutrition and Performance Materials businesses as well as benefitting from the future value creation in this new venture. This transaction is geared towards value creation for these businesses and is consistent with our commitment to continue to generate value for our stakeholders and deliver on our strategy.”Steven Buyse, Partner at CVC Capital Partners, added: “We are excited about partnering with DSM and bringing our experience and expertise to bear to further leverage the leading market positions of the businesses. We look forward to working with such a dedicated and talented group of employees to build on the strong existing customer base and create value for all of our stakeholders”.Further details of the transaction:
- DSM will contribute its global caprolactam business (Europe, North America, its 60% stake in DNCC (China) and the caprolactam licensing business), DSM’s acrylonitrile business and DSM’s Composite Resins business including its 75% stake in JDR (China)
- DSM’s 65% stake in the service organization Sitech Services held via its caprolactam and acrylonitrile businesses will also be transferred
- DSM Engineering Plastics has secured at least 80% of its caprolactam needs for 15 years after closing via drawing rights to secure its strategic position and competitiveness, effectively maintaining DSM Engineering Plastics’ backward integration
For DSM, this proposed transaction is a logical step in the execution of its strategy as Polymer Intermediates (caprolactam, acrylonitrile) and Composite Resins no longer fit with its more resilient portfolio in Nutrition and Performance Materials. The partnership with CVC allows DSM to further reduce the cyclicality of its portfolio, secure a long-term competitive supply position of caprolactam for DSM Engineering Plastics and fully focus on the Nutrition, Performance Materials and Innovation activities complemented by accelerated actions to improve efficiencies and reduce costs.
CVC will work with current management of these businesses to make NewCo a success. CVC sees these businesses as a solid platform with leading positions and substantial potential for future growth.
As a 35% shareholder in NewCo, DSM will be able to benefit from any improvements in the businesses that will become part of NewCo.
NewCo will continue to supply at least 80% of DSM Engineering Plastics’ caprolactam needs in Europe and North America for the coming 15 years via a drawing rights contract, effectively maintaining DSM Engineering Plastics’ backward integration. In China DSM Engineering Plastics will continue to be supplied by NewCo as today. This secures an ongoing strategic and competitive position for the polyamide 6 business in which DSM is a global leader.
NewCo will operate as an independent company with three business units: caprolactam, acrylonitrile and composite resins. Pro-forma third party sales of NewCo amounted to €2.1 billion in 2014 with an EBITDA of €106 million, excluding non-controlling interests (DNCC, JDR and Sitech) of €19 million and including the caprolactam licensing income.
Due to the ownership change of DSM’s caprolactam and acrylonitrile businesses, NewCo automatically becomes an indirect 65% shareholder in Sitech Services, the on-site service provider at the Chemelot Industrial Park in Sittard-Geleen (Netherlands). As a service provider, Sitech generally reinvests the majority of its profit into the Chemelot Industrial Park. DSM will remain a 5% shareholder in Sitech Services via DSM Engineering Plastics. In 2014 Sitech Services generated an EBITDA of €27 million, reported within DSM’s Corporate Activities, of which 65% is included in NewCo’s pro-forma 2014 EBITDA of €106 million mentioned above.
Over the past ten years, DSM has further developed the Chemelot Industrial Park and the Brightlands Chemelot Campus (Research) in Sittard-Geleen (Netherlands) into a world-leading innovation and production location. The close cooperation with the University of Maastricht and the Province of Limburg further enhances this development. Both the Industrial Park and the Campus have a deep-rooted cluster of activities, with over 100 companies and knowledge institutions such as Eindhoven University present, currently employing over 7,000 people, a number which is increasing. DSM is fully committed to its contribution for the further development of the Chemelot Industrial Park and Brightlands Chemelot Campus.
In accordance with the applicable accounting standards, DSM’s caprolactam, acrylonitrile and composite resins businesses will be classified as assets held for sale in Q1 2015 and an initial book loss of approximately €130 million, after tax and non-controlling interests, will be recognized as an exceptional item in Q1 2015. This reflects the estimated value of the assets on a fair value less cost to sell basis, taking into account the specific terms of the transaction. The expected full value of DSM’s remaining 35% stake will be recognized in the future. Post-closing, DSM will present the investment in NewCo as an associate, accounted in accordance with the equity method. Re-stated figures will be made available.
DSM’s advisors on the transaction were Allen & Overy and the Valence Group. Advisors to CVC were Aon, Bain & Company, Citigroup, Clifford Chance, Deloitte, Environ, KPMG and McKinsey. Financing for the transaction is being provided by Citigroup and Rabobank.
Additional information
Today DSM will hold a conference call for the media from 08.30 AM to 09.00 AM CET and a conference call for investors and analysts from 10.00 AM to 11.00 AM CET. Details on how to access these calls can be found on the DSM website, www.dsm.com.
CVC Capital Partners
CVC Capital Partners (CVC) is one of the world's leading private equity and investment advisory firms. Founded in 1981, CVC today has a network of over 20 offices and over 300 employees throughout Europe, Asia and the US. Currently, CVC manages funds on behalf of over 300 investors from North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, who entrust their capital to CVC for periods of 10 years or more. To date, CVC has secured commitments of over US$60 billion in funds from a diverse and loyal investor base, completing over 300 investments in a wide range of industries and countries across the globe, with an aggregate transaction value of over US$120 billion. www.cvc.com.
SOURCE DSM.com
DATE : 2015-03-10
FMC Corporation is launching Fracture fungicide, a new broad spectrum, biological fungicide labeled for the prevention and control of powdery mildew, botrytis and brown rot blossom blight.
Fracture is a patented fungicide labeled for use in the United States.
California Department of Pesticide Regulation approval is pending on almonds, grapes, strawberries and tomatoe. This is the first biological fungicide to be launched by FMC since announcing Biosolutions as a strategic initiative in late 2013.
Fracture fungicide includes a new mode of action for disease management. It works on contact by deforming and inhibiting fungal cell production, ultimately tearing apart the cell wall and disrupting the fungal cell membrane.
Within eight hours, the fungal cell is dead.
The active ingredient, Banda de Lupinus albus doce (BLAD), is so new that it is not yet classified by the current FRAC group codes. BLAD is a naturally occurring seed storage protein from the sweet lupine plant.
With a one-day pre-harvest interval and a four-hour re-entry interval, Fracture can be applied up to five times per season which provides growers with a flexible management tool that offers quick, reliable disease control and meets or exceeds established standards.
All state registrations for Fracture have been received, with the exception of California and Florida, which are expected soon.
SOURCE Western Farm Press
DATE : 2015-03-10
Chandra Asri Petrochemical is in plans to start a new butadiene plant.
A Polymerupdate source in Indonesia informed that the plant is likely to commence production sometime in 2016. A specific time-frame for the startup of the plant could not be ascertained.
To be located in Indonesia, the plant is expected to have a production capacity of 100,000 mt/year.
SOURCE PolymerUpdate
DATE : 2015-03-10
Taiyo Petrochemical is likely to shut its styrene monomer (SM) plant for maintenance turnaround.
A Polymerupdate source in Japan informed that the plant was is likely to be taken off-stream in October 2015. It is likely to remain shut for around one month.
Located at Ube in Japan, the plant has a production capacity of 370,000 mt/year.
SOURCE PolymerUpdate
DATE : 2015-03-06
Vincent Bolloré confie au JDN ses projets en matière de véhicules électriques. Au menu des nouveautés : un cabriolet, un grand utilitaire et une nouvelle citadine.
Ce 4 mars 2015, Vincent Bolloré, (Groupe Bolloré, Vivendi, Havas, Blue Solutions...) annonçait un partenariat avec l'ascensoriste Schindler, pour constituer ce qui sera "la plus importante flotte de véhicules 100% électriques Blueutility d’une entreprise privée". L'occasion pour le JDN d'interroger l'homme d'affaires sur ses projets pour les véhicules électriques... et de regarder avec lui quelques-unes des photos de son téléphone portable !
JDN. Après la Bluecar, qui est une citadine 4 places, quels seront vos prochains modèles de voiture électrique ? On parle d'un véhicule 3 places en partenariat avec Renault pour 2015…
Vincent Bolloré. Ce sera plus tard que 2015. Nous y travaillons en 2015 pour une sortie avant 2017. Avant cela, on commercialisera la Bluesummer, un cabriolet électrique 4 places, une voiture de plage formidable ! Quelqu'un de chez nous veut la vendre à Los Angeles, il m'a fait un montage avec la voiture aux couleurs d'Apple, de Facebook. Regardez, c'est très sympa ! (Il nous montre les photos sur son téléphone portable, NDLR). Avant de lancer notre 3 places, nous pensons aussi transformer notre bus électrique de 6 mètres en gros utilitaire.
La Bluecar est aujourd'hui intégrée aux services d’auto-partage de Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux, Minneapolis aux Etats-Unis, Angkor au Cambodge… Quels sont les prochains marchés que vous visez ?
"Pour l'auto-partage, on a beaucoup de demandes. De Rome, de Barcelone..."
Nous avons décidé d'ouvrir chaque année un nouveau service Bluecar dans deux villes. En 2015, nous ouvrirons des services Bluecar à Indianapolis et à Londres. En 2016, ce sera je l'espère Singapour et une autre ville qui n'est pas encore fixée. Pour Singapour, on a un appel d'offre auquel il faut qu'on réponde avant fin mars. La ville rendra sa décision en août. On a beaucoup de demandes : de Rome, de Barcelone… mais actuellement, on ne peut pas toutes les satisfaire.
Aujourd'hui, vous vous êtes donc positionné sur le BtoB. Est-ce que vous envisagez de passer à un marché BtoC ?
"Nous pensons transformer notre bus électrique de 6 mètres en gros utilitaire"
On aimerait bien mais quand vous n'êtes pas connu, que vous n'avez ni marque, ni réseau, c'est compliqué. Aujourd'hui, le grand public ne nous connait pas, ne sait pas qui on est et encore moins si on peut réparer les voitures… Tous ces éléments ne nous permettent pas de nous projeter vers un marché BtoC. Cela dit, je ne dis pas qu'on n'y arrivera pas un jour… peut-être à travers un partenariat.
En Europe, le marché du véhicule électrique a progressé de 60,9% en 2014 par rapport à 2013. Cet essor est lié aux bonnes performances de la France (2e) et de la Norvège (1re). Qu'est-ce qui favorise la croissance de ce marché dans l'Hexagone ?
"Chaque année, nous ouvrirons un nouveau service Bluecar dans deux villes"
En vérité, c'est Autolib' et l'auto-partage mis en place dans les trois grandes métropoles françaises qui fait la différence. Hors Autolib', je pense que vous avez les mêmes chiffres en France et en Europe. La force du principe d'auto-partage est qu'il donne aux gens la possibilité de découvrir le véhicule électrique. Ils peuvent ainsi se rendre compte qu'il a de bonnes accélérations et qu'il existe assez d'endroits pour le recharger. A contrario, la plupart des gens qui n'ont jamais conduit de véhicules électriques pensent que c'est une voiture de golf… De façon globale, la France commence à être portée vers l'industrie verte mais entre ce qu'on veut et ce qu'on est prêt à sacrifier il y a toujours une différence. Si les gens utilisent Autolib', c'est parce que c'est pas cher et pratique plus que par devoir citoyen.
On parle dans les années à venir de nouvelles batteries pour les véhicules électriques, notamment du métal-air, qui aurait un rendement énergétique 10 fois plus élevé que celui de votre batterie LMP (lithium métal polymère). Croyez-vous en ces nouvelles technologies ? Quand pensez-vous qu'elles verront le jour ?
"Le marché BtoC ? Je ne dis pas qu'on n'y arrivera pas un jour… peut-être à travers un partenariat"
Nous qui avons des usines et des connaissances depuis pratiquement 40 ans dans le stockage d'électricité, on n'a pas entrevu ces capacités-là. De toute façon, entre le moment où vous mettez au point une nouvelle technologie et le moment où vous êtes capable d'industrialiser, il se passe 10 ans. Donc je ne pense pas qu'il y aura de progrès importants pour les batteriesavant de nombreuses années.
SOURCE JDN
DATE : 2015-03-06
China's Maoming Petrochemical, a subsidiary of Sinopec, will shut its 100,000 tonne/year butadiene (BD) line at Maoming in Guangdong on 9 March for maintenance, market sources said on Friday.
The 100,000 tonne/year BD line in Guangdong province will shut for 40 days until second-half April for maintenance, market sources said.
The company will continue to run its smaller 50,000 tonne/year BD line at the same site at full rate during this period, market sources added.
SOURCE Icis News
DATE : 2015-03-06
Schindler et BlueSolutions, société du groupe Bolloré, ont officialisé mercredi 4 mars le lancement de la plus importante flotte de véhicules électrique de la gamme Blueutility.
Le 4 mars marque la mise en circulation des 22 premiers véhicules utilitaires Blueutility 100% électriques à Paris et à Lyon. Le fournisseur leader d’ascenseurs et d’escaliers mécaniques Schindler devient ainsi l’entreprise privée dotée de la plus importante flotte de Blueutility.
Le Blueutility est la version utilitaire de la Bluecar, adapté pour répondre aux besoins des techniciens ascensoristes. La version spécifique destinée à Schindler accepte jusqu’à 230 kg de charge utile. Schindler souhaite ainsi faire évoluer son parc de 600 véhicules parisiens dans le cadre de sa démarche RSE, puisque ces derniers pèsent pour 80 % dans l’empreinte environnementale du groupe. Les deux partenaires n’ont toutefois pas précisé le nombre de véhicules concernés par le contrat.
« Nous transportons avec nos ascenseurs près de 1 milliard de voyageurs par jour au monde, 20 millions en France. C’est le moyen de trasnport le plus utilisé au monde. Cela explique que nous travaillions sur les solutions de mobilité », a soutenu Pierre Vanstoflegatte, Pdg de Schindler France.
Vincent Bolloré : Des batteries plus résistantes et plus sûres que les autres pour asseoir son développement
Vincent Bolloré a quant à lui précisé les avantages de la technologie de batteries produites par son entreprise, dite lithium-ion-polymère. La durée de vie et l’autonomie assurée par les batteries constituent un élément critique pour le développement des véhicules électriques. Le Pdg du groupe français ne dit pas que ses batteries disposent d’une meilleure densité d’énergie massique – la quantité d’énergie stockée rapportée au poids - que les autres batteries lithium-ion plus classiques. Mais il assure que ses batteries disposent d’une meilleure durée de vie et sont bien plus sûres. « Aujourd’hui, les véhicules Autolib’ en sont à leur cinquième année et la cyclabilité (l’aptitude de la batterie à supporter des cycles successifs charge-décharge, NDLR) est la même qu’au début. Les performances de la batterie ne se dégradent pas avec le temps. Comme notre batterie est solide, elle ne brûle qu’à 170°C, au lieu de 70°C pour les autres véhicules dont l’électrolyte est liquide. Nous n’avons ainsi pas besoin d’un système de refroidissement très coûteux en énergie, ce qui nous permet finalement de fournir plus d’énergie au véhicule. »
16 000 bornes de recharge prévues d'ici 2019
Bolloré, leader mondial du stockage d’électricité, est un groupe moteur aujourd’hui en France pour promouvoir la mobilité électrique « pour tous et partout ». Son projet « 16 K », qui prévoit d’installer 16 000 points de charge publics pour véhicules électriques et hybrides en France d’ici 2019, a été reconnu de dimension nationale. Le groupe a déjà installé 6000 bornes en France.
Pierre Vanstoflegatte, PDG de Schindler France, et Vincent Bolloré :
SOURCE Industrie et Technologie