AMERICAS
Nova Chemicals evaluating new PE plant
Canada-headquartered Nova Chemicals is considering building a new PE plant and might have a final decision within 12-18 months. If this PE project realizes, the PE plant would benefit from its expansion project of cracker in Corunna, Canada which is due on stream in 2017. In the meantime, NOVA’s new LLDPE plant in Joffre, Alberta, Canada, with a production capacity of 454 KTA currently in construction is expected to start up in the second half of 2016.
Comments: NOVA Chemicals headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of International Petroleum Investment. This expansion would add to NOVA Chemicals’ already established polyethylene manufacturing capacity at the Moore and St. Claire River sites (both are located in eastern Canada).NOVA Chemicals Corunna site located in Ontario produces ethylene and co-products from natural gas liquid (NGL) feedstock. NOVA Chemicals has its own proprietary SCLAIRTECH gas-phase technology to produce Polyethylene. Since NOVA Chemical plans to expand its Corunna cracker facility, this will provide the feedstock for the new Polyethylene plant when it comes onstream. The Sarnia site for the new PE plant would be an ideal location for NOVA Chemicals because of the feedstock advantage. Other possible locations for new PE units include Alberta or the US Gulf Coast. NOVA Chemicals will be well placed if they decide to go through with the new Polyethylene plant due to the already pre-existing feedstock supply and manufacturing technology know-how.
Asahi Kasei to increase presence in Mexico
Asahi Kasei is planning to open a wholly-owned subsidiary for plastic compounding in Mexico in September 2015 through its subsidiary Asahi Kasei Plastics North America (APNA). The new subsidiary is tentatively named Asahi Kasei Plastics Mexico and will offer technical and sales support for Mexico customers. Also, APNA’s new 30 KTA compounding facility in Athens, Alabama is due on stream in early 2016.
Comments: Asahi Kasei Chemical, established its operation of plastic compounding business as Asahi Kasei Plastics North America in 1993 to serve customers in the automotive industry. As Mexico has become a major automotive cluster in North America, the Mexico subsidiary will enable Asahi Kasei to strengthen its presence in Mexico, and also to cater to the continued growing demand for plastic compounds driven by the automotive industry.
APS Elastomers introduces a new TPV grade for network flat cable
APS Elastomers has launched a new extrusion grade of thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV) for flat cable under Viprene®product family. This grade delivers a good balance of thermal insulation and cable quality along with excellent abrasion resistance, chemical bends resistance, and fold stress.
Comments: APS Elastomers was formed in 2014 with the merger of Alliance Polymers and APS Compounding. Alliance Polymers was previously a distributor of thermoplastic elastomers and eventually began producing their private label products in cooperation with APS Compounding. In 2014, APS Elastomers entered into a service agreement with ALLOD Werkstoff to provide technical support in North America for thermoplastic elastomer customers. The latest product introduction from APS Elastomers is an elastomer for flat cables which eliminates the need for using adhesives that can impact performance and are ideal for applications where constant flexing is necessary.
EUROPE
Sibur develops new PP grades
Sibur has launched new grades of polypropylene, including PP H263 FF, PP H350 FF, and PP H081 CF. Both thePP H263 FF, and PP H350 FF grades are designed for nonwoven geotextile. While the former is designed for the production of personal hygiene products, the latter offers improved melt flow rates to contribute to better softness and tactile quality of textiles. The PP H081 CFgrade is currently being tested by end-users, in metallized cast polypropylene film (CPP) applications.
Comments: Russia has recently invested in olefins and derivatives production for both domestic and export petrochemical markets to leverage the abundant supply of oil and associated gas. The Russian polypropylene industry has undergone rapid changes, with SIBUR having brought on over 600 KTA of polypropylene capacity using Innovene PP technology in the past three years. The steady internal supply of high-quality resin has already had a significant positive impact on the margins of Russian converters, who can produce value-added specialty grades that can compete in premium applications on the global market. These two new nonwoven fiber grades, H283 FF and H350 FF, and the new cast polypropylene film grade, H081 CF, are designed to provide a domestic premium solution for the relatively fast-growing polypropylene markets in Eastern Europe.
Recent series of force majeure declarations PP, PE, and related products by European resins makers
Since mid-March, several European resin manufacturers have declared force majeure on their production of PE, PP, and resin feedstocks following. 1) Borealis’PE and PP plant in Schwechat, Austria; 2) LyondellBasell’sHDPE plant in Munchsmunster, France, and PP units in Tarragona, Spain, and Ferrara, Italy; 3) Sabic’s HDPE/LLDPE swing facility in Gelsenkirchen, Germany; 4) Versalis’EVA/LDPE plant in Dunkirk, France; 5) Total’s HDPE facility in Gonfreville, France; 6) Lukoil for ethylene and propylene feedstock at its in Budyonnovsk, Russia. These force majeure declarations have resulted in a price increase of resins. Brussels-based European Plastic Converters Association has warned that force majeures could push converters to relocate their production into Asia where supplies of resins are more reliable.
Comments: The polymer situation in Europe is currently tight due to several large producers all being under force majeure at the same time. One of the common reasons for declaring force majeure is the lack of monomer supply. European producers are finding it hard to fulfill existing contracts which has also led to rising PE and PP prices in the region. Several prominent plastics converters in Europe particularly in Germany have expressed their concern over the force majeure situation as it coincides with when they were predicting an upswing in their business. They have had to rethink their strategy based on the fact that their suppliers could not keep up their contractual obligations.
MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA
Iran eyes 2016 to boost petrochemical production
The National Petrochemical Company has twelve petrochemical complexes throughout Iran currently in construction in various stages, all of which are expected to come on stream by March 2016. These twelve complexes will produce a wide range of products, including fertilizers, synthetic rubbers, polyolefins, mono ethylene glycol, ethane, propane, and other petrochemicals, to increase Iran’s petrochemical output by approximately 50% to 66,000 KTA.
Comments: The National Petrochemical Company (NPC) is owned by the Islamic Republic of Iran government. NPC is a major producer and exporter of petrochemicals in the Middle East region. The majority of the petroleum products from Iran are exported to China. China has recently announced to invest of 20 Billion Euros in Iran’s petroleum industry, which will boost Iran’s finances, which have been under international sanctions. Twelve petrochemical projects are expected to be completed in 2016. This will increase Iran’s capability to export more products into South East Asia. Before the sanctions, India, Japan, and South Korea were also major importers from Iran, but due to international sanctions, these countries have been forced to reduce the number of imports from Iran.
SOCAR signs off on construction contract of PP plant
Maire Tecnimont S.phas has been awarded a USD 370 million contract for engineering, procurement, and construction(EPC)of a PP plant in Ba ku, Azerbaijan from Azerbaijan-based SOCAR Polymer LLC. The facility will produce 180 KTA of polypropylene using LyondellBasell Sphericalpol technology and is expected to be commissioned in 2016.
Comments: Azerbaijan currently fulfills all of its polypropylene demand through imports, despite having massive oil and natural gas resources. The country opened up to foreign investors to develop the upstream sector in the mid-1990s and has strengthened midstream operations in the past several years with new pipelines and supporting infrastructure. A polypropylene plant is a critical part of the country’s new initiative to develop the downstream petrochemical industry. This plant’s Sumgait Chemical IndustriPark location offers several advantages such as proximity to raw materials, freeway, railroad, and seaport access, as well as connection to electricity and gas grids. Maire Tecnimont will reassemble the former Basell plant that has been transported from Quebec, giving SOCAR access to Spheripol process technology. SOCAR will be able to superhigh-quality polypropylene with cost-advantaged economics in the domestic market as well as target export markets in Europe and Asia once the plant is operational.
ASIA PACIFIC
JPP introduces a new specialty PP resin
Japan Polypropylene Corporation (JPP), a joint venture between Japan Polychem Corporation and JNC Corporation, has launched its new high melt-strength polypropylene(HMS-PP), WAYMAXTM. This new grade offers outstanding HMS properties, aiming at applications where high melt strength is desired or required, such as foaming, large-part thermoforming, and film. For film applications, WAYMAXTM can be utilized as a modifier to reduce the formation of “Fish-Eye” on the surface. The material is produced using JPP’s proprietary metallocene catalyst to introduce long-chain branching onto the polymer chain.
Comments: The HMS-PP market is a specialty market with many major PP producers having development programs underway.JPP has been involved in the HMS-PP market for decades with several HMS-PP grades available. Unlike most existing HMS-PP products, which are manufactured through post-reactor modification, WAYMAXTM is produced through in-reactor polymerization. The launch of WAYMAX will help JPP reposition itself in the market and cater to the growing demand for HMS-PP driven by foaming and thermoforming.
Shandong Haoda’s new EVA facility in China to start in August
China-based Shandong Haoda Chemicals, a subsidiary of Levima Group Co., plans to begin the operation of its new ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) facility at Tengzhou, Shandong, China by the end of August 2015. The EVA facility will produce 100 KTA of EVA with up to 35% vinyl acetate content and a maximum melt index of 400. These grades of EVA with high VA content have various applications such as agricultural films, coatings, hotmelt adhesives, cable coatings, and interlayer films for photovoltaic panels. Levima Group is a member that specializes in the chemical industry of Legend Holdings, which also holds Chinese computer manufacturer Levono Group.
Comments: Currently, there are four major EVA producers in China –Beijing Organic, Beijing Yanshan Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Beijing Huamei Polymer Company, and BASF-YPC. Most of the current domestic EVA production in China is low VA content EVAs and primarily targets low-end markets, such as foam and cable materials. However, EVA with high VA content still heavily relies on imports. The establishment of Shandong Haoda’s EVA plant is to cater to the need for domestic production of high VA-content EVA. Moreover, the Formosa Ningbo EVA plant and Jiangsu Sailboat EVA/LDPE plant both are scheduled for start-up in 2016 to further increase China’s self-sufficiency rate on high VA content EVA.
MRPLlaunches new PP plant
Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL)has begun operation at its new polypropylene plant with a capacity of 440KTA in India. The PP unit is estimated to cost USD 290 million and is part of the company’s third phase of the expansion plan to improve the refinery’s margin.
Comments: Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) is a joint venture between India’s Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and IRIL & Associates (AV Birla Group). India is the fastest-growing region for polypropylene in Asia. Demand for polypropylene in India is forecast to surpass the demand growth rate in China during the next ten years. MRPL’s polypropylene plant is in line with the country’s plan to become self-sufficient and meet the growing demand for thermoplastic in the region. The 440 KTA plant is the first polyolefin manufacturing plant in the southern part of India and will use Novelen®Technology.
Zeon to restructure synthetic rubber production
Zeon Corporation, a Japan-based producer of synthetic rubber and specialty materials, plans to set up its second facility of solution-polymerized styrene-butadiene rubber (S-SBR) in Singapore. The plant is expected to come on stream in 2016 and will double Zeon’s capacity of S-SBR in Singapore to 70KTA. Meanwhile, Zeon plans to close its 10 KTA synthetic rubber facility in the UK that primarily produces nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), Acrylonitrile Butadiene Copolymer Latex (NBR-Lx), and hydrogenated nitrile butadiene rubber (HNBR).
Comments: Zeon Chemicals Singapore is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Zeon Corporation. The company started commercial production of S-SBR for tires in Singapore in 2014 with a capacity of 40 KTA. The second plant planned for a 2016 start-up will increase the current capacity byapproximately50%. The company is focused on increasing investments in Singapore due to the certainty of raw materials supply and rapid demand growth in the region. Zeon was recently forced to shut its operations in Sully, Wales, UK due to uncertainty over the long-term availability of raw materials.
Lanxess begins production at the new EPDM plant in China
Lanxess has launched a 160 KTA EPDM plant in Changzhou, China, with the capability of manufacturing 10 premium EPDM grades that fit customers’ needs in China. The facility has been working closely with local customers for the sampling and approval process.
Comments: Germany-based Lanxess, a leading synthetic rubber producer, has been restructuring its global rubber production. The start-up of an EPDM plant in China along with an EPDM unit shut-down in Germany is part of its realignment program to relocate production capacity to demand-growing regions. The new unit in China will help Lanxess capitalize on the growing demand for EPDM driven by major players, such as Sinopec and Mitsui Chemical.
Versalis Lotte Elastomer to set up a new SBS/SIS facility
Versalis, an Italy-based elastomer producer, and LOTTE Chemical will extend their cooperation to build a 50 KTA elastomer plant in Yeosu, South Korea through their 50:50 joint venture LOTTE Versalis Elastomers. The scheduled start-up is in early 2018. The facility will produce styrene-isoprene-styrene (SIS) and styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS), aimed at specialty hot-melt adhesives, technical and sports articles, and plastics modifiers. Under the cooperation agreement, Vesalis will contribute its proprietary technology of SIS/SBS, technical knowledge, and know-how, while LOTTE Chemical provides access to raw materials for SBS/SIS production.
Comments: In recent years, Italy-headquartered Versalis, a leading producer of elastomers, has actively expanded its business in Asia by establishing sales subsidiaries in China and forming joint ventures for local production with Asian petrochemical players, such as Malaysian state-owned Petronas and Korean chemical giant Lotte Chemical. Versalis Lotte Elastomer was established in 2013 to build a 250 KTA facility of EDPM and SBR. The set-up of a new SBS/SIS facility is in line with Versalis’ strategy to maintain the leading position in the marketplace to capitalize on the escalating demand for SBS/SIS in Asia, especially from China.