Equate declares force majeure on Kuwaiti SM
Equate Petrochemical, which operates The Kuwait Styrene Company (TKSC), has declared a force majeure on its styrene monomer (SM) supplies to its affected customers.
The TKSC 450,000 t/yr unit was forced to halt operations after encountering a tower leak at its ethylbenzene unit on 5 July. The company issued the force majeure on 8 July. The shutdown is expected to last two weeks.
About 20,000t of August-arrival SM into China is expected to be affected by the TKSC shutdown. But shipments to India are unlikely to be affected as supplies have mostly already been loaded on to vessels.
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Nova Chemicals preps for potential Canadian rail strike
Nova Chemicals preps for potential Canadian rail strike
Houston, 18 April (Argus) — Nova Chemicals is taking certain precautions such as making early shipments and forward placement of inventory at US storage locations to mitigate against potential polyethylene (PE) supply disruptions caused by a possible Canadian rail strike that could take place as early as 22 May, the company said in a letter to customers. The Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) railroads are (currently negotiating contracts)[https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2553764] with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, which represents 9,300 employees across both railroads. The earliest a strike could begin is 12:01am ET on 22 May, but any work stoppage at either railroad could cause widespread disruption to rail traffic across Canada. "NOVA Chemicals utilizes CN and CPKC to serve our manufacturing facilities and delivery polyethylene products and co-products to our customers," the company said in a 15 April letter to customers. "A labor strike within the Canadian railroad industry will result in disruptions and delays, impacting the timely delivery of these products." Where practical, the company said it will ship product early prior to any strike, it said in the letter. It will also attempt to place some inventory at US off-site storage locations before the strike takes place, which will allow it to continue to serve US customers during a strike. Additionally, Nova said it is maintaining a direct line of communication with rail officials, and creating contingency plans for raw materials supply. "Despite our best efforts to mitigate these challenges, there may be instances where shipments are delayed or rerouted due to the strike action," the letter says. If a strike takes place, market participants said it would likely last around 3-4 days, but could cause delays to shipments for up to two weeks. However, the overall US/Canada market is well-supplied, so any shipment delays should not create significant tightness in the market, sources said. Union employees at each railroad will vote electronically from 8 April to 1 May on whether to approve a strike. By Michelle Klump Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US spot PGP falls to lowest since November
US spot PGP falls to lowest since November
Houston, 17 April (Argus) — US prompt-month spot polymer-grade propylene (PGP) fell this week to the lowest in nearly five months on weak domestic demand for some smaller volume propylene derivatives, especially acrylonitrile (ACN) and propylene oxide (PO). US PGP traded on Tuesday at 41.5¢/lb, down by 30pc since 5 March and the lowest price since late November. US PGP's pricing in recent years has mostly been driven by supply changes, but market participants believe that some of the price drop since early March stems from weakness in PGP's smaller demand sources like ACN and PO. ACN consumes about 7pc of US propylene, declining from 10pc over the last six years, and PO accounts for around 11pc of US demand for propylene. US demand remains weak for polypropylene (PP), which accounts for about half of domestic PGP demand, but has increased over the last few weeks, with operating rates improving. Rising PGP demand has been offset by falling production of smaller volume derivatives like ACN and PO, largely driven by elevated PGP spot prices in the first quarter that narrowed margins. Cornerstone's 257,000 metric tonne (t)/yr ACN unit in Waggaman, Louisiana, has been down on an extended turnaround, according to market sources. That unit comprises 16pc of the US ACN capacity, according to Argus data. Another producer told Argus that ACN is being produced "to order," as demand has not been steady, saying "these are tough times" for ACN. A PO producer in Texas began a planned turnaround this month that is expected to last until mid-May, reducing demand for US propylene. The turnaround has shut 20pc of US PO capacity, according to Argus data. By Michael Camarda Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
'World first' electric cracking plant starts in Germany
'World first' electric cracking plant starts in Germany
London, 17 April (Argus) — Chemical companies BASF, Sabic and Linde have started two electrically-heated steam cracking furnaces at BASF's Verbund site in Ludwigshafen, Germany, the world's first demonstration of the technology beyond pilot scale. The demonstration plant is fully integrated into the existing crackers at Ludwigshafen and will produce propylene, ethylene and potentially heavier olefins, according to a statement from the companies. It is designed to test the continuous operation of electric furnaces and collect data to support further development. The furnaces each employ a different electrical heating technology. By using renewable electricity instead of conventional fuels, the companies estimate it can reduce CO2 emissions by 90pc. The two furnaces will process roughly 4 t/hour of hydrocarbon feedstock and consume 6MWh of energy. The companies first announced their collaboration in 2021 , with BASF and Sabic contributing their expertise in operating steam crackers and Linde providing its intellectual property and expertise in steam cracking furnace technologies. By George Barsted Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australian petchem firm Qenos enters administration
Australian petchem firm Qenos enters administration
Singapore, 17 April (Argus) — Australian olefins and polyethylene (PE) producer Qenos has entered into voluntary administration following a cash liquidity crunch. Australian advisory firm McGrathNicol has been appointed as voluntary administrators, with its first meeting with creditors, including employees, expected to be held on 30 April. A follow-up meeting will be held for the administrators to present the results of their investigation into the Qenos Group and offer recommendations. Qenos was formerly a joint venture between China's state-controlled ChemChina and US private equity group Blackstone. Qenos' new owner LAOP BidCo will provide funding to the voluntary administrators, employee wages and other necessary costs to shut the Botany plant in New South Wales. Qenos was "unable to confirm whether there will be sufficient assets available to meet employees' pre-appointment claims", in a circular released to employees. Qenos operates a 250,000 t/yr ethane cracker, a 90,000 t/yr low-density PE plant and a 130,000 t/yr linear low-density PE/high-density PE (HDPE) swing plant at Botany. Qenos stopped its ethylene and PE production at Botany in February 2023 after damage to a cooling water tower at its olefins complex. Qenos earlier planned to restart its Botany ethylene and PE plants in phases from late January this year but this failed to materialise. It separately in 2021 closed and mothballed one of its two ethylene units and one of its two 100,000 t/yr HDPE units in Altona, Victoria. This came after the closure of ExxonMobil's 90,000 b/d Altona refinery in August 2021 that supplied feedstock to Qenos' Altona cracker. No decision has been made on Qenos' ethylene and PE plant in Altona. Qenos' distribution arm eXsource will continue to operate normally. It supplies a range of polymers manufactured by Qenos, Bluestar, LyondellBasell and others within the domestic Australian market. By Yee Ying Ang Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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