Chemical News
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Oil market well balanced, expected to be stable for rest of year: gulf source Mar 12,2013
Saudi Arabia produced 9.15 million b/d in February and supplied 9.16 million b/d to markets as output fell by 100,000 b/d over January, but the OPEC kingpin is likely to raise production in the coming months as demand picks up, a Gulf source said Monday. "I think the market is balanced. It's a little bit on the tight side because of refining mai...>>>
US crude stocks likely rose 2.3 million barrels last week: survey Mar 12,2013
US commercial crude stocks are expected to have increased by 2.3 million barrels for the reporting week ended March 8, analysts polled Monday by Platts said. The American Petroleum Institute will release its weekly report at 4:30 p.m. EDT (2130 GMT) Tuesday, while the US Energy Information Administration will release its weekly data at 10:30 a.m...>>>
China's Feb 2013 ABS imports of 87,283 mt lowest since Feb 1999 Mar 11,2013
China's February 2013 imports of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene came in at 87,283 mt, the lowest since February 1999, partly due to higher prices and the the Lunar New Year holidays, according to official data. The imports slipped 39.4% from 144,126 mt in January and plunged 42.6% from 152,053 mt a year earlier, preliminary data from the Genera...>>>
ANALYSIS: NWE PET price surge held in check by feedstock volatility Mar 11,2013
Uncertainty over feedstock prices is putting a block on upward momentum in the European polyethylene terephthalate market, market sources said. Prices have been marching upwards recently as producers pushed through higher feedstock prices and tried to increase margins, bolstered by a lack of import competition. Producers have been fighting to...>>>
Richards Bay Coal Terminal steps up Feb exports to 5.45 mil mt Mar 11,2013
February coal exports from South Africa's Richards Bay Coal Terminal increased 29% month-on-month to 5.45 million mt, although the volume shipped was 10% lower year-on-year, according to RBCT data released Friday. Monthly exports from the 91 million mt/year terminal had dipped to a 20-month low in January amid low demand and following a higher s...>>>
Analyst Stern suggests Asia change LNG price formation to reflect fundamentals Mar 11,2013
Only a change in the price formation mechanism will reflect the current supply-demand situation for LNG in Asia, not just a bid to reduce the price level, Jonathan Stern, professor at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, said at a seminar in Tokyo earlier this week. "What is really the problem with LNG prices? Is it price level or price form...>>>
US' Cub Energy boosts Ukrainian gas acreage with $25 mil acquisition Mar 11,2013
US independent Cub Energy said Friday is has agreed to acquire a privately held Ukrainian oil and gas explorer, PrivateCo, for $25 million to increase its existing gas acreage in Ukraine. Under an all-share deal, Cub will pick up some 70,000 gross acres of undeveloped land close to its core producing areas in eastern Ukraine, increasing its gros...>>>
North Sea Buzzard share of Forties output hits lowest level of year: BP Mar 11,2013
The UK's Buzzard oil field contributed only 16% of Forties blend output in the week of February 18-24, down from 33% the previous week, BP data showed Friday. This is the lowest contribution of Buzzard to Forties seen so far in 2013, and BP did not provide data for previous years. The fall coincided with a fall in production at Buzzard, leadi...>>>
Debate rages over who is to blame for rising RIN prices Mar 11,2013
Prices for renewable fuel credits cracked the $1 barrier Friday and RBOB prices settled sharply higher as the war of words over who is to blame for skyrocketing credits prices also escalated. The price for the traded Renewable Identification Numbers for corn-based ethanol settled Friday at $1.02 for 2013 RINs after hitting a high mark of $1.10/R...>>>
S Korea's spot solvent-MX for Apr may halve on lower yield from butane mix: source Mar 08,2013
South Korea's spot supply of solvent-grade mixed xylenes for April loading will likely halve from its typical volume because of lower yields from naphtha-fed steam crackers' use of butane in its feedstock mix, an industry source said Thursday. "South Korean producers started to mix butane as alternative feedstock substituting for expensive napht...>>>
ASIA THERMAL COAL: Australian FOB prices crumple under freight pressure, demand vacuum Mar 08,2013
FOB prices for Australian 5,500 kcal/kg and 6,000 kcal/kg net-as-received spot cargoes came under intense pressure Thursday from a firmer freight market, lower Asian physical demand and weaker prices for domestic coal in China, market sources said. The spot price for cargoes of 5,500 kcal/kg NAR thermal coal for delivery to south China in the ne...>>>
Australian LNG Limited secures option over US Magnolia LNG project site Mar 08,2013
Australia's Liquefied Natural Gas Limited has signed an exclusive lease option agreement with the US' Lake Charles Harbour and Terminal District Authority for the site of its proposed Magnolia LNG project in Louisiana, the company said Thursday. The agreement gives LNG Limited exclusive rights to the project site and time to obtain all necessar...>>>
UK GAS: Spot firm as storage facilities top up for next week's cold snap Mar 08,2013
Spot gas prices on the UK's NBP trading hub were moving around the 76.00 pence/therm mark Thursday morning -- around 6 p higher than the end of February -- as cooler than normal temperatures are expected next week and medium-range storage facilities top up stocks in preparation. At 1200 GMT, the within-day gas contract was valued at 76.25 p/th, ...>>>
Valero says 5,320 new rail cars to move crudes to Louisiana, California Mar 08,2013
Large US refiner Valero Energy sees Louisiana and California as among the destinations that will be served by its recent order of 5,320 new rail cars to move discounted inland crudes across the US, the company's chief operating officer said Thursday. Of the new rail cars, 1,600 will be coiled cars to take raw bitumen to its 270,000 b/d St Charle...>>>
Shell worried about Brazil local content, optimistic on rounds Mar 08,2013
Shell is working to meet Brazil's stringent local content requirements, but says there is a worry about industry capacity four or five years down the line, Shell Brazil CEO Andre Araujo said Thursday. Local content rules set percentages for how much equipment and services need to be produced in Brazil -- as much as 70% for an oil platform. ...>>>
USGC-Asia isomer-MX arbitrage unlikely to re-open soon on plunging economics Mar 07,2013
The US Gulf Coast-Asia arbitrage for isomer-grade mixed xylenes on paper does not appear to be re-opening any time soon, as arbitrage economics continued narrowing, plunging to a five-month low Tuesday, Platts data showed. "The US-Asia isomer-MX [arbitrage] doesn't seem to be re-opening in short term, as [the] US market seems to be stable or fir...>>>
NWE benzene at 15-week low on slow demand; margin healthy Mar 07,2013
The Northwest European benzene market tumbled to a 15-week low of $1,335.5/mt Tuesday on a combination of weak downstream demand, upcoming derivatives turnarounds, a closed arbitrage to the US, as well as persistently high inventories, Platts data showed. The last time benzene was assessed lower -- at $1,333.50/mt CIF ARA -- was November 16. ...>>>
LyondellBassell to eliminate imported naphtha as US feedstock: exec Mar 07,2013
Netherlands-based petrochemicals company LyondellBassell expects to eliminate imported naphtha from its US feedstock mix within the next few years, a company executive said Wednesday. Speaking at the IHS CERAWeek conference in Houston, Sergey Vasnetsov, Lyondell's senior vice president of strategic planning and transactions, said that before 200...>>>
Canada's Challenger to conduct due diligence on Indonesian coal project Mar 07,2013
Canada's Challenger Deep Resources has entered into an exclusive agreement that allows it to conduct due diligence at Indonesian company HAAS' Alam Bahteria Barito Raya coal project in central Kalimantan, and if it is satisfied with the due diligence review it will be able to purchase all of HAAS' shares, the company said late Monday. Challenge...>>>
Backlog of Marcellus wells will drive production growth: Barclays analysts Mar 07,2013
Natural gas production growth in the Marcellus Shale could meet last year's levels, even with some moderation of drilling in the region, as a backlog of wells wait to be brought online, analysts with Barclays Research said Wednesday in a new report. While there is a widespread consensus in the gas industry, the backlog of wells is significant --...>>>