By John Richardson THIS could be an excellent investment opportunity. Our ICIS Supply and Demand Database base case for Asian and global polypropylene (PP) operating rates sees the steady and steep climb that began in 2014 carrying on until a peak in 2020. In that year, global operating rates will reach 94% and Asian capacity […]
Asian Chemical Connections
The US And China: Saudi Arabia’s Big Picture Oil Strategy
By John Richardson THE above chart should tell you a great deal of what you need to know about Saudi Aramco’s interest in buying the LyondellBasell Industries (LBI) refinery that’s located in the Houston Ship Canal in the US: Between January 2007 and October of this year, the Eagle Ford shale-oil field in Texas will have seen the efficiency […]
Saudi Aramco In A Low Oil Price World
By John Richardson NEWS of plans to list 5% of Saudi Aramco is obviously some four months old. There is thus a danger that in the welter of other later events, the long term significance of this decision ends up being overlooked. That would be a bad mistake in your scenario planning. Funding from the IPO could be […]
Saudi Aramco Share Sale: What This Tells US About Oil Prices
By John Richardson SAUDI Arabia’s widely-reported interest in selling a stake in Saudi Aramco is, as the Financial Times quite rightly pointed out last week, may well be the result of oil prices: Any move to proceed with a sell-off could indicate that Saudi Arabia is preparing for a period of low crude oil prices […]
No Ethylene Margins Peak In 2016
By John Richardson FORECASTS of European capacity closures and project delays and cancellations have led some financial analysts to the conclusion that there will be a peak in ethylene margins from 2016 onwards. This will provide a few years of very strong returns for the global industry before the big wave of US capacity […]
The Saudi Feedstock Debate Intensifies
By John Richardson THE debate about the future competitiveness of Saudi petrochemicals versus the US is heating up. In January, we reported that Jamal Malaikah (see picture), the president of Saudi polypropylene (PP) producer National Petrochemical Industrial Co (NATPET), had warned about an eroding Middle East advantage as a result of US shale gas. And […]
US Oil: Nothing Is Uncertain As Certainty
By John Richardson ALL of yesterday’s excitement about the US overtaking Saudi Arabia and Russia by 2017 to become the world’s biggest oil producer – and exceeding Russia to become the world’s biggest gas producer by 2015 – needs to be taken with a very large pinch of salt. The release of the International Energy […]
Saudi Aramco, Dow, Shell, IEA To Speak At Berlin Conference
Next month’s World Aromatics conference is a must-attend event for anyone involved with the industry. It features an impressive line-up of major players, including Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, as well as Dow, Shell and the International Energy Agency. Jointly organised with ICIS, it takes place on 13 – 14 November: Saudi Aramco […]
Saudi Arabia’s New Export Challenge
Source of picture: Indiaagrifarms By John Richardson Saudi Arabia continues to pursue its vision of adding social value to its hydrocarbon reserves by creating jobs. This involves going further downstream from basic petrochemicals. “The Ministry of Petroleum has said, ‘we want an end to polymer tourism’ – i.e. plastic pellets leaving the Kingdom and […]
Middle East looks overseas for growth
By Malini Hariharan The US shale gas buzz is now drawing Middle East companies with Sabic’s CEO revealing yesterday that the company is considering investing in a US cracker. Sabic would pursue the US cracker on its own or with a partner, reports ICIS news. A shortage of ethane in Saudi Arabia means Sabic has […]
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