Swedish TOFA exports to US at record in 1H

Spanish Market: Chemicals
18/09/24

Sweden's tall oil fatty acids (TOFA) exports to the US rose to an all-time high in the first half of 2024 owing to tighter US domestic supplies.

Swedish TOFA supply to the US totalled 9,960t from January to June this year, Global Trade Tracker (GTT) data show, the highest since the start of the dataset in 2015.

Sweden, a key European TOFA supplier, sent 3,196t to the US in January, 3,364t in April and 3,080t in June, and some marginal amounts in February, March and May, according to the GTT data.

US crude tall oil (CTO) feedstock refining capacity declined this year, limiting TOFA output.

US specialty chemicals producer Ingevity shut down a CTO fractionation facility in DeRidder, Louisiana, earlier this year and converted its Crossett, Arkansas, site to run 100pc on non-tall oil feedstocks in 2023. These reduced US CTO refining capacity by around 30pc and shortened local TOFA supply, market sources said.

Reduced US TOFA supply has encouraged local buyers to seek alternatives, including importing from countries like Finland. A Finnish supplier has sent some to the US and is considering sending more in the coming months.

TOFA is a fraction obtained by the distilling of CTO and can be used into alkyd resins, coatings, dimer acids, fuel additives, lubricants, oilfield chemicals, and biofuels, among other applications.

By Leonardo Siqueira

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08/11/24

Talks to restart as port of Vancouver lockout drags

Calgary, 8 November (Argus) — A labour disruption at the port of Vancouver is now into its fifth day, but the employers association and the locked-out union are to meet this weekend to try to strike a deal and get commodities moving again. Workers belonging to the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 514 on Canada's west coast have been locked out by the BC Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) since 4 November. This came hours after the union implemented an overtime ban for its 730 ship and dock foreman members. The two sides will meet on 9 November evening with the assistance of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) in an effort to end a 19-month long dispute as they negotiate a new collective agreement to replace the one that expired in March 2023. The FMCS was already recruited for meetings in October, but that did not culminate in a deal. Natural resource-rich Canada is dependent on smooth operations at the port of Vancouver to reach international markets. The port is a major conduit for many dry and liquid bulk cargoes, including lumber, wood pellets and pulp, grains and agriculture products, caustic soda and sodium chlorate, sugar, coal, potash, sulphur, copper concentrates, zinc and lead concentrate, diesel and renewable diesel liquids and petroleum products. These account for about two-thirds of the movements through the port. Grain operations and the Westshore coal terminal are unaffected while most petroleum products also continue to move, the Port of Vancouver said on 7 November. As the parties head back to the bargaining table, the ILWU Local 514 meanwhile filed a complaint against the BCMEA on 7 November, alleging bargaining in bad faith, making threats, intimidation and coercion. "The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically-elected leadership and bargaining committee, said ILWU Local 514 president Frank Morena on 7 November. "They know their bully tactics won't work with our members but their true goal is to bully the federal government into intervention." But that is just "another meritless claim," according to the BCMEA, who wants to restore supply chain operations as quickly as possible. The union said BC ports would still be operating if the BCMEA did not overreact with a lockout. "They are responsible for goods not being shipped to and from BC ports — not the union," Morena says. The ILWU Local 514 was found to have bargained in bad faith itself already, according to a decision by the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) in October. Billions of dollars of trade are at risk with many goods and commodities at a standstill at Vancouver, which is Canada's busiest port. A 13-day strike by ILWU longshore workers in July 2023 disrupted C$10bn ($7.3bn) worth of goods and commodities, especially those reliant on container ships, before an agreement was met. By Brett Holmes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Biodiesel to drive 2025 palm oil prices: IPOC

08/11/24

Biodiesel to drive 2025 palm oil prices: IPOC

Singapore, 8 November (Argus) — Palm oil prices are likely to be supported by tight supplies in 2025, as Indonesia is slated to begin a 40pc biodiesel blending mandate (B40) and crude palm oil (CPO) production growth is slowing, market experts said at the 20th Indonesian Palm Oil Conference and 2025 Price Outlook ( IPOC 2024 ) in Nusa Dua, Bali. Higher blending mandates and tighter supplies may keep CPO futures above 5,000 ringgit/t ($1,130/t) during the first half of 2025, as could firmer lunar new year and Ramzan demand between January-March, Godrej International director Dorab Mistry said. Indonesia plans to implement B40 in 2025, according to its minister of bioenergy Edi Wibowo, before moving to B50 before 2030. If Indonesia enforces B40 as planned, palm oil prices may rally an additional 10-15pc over current prices in the first quarter of 2024, Oil World analyst Thomas Mielke said. But industry experts were sceptical that Indonesia's B40 will materialise, citing current tight supply of CPO and a relatively wide palm oil-gas oil (POGO) spread, which would exert more pressure on government subsidies. Indonesia subsidises biodiesel producers for the difference between gasoil and biodiesel production cost, using funds accrued from export levies on palm oil products. With crude oil prices possibly constrained, higher subsidies will be required to fill the gap, according to consultancy Transgraph's Nagaraj Meda. Subsidies of $5.6bn, $4.76bn, and $3.53bn will be required should Ice Brent crude prices hit $68.50/bl, $75/bl, and $85/bl respectively under B40, Meda said. Under the current B35 programme, biodiesel subsidies have cost the Indonesian government $2.56bn so far in 2024. The export levy structure — which was adjusted in October — is insufficient to fund a B40 programme. "The export levy and tax structure will need revision urgently", Mistry said. Soy soars Palm oil output will grow moderately in 2024-25, while production of rival soybean oil will be higher, the conference heard. Mielke expects palm oil production to increase by 2.3mn t, and soybean oil production to rise by 3.3-3.5mn t. Sunflower and rapeseed oil production will fall by 3.8mn t in 2024-25, he forecasts. Glenauk Economics director Julian McGill said high palm oil prices will drive US biofuels demand towards soybean oil, driving some correction in palm oil prices. Elevated CPO prices are making palm oil mill effluent (Pome) and used cooking oil (UCO) uncompetitive in the EU and US as biofuels feedstocks, reducing demand, he said. Palm oil prices are now well above those for waste oils, which tends to tighten supplies of UCO in southeast Asia as there is less incentive for restaurants and factories to sell their oil. Assuming gasoil prices do not increase, McGill said fundamentals are not enough to support current palm oil prices. He sees the fob Indonesia price returning to $1,000/t before the end of 2024, but said CPO futures on the Bursa Malaysia exchange will remain between $950-1,050/t due to lower stocks following firm exports during 2024. Coconut falls In the lauric oil markets, Mistry is projecting an increase in prices during the 2024-25 period as he expects coconut oil (CNO) production to decrease. He forecasts CNO prices to continue on an upward trend until the second half of 2025, ranging between $1,800–2000/t cif Rotterdam until June. Crude palm kernel oil prices are expected to follow CNO during the same period, Mistry said. By Deborah Sun and Carolina Palma Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

PKO insufficient for EU market under EUDR

08/11/24

PKO insufficient for EU market under EUDR

London, 8 November (Argus) — The European oleochemical market will have insufficient palm kernel oil (PKO) supply under the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), delegates heard today at the 20th Indonesian Palm Oil Conference and 2025 Price Outlook (IPOC 2024) in Nusa Dua, Bali. The cost of compliance with the EUDR will tighten PKO supply for EU markets as fewer palm oil producers are expected to comply with the regulation, further increasing prices into the EU bloc, according to Glenauk Economics managing director Julian McGill. Additionally, an excessive investment in fatty alcohols production in Indonesia will limit the country's exports, further tightening global supply, according to McGill. Indonesia currently consumes 70pc of its PKO production, McGill said. The EUDR requires mandatory due diligence from operators and trading firms selling and importing palm oil and its derivatives into the EU bloc, including PKO. Firms must ensure that products sold in the EU have not contributed to deforestation or forest degradation. Although the regulation is originally expected to take effect from 1 January 2025, the European Commission recently proposed an extra 12 months "phasing-in time" for implementation, which will be voted on by the EU parliament, probably on 14 November. But "the problem with the EUDR will not be solved by postponing the regulation, as European demand for PKO will remain excessive compared to that for palm oil," Julian McGill said during the conference. To fulfil European demand for PKO, producers will have to generate more EUDR compliant palm oil than actually needed, according to McGill. The average yield of PKO from fresh palm oil fruit bunches is 2-5pc. McGill also highlighted that another important problem to be solved for the EUDR to be correctly implemented is the complexity of traceability requirements for palm and palm kernel oil, because they are liquid goods, unlike wood, coffee and cocoa beans. By Carolina A. Palma Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Port of Vancouver grinds to halt as picket lines form

05/11/24

Port of Vancouver grinds to halt as picket lines form

Calgary, 5 November (Argus) — Commodity movements at the port of Vancouver have halted as a labour dispute could once against risk billions of dollars of trade at Canada's busiest docks. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 514 began strike activity at 11am ET on 4 November, following through on a 72-hour notice it gave to the BC Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) on 1 November. The BCMEA subsequently locked out workers hours later that same day, 4 November, which the union says is an overreaction because the union's job action was only limited to an overtime ban for its 730 ship and dock foreman members. Natural resource-rich Canada is dependent on smooth operations at the British Columbia port of Vancouver to reach international markets. The port is a major conduit for many dry and liquid bulk cargoes, including lumber, wood pellets and pulp, grains and agriculture products, caustic soda and sodium chlorate, sugar, coal, potash, sulphur, copper concentrates, zinc and lead concentrate, diesel and renewable diesel liquids and petroleum products. These account for about two-thirds of the movements through the port. Canadians are also reliant on the port for the import of consumer goods and Asian-manufactured automobiles. The two sides have been at odds for 19 months as they negotiate a new collective agreement to replace the one that expired in March 2023. Intervention by the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), with a hearing in August and September, followed by meetings in October with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), failed to culminate in a deal. The BCMEA's latest offer is "demanding huge concessions," according to the ILWU Local 514 president Frank Morena. The BCMEA refutes that, saying it not only matches what the ILWU Longshore workers received last year, but includes more concessions. The offer remains open until withdrawn, the BCMEA said. A 13-day strike by ILWU longshore workers in July 2023 disrupted C$10bn ($7.3bn) worth of goods and commodities, especially those reliant on container ships, before an agreement was met. Grain and cruise operations are not part of the current lockout. The Westshore coal terminal is also expected to continue operations, the Port of Vancouver said on 4 November. The Trans Mountain-operated Westridge Marine Terminal, responsible for crude oil exports on Canada's west coast, should also not be directly affected because its employees are not unionized. In all, the port has 29 terminals. By Brett Holmes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Dow to review European polyurethane assets

24/10/24

Dow to review European polyurethane assets

London, 24 October (Argus) — US chemicals firm Dow is undertaking a strategic review of its European polyurethanes assets, the company said today. Dow will consider whether there are divestment opportunities. The assets under review are not loss-making and have "good cost positions in the European market", chief executive Jim Fitterling said during the firm's third-quarter results call. The review "really isn't driven primarily by shutdowns", he said. Dow has a 635,000 t/yr chlorohydrin PO production plant in Stade, Germany, as well as related derivatives capacity at the site including 280,000 t/yr of propylene glycol production. The firm has 330,000 t/yr of HPPO capacity in Belgium as part of a join-venture with BASF and 684,000 t/yr of polyether polyols production capacity across three sites in Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain. It also has 380,000 t/yr of installed MDI production capacity across two sites in Germany and Portugal as part of its polyurethanes portfolio. "I don't believe shutting down MDI assets is going to be a value-creating opportunity, but we're going to look at everything," Fitterling said. The firm's chlor-alkali and vinyl (CaV) assets will be included in the review. "Chlorine-PO integration is critical for us," Fitterling said. "They are not [separable], we are not going to do anything without close contact with not only our own chlorine assets but also with our partners in Europe." Dow has two chlorine assets in Europe including 1mn t/yr of diaphragm capacity and 600,000 t/yr of membrane capacity at Stade, as well as 250,000 t/yr of membrane capacity at Schkopau in Germany. Fitterling did not discuss the firm's upstream assets but said the review in Europe "is around polyurethanes". The assets under review account for around 20pc of Dow's sales in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Dow expects to complete the review by mid-2025. The firm pointed to "key competitiveness issues" and "the higher cost position" in Europe. It said it has concerns around the "need for clear and consistent long-term regulatory policies for our industry". In the current environment, demand recovery is "unlikely to be enough" to provide swift growth in Europe, it said. LyondellBasell launched a similar strategic review of some European assets in May, although it has not yet announced any conclusions. Sales down Sales volumes in Dow's Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure segment, which includes its polyurethanes business, fell by 2pc in the third quarter compared with a year earlier. This was driven by lower volumes in the Polyurethanes & Construction Chemicals business, "primarily from a force majeure in MDI following a third-party supplier outage", the company said. Net sales revenue for the Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure segment was $3bn in July-September, down by 2pc from a year earlier. Local prices were flat year on year, the firm said. By Laura Tovey-Fall Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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