China China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec), Asia’s largest oil refining company, on March 11 raised the price of blown grades of low-pressure polyethylene (HDPE) and high-pressure polyethylene (LDPE) in southern China amid closure of production in the region for repairs and reduction in supply, ICIS reports.

LDPE offers currently amount to CNY7 850-8,000 per tonne, EXW, which is CNY100 higher than previous prices.

The proposal for blowing HDPE is currently CNY7,300 per tonne, EXW, which is CNY150 per tonne higher than the previous level.

Sinopec Maoming Petrochemical, a subsidiary of the company, is expected to close plants for scheduled maintenance in April. So, she plans to close the production of LDPE from April 5 for about 71 days, and the production of HDPE – from April 20 for about 30 days.

According to ScanPlast of Market Report, in December last year, the estimated LDPE consumption in Russia actually remained at the level of November and amounted to about 54.58 thousand tons. The decline in imports was offset by a decrease in export sales. For the whole of 2019, the estimated LDPE consumption in the Russian Federation amounted to 593.66 thousand tons, which is 9% more than the same indicator in 2018. The volume of LDPE exports from individual manufacturers decreased, while imports grew by 25%.

Sinopec corp. is one of the world’s largest integrated energy and chemical companies. Business Sinopec Corp. includes oil and gas exploration, production and transportation of oil and gas, oil refining, petrochemical production, production of mineral fertilizers and other chemical products. In terms of refining capacity, Sinopec Corp. ranks second in the world, in terms of ethylene capacity – fourth.