In the lead up to this groundbreaking industry summit, that will be bringing together global, high-powered stakeholders to Houston, we interviewed Hardi Schuck, Supply Chain Director at Braskem, to deliver insightes into Braskem's future NGL strategies.

1. COMPARING THE COMPETITIVENESS OF NGL FEEDTOCKS AND DERIVATIVES
www.ngl-supply-demand-dynamics.com
23 - 24 February 2016 | Houston, TX
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CONFERENCE INTERVIEW:
Why are NGL feedstock and the global export
opportunities so important in the industry right
now?
In the past, NGLs were basically produced
to supply the domestic market in the USA.
Export capacity was limited and US prices
were higher than other alternatives in the
international market.
Since the development of shale gas,
NGL production has increased and new
opportunities came to the market. There
is more product availability and US prices
became more competitive.
In this new market reality, players
are searching to find the best market
opportunities and in some cases the
international market shows better alternatives
for producers.
What are the main plant projects that you
are currently working on at this time in Latin
America? Can you give a brief description?
Braskem has a joint venture with Idesa in
Mexico; an ethane cracker and polyethylene
units. The startup is going to happen in the
first quarter of this year. The Braskem Idesa
project is a 1 million ton ethylene capacity
cracker based on ethane produced in Mexico.
What are the main considerations on selecting a
country to export goods to?
The main considerations to select a
destination are competitive commercial
conditions and logistic infrastructure.
USA already exports propane, butane and
natural gasoline to Brazil. There is the possibility
to increase exports of C5+ (natural gasoline and
condensate) as Brazil will continue to be short in
naphtha
Which region are you mostly looking to import
the majority of your naphtha and propane
from?
Main naphtha supply to the Brazilian market
comes from the Mediterranean. USA is
becoming more important as a supplier due to
shale gas developments.
Almost all of the major petrochemical and
productions companies are involved in large-
scale global export of feedstock, but what
would you say to smaller companies that are
considering export opportunities?
There are opportunities to all the players
in the market. For the smaller producers
logistics are even more important. These
producers need to find a way to consolidate
parcels in order to optimize the logistics.
Some end users have projects to consolidate
parcels in the USA in order to have the right
size to export.
To export C5+, producers with parcels smaller
than 300 kbbl have a big challenge to be
competitive.
What are the key logistical challenges when
exporting feedstock to Brazil or Mexico?
Brazil is short in all NGL’s: ethane, propane,
butane, natural gasoline and heavy
condensates; there are different restrictions
for each product. For ethane, the main
challenge is to move cryogenic material
and the infrastructure associated. For LPG,
logistics are more developed. To move the
material heavier than C5 (natural gasoline
and condensate) the challenges are arbitrage
opportunities and competitive freight rates.
What are you most looking forward to at
the Global NGL feedstock and derivatives
conference?
Networking with players from the NGL sector
and understanding USA export availabilities
and constrains.
What are the implications of seasonal demand
variables on the capacity of Naphtha?
Seasonal demand of naphtha for gasoline
can change the relative feedstock
competitiveness. This is the reason why
crackers with flexibility to choose the raw
material have a competitive differential.
Is there an opportunity to export either
Naphtha, Ethane, Propane or Butane to Brazil
and if so why?
As Brazil is short in all NGL’s, there are different
logistic restrictions for each product.Nowadays,
Hardi Schuck
Supply Chain Director
Braskem