Sibur plans hexene unit at Nizhnemkamskneftekhim’s petchemical complex

Russian petrochemicals major, Sibur, is planning to build a facility to produce up to 50,000-tpa of hexene at the Nizhnemkamskneftekhim (NKNK) petrochemical plant’s olefins complex. NKNK located in the Republic of Tatarstan, operates eight core production units producing rubber, plastics, monomers and other petrochemicals, on two adjacent production sites. Sibur, via its subsidiary, JSC TAIF, holds majority stake in NKNK. “Development of the technology and its piloting have been successful, and a decision was made to build the hexene facility using in-house technology at Nizhnemkamskneftekhim,” said Sibur’s head, Mr. Mikhail Karisalov, at a petrochemical forum in Kazan, Tatarstan. “This covers 125-130% of Sibur’s immediate demand, and what we used to buy in the UK and Germany. We expect to start pilot operation of this capacity within 18-20 months, and have it in our portfolio as a product from the end of 2024,” Mr. Karisalov said. Hexene is used to produce polymers. It is not currently produced in the former USSR, including in Russia, Mr. Karisalov said.