Analytics & News

Zambia: Treat Maize Floor Price as Minimum

21 May 2009

THE Zambia Cooperative Federation (ZCF) has advised farmers to treat the Government's floor price for maize as the minimum price for a 50 kilogramme bag on the local market. ZCF president, Elijah Musanje said in an interview in Ndola yesterday tha...

Japan Apr Aluminium Stocks Fall 12.7 pct on Exports

19 May 2009

Japan's aluminium stocks fell in April on the month for the second time in a row, losing 21 percent from February's 10-year high, as fabricators neared the end of a run-down in stocks and exports rose. Aluminium stocks held at three major Japanese...

China Domestic Imported Scrap and Pig Iron offer Continu...

19 May 2009

At the beginning of May, the international scrap and pig iron markets continued to keep the increasing trend of April and increased by a wide margin. Scrap and pig iron markets this week appeared $5-15 per ton up. Scrap Markets: Tokyo port uplink...

PVTex Signs Engineering Contract to Build Dinh Vu Polyes...

18 May 2009

The PetroVietnam Petrochemical Fibre Joint Stock Company (PVTex) and a consortium signed an engineering, procurement and construction contract in Ha Noi yesterday to build one of the country’s biggest polyester plants worth US$324 million in the Dinh...

CDG Environmental Acquires Assets for Chlorine Dioxide P...

15 May 2009

KRWW, LLC has purchased the assets of CDG Research Corp. and CDG Technology Inc. and has changed its name to CDG Environmental, LLC. The new company initiated business activities on Apr. 9, 2009. CDG Environmental supplies chlorine dioxide chemist...

New Plant Produces Renewable Synthetic Diesel from Urban...

15 May 2009

Rialto, Calif. will be home to a new plant which will create ultra clean synthetic fuels from renewable waste. The plant, owned by Rentech Inc., will provide longer lasting electricity for homes in the general area of Rialto. The renewable energy...

BorsodChem Shuts MDI Plants and Looks to Sell Vinyl Oper...

14 May 2009

Hungarian vinyl and chemicals group BorsodChem has been forced to shut down one of its two methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) plants in Kazincbarcika in response to plunging demand. The company, whose MDI sales have been badly affected by the g...

BASF Introduces Styrene-acrylic High Gloss Emulsion for...

13 May 2009

BASF, the market leader in resins and emulsions for the water-based ink and overprint varnish markets, is introducing Joncryl® 1610, a styrene-acrylic, non-film forming emulsion that exhibits high gloss and excellent clarity in overprint varnishes an...

China Latest Polyether Polyols Capacity in 2009

12 May 2009

In 2009, several new polyether polyols facilities will go on stream in China. The new capacities include: 60 ktpa polyether polols of Shanghai Fujia Fine Chemicals; 50 ktpa capacity of Sinochem Taicang Chemical Industry; 50 ktpa capacity of Nanjjing...

Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corporation’s Vietnam PA6 Plan...

11 May 2009

The new polyamide 6 plant in Vietnam planned by Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corporation (Taiwan) is set to come on stream by 2010. In June 2008, Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corporation (FCFC) and Uhde Inventa-Fischer (Germany) signed a contract for a 47,...

Asian Benzene, Styrene Monomer Prices Rise for Third Day

07 May 2009

Asian prices for benzene and styrene monomer were rising for the third day in a row Wednesday, chalking up double-digit gains as petrochemical prices firmed overnight, shrugging off a dip in Western crude futures. NYMEX June crude futures settled...

Mitsubishi Plastics Buys Quadrant in 50/50 Deal

06 May 2009

Semi-finished engineering plastics supplier Quadrant is being acquired by a 50/50 partnership formed of Japan’s Mitsubishi Plastics and a group of the company’s founders and directors. The $148m deal, priced at $76 a share, is being carried out throu...

BASF Ups Polytetrahydrofuran Prices on Unsatisfactory Ma...

04 May 2009

BASF has increased prices for PolyTHF ® (Polytetrahydrofuran) worldwide effective April 30, 2009 or as the contracts allow due to unsatisfactory margins. The prices will go up by EUR 75/mt in Europe, US$0.06/lbs in North America and US$200/mt in Asia...

Texas Petrochemicals to Trim C4, Butadiene Production on...

04 May 2009

Texas Petrochemicals, Inc. (USA), announced to cut its overall C4 processing and butadiene production capacity, including headcount, through the idling of certain assets at both its Houston and Port Neches, Texas facilities. The measures are part of...

Perstorp Increases Prices for TDI

30 Apr 2009

Perstorp (Sweden), leading specialty chemicals producer, have announced to increases prices for toluene diisocyanate (TDI) product range effective May 1st, 2009 or as existing contracts permit. Prices will be raised EUR 100/mt in Europe and USD 200/m...

GLS Thermoplastic Elastomers Patents Universal Polyamide...

29 Apr 2009

GLS Thermoplastic Elastomers, a PolyOne business and global leader in high-performance, custom-formulated thermoplastics elastomers (TPEs), announced the issue of a patent for the universal overmolding TPE platform for polyamide (PA). Based on VERSAF...

INEOS Phenol to Shelve Cumene Production at 550,000 Ton...

17 Apr 2009

Marred by plummeting demand in the Phenol and Acetone market, INEOS Phenol has provisionally shelve cumene production at its 550,000 ton Port Arthur plant in Texas (USA) from 15th April 2009. INEOS is currently consulting with its employees and their...

Tianjin Ethylene Plant to Commence Full Operations in No...

16 Apr 2009

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. and Saudi Basic Industries Corp. are currently testing equipment at an ethylene plant in Tianjin and will start "full operations" in November. A 50-50 joint venture between SABIC and Sinopec, the plant has been planne...

PetroquimicaSuape Adopts Most Modern Technology for PTA...

14 Apr 2009

The Petrochemical Company of Pernambuco (PetroquimicaSuape) has concluded, in the 27th of February, the negotiations to purchase the use of technology and equipment of the polymers and polyester filament production unit, with TMT (through the Japanes...

ExxonMobil Chemical Expanding in Asia

10 Apr 2009

ExxonMobil Chemical Company is planning major capacity additions in Singapore and in Fujian Province, China. ExxonMobil is working with Sinopec and Saudi Aramco in Fujian Province on what will be a fully integrated petroleum refining, petrochemica...

Performance Demands Grow for Agricultural Film

19 Mar 2009

Plastics in agriculture are contributing to feeding the world. These films extend the growing season and raise yield, which is critical as the population grows but the area being farmed is static. Demand for plastics for agricultural uses in the film...

Asia Pacific's E&P, R&M and Petrochemical Sectors to Sev...

18 Mar 2009

Asia Pacific's exploration and production (E&P), refining and marketing (R&M) and petrochemical sectors are to be severely affected over the next 12-18 months as per Moody's Investors Service. The abrupt fall in energy prices has hit margins and...

LyondellBasell Committed to Integrated Petrochemical Com...

10 Mar 2009

LyondellBasell Industries, in partnership with SAT &Co. and KMGEP of Kazakhstan Petrochemical Industries Ltd. (KPI), reaffirmed its ongoing participation in the development and construction, of an integrated petrochemical complex and a Gas Separation...

Ethylene Focus

09 Mar 2009

The Middle East is fast becoming the epicentre of global ethylene production. Middle Eastern ethylene producers in 2008 have witnessed an unprecedented period, where the prices have reached the highest and the lowest level within the same year, gi...

China's LPG Consumption Falls for the First Time in 18 Y...

06 Mar 2009

China's consumption of LPG fell 8.5% in 2008, the first decline since 1990, a Sinopec senior official said Thursday. The country consumed 21.5 million mt of LPG in 2008, down 2 million mt or 8.5% from 23.5 million mt in 2007, data provided by the...

World's Largest Propylene Oxide Plant Finishes Start-up...

06 Mar 2009

Petrochemicals majors Dow and BASF's joint venture propylene oxide production plant in Antwerp, Belgium, has completed its start-up phase, the companies announced in a press release on Thursday. With a production capacity of 300,000 mt/year, the n...

Dow Chemical in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia's E.A....

02 Mar 2009

Dow Chemical in the Middle East, a leading science and technology company, together with E.A. Juffali & Brothers (Juffali), a leading manufacturing, engineering, construction, distribution and service company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), are...

LPG Buyers in NWE Shun High Prices as Mediterranean Draw...

24 Feb 2009

Propane and butane buyers in Northwest Europe are shunning the market because of expensive prices on the back of cold weather and demand in the Mediterranean drawing product away, trading sources said Monday. "All sellers want to sell now, al...

Arkema, Dyneon ink Long-Term Supply Agreement

24 Feb 2009

Dyneon, a world leader in fluoropolymers, and Arkema, a world leader in fluorochemicals, have inked a long-term contract to supply HCFC22 (HydroChloroFluoroCarbon) to Dyneon in Burgkirchen (Germany). Arkema will produce HCFC22 at its Pierre-Bé...

Rompetrol Petrochemicals resume operations at HDPE, LDPE...

23 Feb 2009

Rompetrol Petrochemicals, the petrochemical division of The Rompetrol Group (Romania), has announced that it will resume operations of its High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) installations, both of which have combined...