kemicalinfo INEOS and Plastic Energy have agreed to collaborate in constructing a new plant to convert waste plastic into raw material to make new plastic. The new facility would be operational by the end of 2023. Plastic Energy’s proprietary Thermal Anaerobic Conversion (TAC) technology turns previously unrecyclable plastic waste into TACOIL. The resulting material is then … Read more
Nova Chemicals is resuming construction activities at its new polyethylene plant and the cracker expansion project in a phased manner. The company said it has slowly increased the number of employees engaged in the construction of the Corunna site starting Thursday, April 16. Late last month Nova Chemicals announced that most of the construction workers … Read more
Saudi Aramco is in early discussions with lenders for a loan of approximately $10 billion to help fund its purchase of a 70% stake in Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), according to a Reuters report. Last year, Aramco agreed to buy SABIC’s majority stake from the Kingdom’s wealth fund for $69.1 billion, signing one of … Read more
PPG expects that the ‘uncertain’ global economy amidst the coronavirus pandemic will impact its 2020 results. Michael McGarry, Chairman and CEO said Thursday “we will not know the full impact of COVID-19 on PPG and our business for some time but will work with urgency to take proactive actions to limit the impact as much … Read more
Borealis last week issued a force majeure declaration for its Stenungsund steam cracker in Sweden. A spokesperson from the company said that on 8th of April the company declared force majeure for its cracker operations in Stenungsund due to a “technical incident”. The cracker in Stenungsund can produce 625,000 metric tons of ethylene per annum. … Read more
Nippon Shokubai and Sanyo Chemical Industries announced that their merger agreement and formation of joint venture has been postponed over the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. This merger was planned to establish a joint holding company, Synfomix, Ltd. by way of a joint share transfer, which would subsequently become the integrated holding company serving as parent to … Read more
Oxea announced that it will implement a 100% sales control on n-Propanol and n-Propyl Acetate effective immediately for 2nd quarter, 2020 in reaction to strong demand coupled with logistics issues and service related to the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders. The sales control will be based on the average monthly consumption over the last six months or … Read more
Tata Chemicals announced force majeure on shipments of soda ash to South Africa after government restrictions resulted in the closure of several berths at Maydon Wharf including Tata Chemicals South Africa’s berth at Maydon Wharf 14. The South African government has placed restrictions on the continued operation of various business activities, including port operations due … Read more
Solvay announced that it is withdrawing its full year 2020 guidance issued in February due to heightened uncertainty and prolonged duration of events caused by the COVID-19 global pandemic. The company has reduced its capital expenditure plans for the year by over €250 million ($273 million). “During these challenging times, we are mobilized and we … Read more
Hexcel Corporation (HXL) and Woodward, Inc. (WWD) announced that the companies have mutually agreed to terminate their previously announced $6.4-billion merger deal. The decision has been duly approved by the boards of both companies. The companies decided to call off the mega-merger deal in response to the increasing impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on … Read more
Sumitomo Chemical announced on 2nd April that it invested $30 million in Conagen, a U.S. biotechnology company. The company has conducted joint research with Conagen since 2018 on the biosynthesis of existing chemicals. The fresh investment will further promote its strategic business alliance with Conagen and develop innovative high functional products and processes by way … Read more
Nova Chemicals Corp. is making substantial reductions in its construction activities in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We are adjusting construction work on our new AST2 polyethylene facility and Corunna cracker expansion projects in Ontario to temporarily focus on only the most critical work, which will result in a reduction of approximately 90% of … Read more
Methanex Corporation (TSX:MX) (NASDAQ:MEOH) said it is taking action to defer approximately $500 million of previously announced capital spending on its Geismar 3 methanol project for up to 18 months. The decision was made considering the significant uncertainty in the global economy from the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in a challenging commodity price and project execution … Read more
Arkema unveiled its ambition to become a world leader in Specialty Materials realigned around three businesses: Adhesive Solutions, Advanced Materials, and Coating Solutions at a Strategy Update meeting on April 2. The Group unveiled its roadmap and its objectives for 2024 at this event. The Group has decided to align its organization which will now … Read more
LyondellBasell announced on Monday that it will slow construction of its propylene oxide (PO) and tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) facility in Channelview, Texas. The company is limiting non-essential activities considering the current concerns related to the coronavirus pandemic. The PO / TBA site is under construction and limiting the construction activities will be prudent, according … Read more
Advanced Global Investment Company (AGIC), a subsidiary of PP producer Advanced Petrochemical, has agreed to form a joint venture with South Korea’s SK Gas and build a propane dehydrogenation (PDH)/PP complex at Jubail, Saudi Arabia. The JV agreement follows a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in June, 2019. The new entity, called Advanced Polyolefins, will … Read more
Air Products (NYSE: APD) has reached an agreement with PBF Energy Inc. (NYSE: PBF) that include the acquisition of $530 million of five hydrogen steam methane reformers (SMR) hydrogen production plants and the long-term supply of hydrogen to PBF refiners from those already operating plants. Located in Torrance and Martinez, California and Delaware City, the … Read more
The American Chemistry Council (ACC) urged G20 leaders to lift tariffs and export restrictions to improve access to the products necessary to healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. American Chemistry Council (ACC) President and CEO, Chris Jahn, in response to the virtual G20 summit, said, “U.S. chemicals manufacturers are calling for G20 leaders to increase … Read more
Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Company Limited (HKEX: 00338; SSE: 600688; NYSE: SHI) announced the annual results for the twelve months ended 31st December 2019. Net sales of the company in 2019 amounted to RMB88.1 billion ($12.45 billion), a decrease of 7.90% from the previous year’s RMB95.6 million ($13.5 billion). The decrease in sales was attributed to … Read more
Mitsui Chemicals, Inc. has expanded its production facilities for meltblown nonwovens at its wholly owned subsidiary Sunrex Industry Co., Ltd. The move comes as an attempt to respond to the increasing demand for industrial-use meltblown nonwovens, and will increase the total production capacity of the Mitsui Chemicals Group for these materials by 50%. The expanded … Read more