Asia caustic soda prices are soaring on the back of tight supply and robust demand

(ICIS) -- Asia caustic soda prices are soaring on the back of tight supply and robust demand, a trend that is expected to continue in the near term as downstream demand in northeast Asia grows, market sources said on Wednesday.

Spot prices were last assessed at USD 440-455/dry metric tonne (dmt) (EUR 299-309/dmt) on a free on board (FOB) northeast Asia basis on 22 April 2011, according to ICIS data. The figure is an increase of almost 50% from USD 290-310/dmt at the start of this year, and is more than double the USD 210-220/dmt seen at the end of April last year.

Global caustic soda demand in 2010 stood at 61.1m dmt and is set to rise this year, fuelled by growth in key consumption sectors for caustic soda such as alumina, detergents and textiles as well as pulp and paper production, market sources said.

A global average growth of 4% across all end-user segments is expected from 2010-2015, which will support prices, an industry source said.

MRC

(Clariant) -- Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, today announced that it has completed the purchase of 96.15% of the shares in Sud-Chemie from One Equity Partners and the family shareholders.

Clariant will make a public offer to acquire the outstanding shares from Sud-Chemie minority shareholders. The overall transaction value amounts to approx. EUR 1.9 billion (CHF 2.5 billion).
⌠This transaction is an important milestone in Clariant's history. Following the successful completion of our restructuring in 2010, the acquisition of Sud-Chemie accelerates our strategy of profitable growth, said Hariolf Kottmann, CEO of Clariant. ⌠Together we will now start the integration process to successfully integrate Sud-Chemie into Clariant, Kottmann added.

By acquiring leading positions in the fields of process catalysts and adsorbent agents, Clariant is expanding its portfolio with two fast-growing business-units. Sud-Chemie also has a strong research and development organization focusing on market segments with significant growth potential.

MRC

(BP) -- BP and the Gulf of Mexico Alliance announced that the independent Research Board of the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GRI) has released its Request for Proposals for studies into the effects of the Deepwater Horizon incident and the potential associated impact on the environment and public health. The USD 500 million GRI is funded by BP and administered by the Gulf of Mexico Alliance.

The independent Research Board of the GRI has created a selection process that includes an open Request for Proposals, peer review of the submissions, selection of the Research Consortia to study the five research themes, and award of funds during the summer of 2011.

MRC

(Plastemart) -- After the Kuokang Petrochemical complex faces near-abandonment in Taiwan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) plans to take steps to ensure sustainable development of the country's petrochemical industry. The Ministry has been urged to find alternative sites for the Kuokuang petrochemical complex originally to be constructed on reclaimed land in Changhua, due to controversy over the project's environmental impact. Priority will be given to helping local firms cut carbon emissions, upgrade their manufacturing facilities, adopt the most advanced technology and pursue higher value products through R&D efforts.

MRC

(Plastemart) -- QAPCO's new low density polyethylene (LDPE-3) plant will have its commercial launch in the first quarter of 2012. To be located at Mesaieed, the new plant will have a capacity to produce 300 KTa LDPE. With this, Qapco will become one of the major low-density polyethylene producers in the world. Qapco's two existing lines - LDPE 1 & 2 have production capacity of over 400 KTa.

MRC