Formosa shut down manufacturing operations of an isononyl alcohol plant

(China Post) -- The Formosa Plastics Group (FPG) finally shut down yesterday the manufacturing operations of an isononyl alcohol plant at the group's petrochemical complex in Mailiao area of Yunlin County in southwestern Taiwan in accordance with industrial plant safety procedures. The isononyl alcohol plant is among the five petrochemical plants of Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, an affiliate of the FPG, ordered to close for inspection following successive fires on May 12 and 18.

Top administrators at Yunlin County Government were on hand to see the machinery equipment eventually grind to a halt at the plant, almost two months after the latest fire at the sprawling Mailiao petrochemical complex, also known as Taiwan's No. 6 naphtha cracking complex.

The high-profile presence of the officials was aimed at demonstrating the county government's determination to force the FPG to improve its industrial and manufacturing operations to prevent similar industrial hazards from occurring in the future.

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(ICIS) -- Shell is developing plans for a worldscale ethylene plant with integrated derivative units in the Appalachian region of the US, to take advantage of the area's Marcellus shale gas reserves, the Anglo-Dutch oil major said on Monday. A location for the plant has not yet been decided, the company said.

⌠Building an ethane-fed cracker in Appalachia would unlock significant gas production in the Marcellus region by providing a local outlet for the ethane, Shell Executive Vice President Chemicals, Ben van Beurden, said.

Shell said it is evaluating derivative choices, with polyethylene (PE) as the leading option but it did not identify a partner for development. Most of the PE production would be used by northeastern US industries, it said.

⌠Demand for PE in North America is expected to grow, so the economic and efficiency benefits of a regional cracker make this configuration attractive, the company added in a statement.

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(ICIS) -- Shell could go it alone on any polyethylene (PE) component of its plan for a cracker project in the US, but it would also contemplate teaming up with another company, an executive said on Monday.

"Partnering is one of the things we would have to consider" for a PE side of the project, said Ben van Beurden, the Anglo-Dutch energy company's executive vice president for chemicals.

The cracker plan is being driven by the US advantage in relatively cheaper feedstocks because of swelling production of ethane from shale gas, especially from the Marcellus shale formation in the northeast.

The market has to take a view on how long that advantage will persist, van Beurden said, adding that Shell obviously thinks it will go on long enough to make the investment worthwhile.

The big picture is that the US will be a "significant" PE exporter in years ahead, van Beurden said on the sidelines of the American Chemistry Council (ACC) annual meeting in Colorado Springs, Colorado. But the cracker plan itself is based on expectations for domestic demand in the US northeast.

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(ICIS) -- Asia polystyrene (PS) resin prices have fallen this week amid persistently poor demand and lower feedstock prices, said producers and traders on Tuesday. However, some suppliers said they are expecting the emergence of some buying interest in late June, ahead of the Chinese manufacturing season for exports in the third quarter of the year.

Prices of general purpose PS (GPPS) slipped to around USD 1.520/tonne CFR (cost & freight) China on 7 June, down from USD 1.610/tonne CFR China a month ago, market sources said.

Prices of high impact PS (HIPS) also declined, down to USD 1.750/tonne CFR China this week from above USD 1.800/tonne CFR China a month ago, the sources added.

Weaker prices of feedstock styrene monomer (SM), which slipped below USD 1.400/tonne CFR China this week from USD 1.450/tonne CFR China a month ago, weighed on the PS market.

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(BASF) -- GEO Specialty Chemicals, Inc. has entered into an agreement with BASF to acquire the Bisomer monomer business (hydroxy methacrylates, multifunctional methacrylates (MFM) and specialty adducts) and conventional contact lens business of Cognis UK. The transaction includes a manufacturing facility in Hythe, England that produces hydroxy methacrylates, multifunctional methacrylates (MFM) and specialty adducts, polyalkylene glycols (PAG) and PAG-based lubricants. As a part of the transaction, approximately 140 employees are expected to transfer to the new owner, GEO Specialty Chemicals UK Limited.

BASF and GEO have agreed not to announce the terms of the transaction. The divestiture is subject to approval by the EU Commission. Closing of the transaction is expected in the third quarter of 2011.

GEO Specialty Chemicals, Inc., a privately owned company founded in 1993, is a producer of specialty chemicals, targeting niche markets. The Company has three divisions, which include Water Treatment, Paints & Coatings and Construction & Industrial, and operates eighteen manufacturing facilities.

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