US judge approves BASF's $51m settlement in isocyanates suit

(ICIS) -- A US judge approved on Monday BASF's proposal to pay $51m (┬38m) to settle allegations that it fixed isocyanates prices, leaving Dow Chemical as the last producer fighting the class-action lawsuit.

In settling the case, BASF denied that it fixed prices. Instead, BASF settled the case to avoid the cost, inconvenience and distractions that would come with prolonging the litigation.
The settlement was approved by the US District Court, district of Kansas.

The BASF settlement leaves Dow Chemical as the last producer fighting the price-fixing lawsuit.
The lawsuit was filed in 2004, and it accused Huntsman, Bayer, BASF, Dow and LyondellBasell of fixing prices. The complaint covered propylene oxide (PO)-based polyether polyols; methyl di-p-phenylene isocyanate (MDI); and toluene di-isocyanate (TDI) that were purchased from 1 January 1999 through 31 December 2004.
Earlier this year, Huntsman agreed to pay $33m to settle the lawsuit. The court approved the settlement in September.

Netherlands-based LyondellBasell has also settled the lawsuit. However, it paid nothing.
In 2006, Bayer agreed to pay $55.3m to settle the allegations.

In all, the isocyanates customers have reached $139.3m in settlements with the producers.
Meanwhile, a separate price-fixing lawsuit has been filed against many of the isocyanates customers. These customers used the isocyanates as feedstock to produce polyurethane foam.
The buyers of polyurethane foam accused the producers of fixing prices. That lawsuit is still pending in US District Court, northern Ohio district.

MRC

(ICIS) -- Germany's Sud-Chemie and South Korea's LG Chem announced on Tuesday that they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to jointly build a lithium iron phosphate plant.
The plant, which will have a 2,500 tonne/year capacity, is slated for completion by end-2014, LG Chem said in a separate statement.

"The new plant specific location is still not finalised, but it will be in South Korea," said LG Chem spokesperson Louie Chung.
The new plant will incorporate the South Korean firm's processing technology and Sud-Chemie's manufacturing technology, the chemicals companies said in a joint statement.
Financial details of the investment were not disclosed.


The joint venture will also involve development of other advance olivine structure materials such as lithium manganese iron phosphate in the later stage, LG Chem said.
Lithium iron phosphate is a cathode material used in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries.

"With LG as a partner, LFP lithium iron phosphate will establish itself as a storage material for large high-performance batteries," said Sud-Chemie chairman Gunter von Au in the joint statement.
In the same statement, LG Chem vice chairman and CEO Peter Bahnsuk Kim said: "It [joint venture] enables us to have strong competitiveness in the field of rapidly growing high capacity lithium-ion battery for Energy Storage System (ESS) and in vehicle applications."

MRC

(Arkema) -- A world leader in specialty polyamides, Arkema has brought on line www.rilsan.com, www.rilsamid.com and www.orgalloy.com, three comprehensive information platforms on its long-chain polyamide product offering. Reflecting Arkema's strong brand recognition and application know-how in its end-markets, all three sites present the specific technical features and the various grades available in each of the three product lines.


Rilsan - a polyamide 11 of 100% vegetable origin manufactured exclusively by Arkema in the world. The website describes its remarkable physical, mechanical and chemical properties, illustrated with extensive comparative test results. Rilsan offers unrivalled value thanks to its unique combination of properties and environmental advantages. This ultra high performance material is suited to applications in extreme pressure, temperature and chemical environment conditions.

Rilsamid, oil-based high performance polymer, is used in some of Rilsan's markets for applications requiring excellent physical, mechanical and chemical properties, albeit slightly below the level of Rilsan's properties.


Finally, www.orgalloy.com presents the Orgalloy range of polyolefin-based polyamides. The website reviews the properties and applications of Orgalloy. This alloy takes the best of polyamide's properties (sturdiness, rigidity, temperature stability and chemical resistance), while affording decisive benefits derived from its polyolefin part (high productivity and easy processing).

A global chemical company and France's leading chemicals producer, Arkema produces state-of-the-art specialty chemicals that provide customers with practical solutions to such challenges as climate change, access to drinking water, the future of energy, fossil fuel preservation and the need for lighter materials. With operations in more than 40 countries, 15,700 employees and 9 research centers, Arkema generates annual revenue of EUR5.9 billion, and holds leadership positions in all its markets with a portfolio of internationally recognized brands.

MRC

(PlastEurope) -- Synbra Technology (Etten-Leur/The Netherlands) has launched a heat-resistant injection mouldable PLA polymer which it says has an impact strength comparable with that of ABS.

The polymer, branded "Synterra IM", is produced by mixing 100% pure PLLA (poly-L-lactide) with 100% PDLA (poly-D-lactide) and has a heat deflection temperature of 123╟C. Polymerisation of the optical isomers PLLA and PDLA takes place at the company's new 5,000 t/y plant in Etten-Leur, which was commissioned in early 2011.

Synterra IM's temperature and impact properties are better than those of conventional PLA, and after injection moulding the material is able to withstand boiling water, Synbra says. The company launched Synterra IM in the second half of this year, and last month the material was awarded an Accenture "Blue Tulip" innovation award at the RAI Elicium in Amsterdam/The Netherlands.

A Synterra compounding grade is also being used in some FKuR Kunststoff (Willich/Germany) products.

MRC

(PlastEurope) -- In an effort to boost competition, win markets and introduce Hungarian plastics products to other countries, about 100 different plastics companies at the end of November 2011 established the Hungarian Plastics Industry Association MMSZ. Although already existent on paper since the early 1990s, MMSZ now exists as a separate legal entity from the Hungarian Chemical Industry Association MAVESZ (Budapest/Hungary), of which it previously was a part.

According to local media reports, the decision to split off was based on ⌠challenges resulting from a new system of interest representation that arose in the wake of a new MAVESZ board having been elected in May this year.

Hungary's plastics sector employs about 40,000 people. Earlier this year, a market review by Business Monitor International (BMI, London/UK) predicted that the country's plastics sector would resume growth in 2011- following several lean years in the shadow of the global economic downturn - with gains driven largely by the country's automotive and construction industries.

MRC