Plastic label industry undergoes structural changes

(converting quarterly) -- Despite the economic hardships of recent years, plastic label demand in Europe grew on average by 6% per year since 2008, and the industry had structural changed, states a new report from industry researcher AMI Consulting.

While the end-use applications are relatively mature in Europe, plastic labels converters are taking market share from paper at an increasing rate.

Plastic glue-applied labels illustrated the paper to plastic transition best, through the wrap around labels in the beverage industry, which resulted in 400 million square meters additional demand in the past three years. Plastic dominates the in-mould labels segment as well.

In self-adhesive labels, the key issue is inter-material competition of PP and PE. PP is expanding penetration, driven by the growing demand of clear-on-clear labels allowing for no-label look. Similarly, PET increased its penetration versus PVC in shrink sleeves.
MRC

Sabic expands its LEXAN sheet portfolio

(finder) -- SABIC’s Innovative Plastics business has expanded its portfolio of high-performance material solutions by adding two new LEXAN sheet products to its already robust materials portfolio.

These new products include LEXAN H6500 sheet, a new PC/acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (PC/ABS) sheet grade that complies with the upcoming CEN/TS 45545 harmonized standard, and LEXAN H6200 sheet, a new grade that complies with Germany’s DIN norm.

Anticipating the implementation of the pan-European norm for fire safety in rail interiors, the company developed both products to help rail customers meet growing demand for enhanced sustainability and advanced thermoplastic technologies with non-chlorinated and non-brominated flame retardance that enhance the design and development of rail interior applications.

Compared to metal, thermosets and glass, both new LEXAN sheet materials can significantly lower system costs through consolidation of parts to streamline production, avoidance of secondary operations such as painting and coating, machining and polishing, and lower shipping costs by reducing weight.

SABIC is currently the second largest global ethylene glycol producer. It is the third largest polyethylene manufacturer, the fourth largest polyolefins manufacturer and the fourth largest polypropylene manufacturer.
MRC

Pemex and Mexichem to team up to boost vinyl chloride production

(bloomberg) -- Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex), the world’s fourth-largest oil producer based in Mexico City, plans to begin a petrochemical joint venture with Mexichem SAB (Mexichem) after receiving final board approval this week.

Pemex expects to boost vinyl chloride production to more than 400,000 tons annually, which represents a 138% increase from this year’s output.

The companies will invest about USD200 million to increase the capacity of facilities in the eastern state of Veracruz.
Mexichem, the Latin American chemical producer, will contribute about 60% of the USD556 mln investment required to create the new company. The company wants to reduce its dependence on third-party vinyl chloride producers such as Dow Chemical Vinyl chloride.

Petroleos Mexicanos or Pemex is a Mexican state-owned petroleum company. Pemex has a total asset worth of USD415.75 billion, and is the world's second largest non-publicly listed company by total market value, and Latin America's second largest enterprise by annual revenue as of 2009.

Mexichem is a Mexican company and one of the largest leader in the Latin American chemical and petrochemical industry. The company operates in North, Central and South America, Europe and Asia and exports its products to more than 50 countries.
MRC

BASF restructures its EPS business

(BASF) -- BASF is focusing its global Styropor (expandable polystyrene) activities on strategic markets and core products with better profitability due to the high EPS overcapacities in Asia Pacific that have developed in recent years and low margins.

In view of the BASF's strategy stated above, the company will shut down the Styropor plants at its sites in Pasir Gudang, Malaysia and Thane, India. The plan is to stop production by the end of the year. The combined annual EPS production capacity of the two plants is more than 100,000 metric tons.

In South America, BASF is getting ready to take strategic steps. The company has started the preparation of a carve-out of the Styropor business and production at its sites in Argentina and Brazil. In Chile, BASF is evaluating strategic options for the EPS business and is preparing a divestment of Aislapol, BASF’s EPS foam parts producer. The Styropor business in South America has an annual production capacity of 83,500 metric tons.

BASF SE is the largest diversified chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF Styrenics consists of the foams and copolymers. BASF's styrenic copolymers have applications in electronics, building and construction, and automotive components.
MRC

Bharat Petroleum to invest in its Kochi expansion projects

(plastemart) -- Bharat Petroleum has signed a Memorandum of Understanding for its expansion project and the setting up of a petrochemical joint venture to be implemented in three years time at Kochi.

The company will invest Rs.14,225 crore in its Integrated Refinery Expansion Project (IREP) at the Kochi Refinery and Rs.5000 cr for setting up a petrochemical joint venture.

The proposed IREP project envisages increasing the capacity of Kochi refinery from the present 9.5 mln mtpa to 15.5 mln mtpa, modernisation of the refinery to produce auto-fuels complying with Euro-IV/Euro-V specifications, upgradation of low value refinery residue stream to value-added products and production of propylene, which is a major petrochemical feedstock.

The state government has agreed to extend incentives like deferment of various taxes to BPCL for its expansion program. BPCL has already signed an MoU with petrochemical major LG Chem, South Korea in this regard.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) is an Indian state-controlled oil and gas company headquartered in Mumbai, India. Bharat Petroleum owns refineries at Mumbai, Maharashtra and Kochi, Kerala (Kochi Refineries) with a capacity of 12 and 9.5 million metric tonnes per year.
MRC