Arkema to invest US$110 mln over 3 years in Acrylics chain

(Plastemart) -- Arkema plans to invest US$110 mln over 3 years in its Acrylics sites in Clear Lake and Bayport, Texas. This plan will target acrylic acid and its esters, and will focus on growth opportunities seen for applications in water treatment, super absorbent polymers and enhanced oil & gas recovery.

This investment program is a step toward the company's ambition as the number 3 global supplier of Acrylics to grow its core strategic business while boosting its competitiveness.

The first project will focus on moving the Clear Lake site toward a best-in-class facility by improving the reliability and competitiveness of its Acrylic Acid assets. The combination of Arkema's industrial expertise and know-how in Acrylics, along with the latest advances in technology, will aggressively advance this project to start-up in early 2013, bringing the new rated nameplate capacity to 270,000 tons.

The second project for Clear Lake will be the construction of a 45,000 tons unit for the production of Methyl Acrylate, which will support growth opportunities in water treatment, elastomers and technical polymers. This unit is planned for startup in Q2-2013.

MRC

(Plastemart) -- Faysal Bank Ltd and National Bank of Pakistan will provide finance of Rs 1800 million for Pakistan's first ever Bi-axially Oriented Poly Ethylene Terephthelate (BOPET) plant. Total cost of the project is Rs 3.38 billion, out of which Rs 1.8 bln has been arranged through bank financing.

The plant, with machinery from Bruckner of Germany is expected to go into production by March 2012 at Port Qasim. The plant is being set up by Astro Plastics (Pvt) Ltd, an associate company of Ismail Industries Ltd (manufacturers of Candyland, Bisconni, Snackcity and Astropack). The lead advisors and arrangers of the financing agreement are National Bank of Pakistan and Faysal Bank which is also the agent bank and security trustee of the agreement.

MRC

(Dow) -- Dow Plastics Additives, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, was presented the Silver Award from the SolVin Innovations in PVC competition for its exclusive SURECEL foam cell modifier technology.

The technology was chosen out of over 140 submissions and 11 finalists and announced at the K Show on October 28, 2010. It is the only additive technology to have ever received this prestigious recognition.

SURECEL foam cell modifier is a new technology platform that helps manufacturers, retailers and builders better capitalize on the growing demand for cellular PVC board products. SURECEL modifier enables the reduction of board density by up to 15%.

Additionally, SURECEL modifier allows for the production of thicker gauge sheets of up to 1.5 inches and helps to provide excellent paint adhesion.
With so many benefits, cellular PVC is becoming the material of choice in rapidly growing applications such as trim board, signage, deck board, window profile and siding.

MRC

Following the results of October, HDPE import supplies had fallen by the level of 9,1 KT, which is 4,2 KT (or 31,6%) less than September supplies. Traditionally the main demand reduction was observed in the sector of pipe HDPE, the imports reduced almost one-half - to the level of 2,3 KT.

Expectedly film HDPE import supplies to the Ukrainian market dropped. In September Karpatneftehim renewed PE production after almost two-year production suspension.

Expecting cheaper domestic PE the Ukrainian companies reduced the volumes of materials purchase in Europe. At the same time supplies of Kalush PE to the domestic market had been renewed only by mid-November.

MRC

(ICIS) -- Japanese and South Korean polyvinyl chloride (PVC) producers will likely follow the lead of their Thai and Taiwanese counterparts in hiking December prices amid strong demand and restricted supply of the material, industry sources said on Friday.

The northeast Asian producers were expected to announce their prices next week, sources said. PVC spot prices in Asia were nearing eight-month high at $1,010/tonne CFR (cost and freight) China on 12 November, according to ICIS data.

Formosa Plastics, a major PVC producer in Taiwan, took the initiative to implement a $30/tonne (┬22/tonne) price hike last week, raising December prices to $1,040/tonne CFR (cost and freight), said a company source.

Thai Plastics and Chemicals (TPC) seconded the move this week, nudging up its December offers into China by $20/tonne from November to $1,040/tonne CFR, said a company source.

Demand from the construction sector has been steadily improving in China in recent weeks, especially for ethylene-based PVC, causing prices to jump $20-30/tonne in the week ending 12 November, according to ICIS. PVC is a key product used in construction materials like pipes.

MRC