Toray to enhance high-performance PP spunbond production facility in Indonesia

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Toray Industries, Inc. has announced that the company and its subsidiary Toray Advanced Materials Korea, Inc. would expand the production facility for high-performance polypropylene (PP) spunbond at P.T. Toray Polytech Jakarta (TPJ) by 18,000 tons per year, as per the company's press release.

After the enhancement, the production capacity of TPJ will be about 37,000 tons per year, boosting the Toray Group-wide PP spunbond production capacity to about 153,000 tons per year.

The added production facility at TPJ is expected to start operating in September 2016.

Demand for disposable baby diapers is forecast to rapidly grow in ASEAN countries with the improvement in the people’s lifestyle, as their national income increases. In addition, demand for disposable diapers for elderly is expected to expand in developed and semi-developed countries in East Asia due to the advent of declining birthrates and aging societies. Under such circumstances, demand for PP spunbond, which is the main material for making disposable diapers, is expected to grow to 660,000 tons per year in 2016 from 493,000 tons in 2013 and to 936,000 tons per year in 2020.

In response to this robust demand, Toray Group has been expanding the production capacities of its PP spunbond production bases in Korea, People’s Republic of China and Indonesia in advance.

In June 2013, TPJ’s first facility started operations, and the Group’s production base in China, Toray Polytech (Nantong) Co. will start operation of a new production line later this month.

Toray Group will enhance its PP spunbond supply structure based on the three bases in Korea, China and Indonesia and build firm relationships with global hygiene product manufacturers in order to drive forward sales expansion in emerging markets such as in rapidly growing China and ASEAN countries as well as in the growth fields.

As MRC wrote before, in summer 2012, Toray Industries in partnership with Gevo Inc. signed an offtake agreement for renewable bio-paraxylene (bioPX) produced at Gevo's planned pilot plant. The agreement will enable Toray to carry out pilot-scale production of fully renewable, bio-based polyethylene terephthalate (fully bioPET), of its fibers and films for the first time in the world.

Toray Industries is a multinational corporation headquartered in Japan that specializes in industrial products centered around technologies in organic synthetic chemistry, polymer chemistry, and biochemistry. Its founding business areas were fibers and textiles, as well as plastics and chemicals. Toray Group Malaysia companies are involved in four main businesses -- polyester fibres, textiles, plastic resins and polyester films.
MRC

Jiangsu Yangnong to shut down caustic soda plant in China for maintenance

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Jiangsu Yangnong Chemical is likely to shut its caustic soda plant for maintenance turnaround, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the plant is likely to be shut on December 27, 2014. It is likely to remain off-stream for around 12 days.

Located at Yizheng in Jiangsu province of China, the plant has a production capacity of 200,000 mt/year.

As MRC informed previously, Ineos ChlorVinyls, one of the major chlor-alkali producers in Europe, restarted a chlor-alkali plant in Belgium following an unexpected shutdown on October 22, 2014. It was shut in the second week of October 2014 owing to technical issues. Located at Tessenderlo, Belgium, the plant has a caustic soda capacity of 452,000 mt/year and chlorine capacity of 400,000 mt/year.
MRC

Ukrainian parliamentarians to raise import duty on SPVC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A bill to increase the import duty on suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) to 6.5% from 1 January 2015 has been introduced into the Ukrainian Parliament, reported MRC analysts.

On 10 December 2014, a draft law No.1335 on Amendments to the Customs Tariff of Ukraine was submitted for consideration of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. This initiative provides for the separation of the commodity group -unmixed polyvinyl chloride (HS code 3904 10 00 00) into two subgroups: emulsion PVC (HS code 3904 10 00 10) and suspension PVC (HD code 3904 10 00 90). It is proposed to increase the rate of the import duty on PVC produced by the suspension method from the current zero duty to 6.5%.

The explanatory note to the bill states that the increase in the duty was due to the need to create optimal conditions in order to ensure supply of material, which is not currently produced in the country, for domestic producers of construction and other industries, as well as the need for harmonization of the Ukrainian legislation with the standards adopted in international practice.

The settlement of rates of the import duty on polyvinyl chloride (PVC) will create the same competitive conditions for both domestic and foreign producers, which corresponds to the fundamentals of a market economy.

Ukraine has SPVC production capacities at Karpatneftekhim (LUKOIL). The plant's annual production capacity is 300,000 tonnes of PVC. The production was launched in May 2011. However, the plant was shut down several times because of economic inefficiency, it was last shut down in December 2013.

As reported earlier, in 2012, Karpatneftekhim initiated an anti-dumping investigation regarding PVC imports from the US. The Commission has still not come to a definite conclusion.

According to MRC data, the overall SPVC imports to Ukraine totalled just over 101,000 tonnes over the first ten months of 2014, down by 15% year on year.
MRC

TiO2 imports to Russia grew by 2% from January to November 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Imports of titanium dioxide (TiO2) into the Russian market increased from January to November 2014 by 2% year on year, according to MRC DataScope report.

TiO2 importers to Russia increased their purchasing in foreign markets, despite the devaluation of the national currency. Overall, 72,600 tonnes of TiO2 arrived in the Russian market from January to November 2014.

DuPont is the largest TiO2 supplier for Russian paints and coatings producers, as well as for polymer converters and paper producers. The company raised its imports by 500 tonnes over the stated period to 15,200 tonnes.


Crimean Titan shipped to Russia 12,600 tonnes of titanium dioxide from January to November 2014, up by 1,100 tonnes year on year. Ukrainian SumyKhimprom reduced its exports to Russia by 2,600 tonnes to 8,800 tonnes.

Overall, the Russian market imported 4,150 tonnes of TiO2 in November.

MRC

Production of products from polymers in Russia rose by 11% from January to November 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The output of finished goods from polymers in Russia increased by 11% over the first eleven months. Producers of polymer films are industry leaders this year, reported MRC analysts.

November production of main products from polymers in Russia dropped by 8% from October under the pressure of seasonal factors.

According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, the November output of unreinforced and non-combined films rose to 110,000 tonnes from 83,200 tonnes a month earlier. Thus, production of these products in Russia totalled 1.02 million tonnes from January to November 2014, up by 30.7% year on year.

Last month's production of plates and sheets dropped to 18,100 tonnes from 18,500 tonnes in October. The output of these products by Russian companies exceeded 200,000 tonnes over the stated period, down by 0.7% year on year.

November production of plastic pipes, hoses and fittings fell to 54,200 tonnes versus 69,800 tonnes in October. The overall production of these products totalled about 500,000 tonnes over the first eleven months of 2014, up by 0.2% year on year.

Last month's production of plastic windows and their frames and sills virtually fell to 2 million square meters, while in October, this figure was 2.6 million square meters. The output of plastic windows and window sills totalled about 23.3 million square meters from January to November 2014, down by 11.1% year on year.
MRC