(ICIS) -- East China-based styrene monomer (SM) producers will be competing for cargoes in the spot and contract markets more significantly next year, industry sources said on Wednesday.
Shanghai SECCO Petrochemical, Jiangsu Leasty Chemical, Dohow Chemical and Sinopec East China were planning to procure supply from the market, for varied reasons ranging from fulfilling the requirement of downstream plants, to the quest for better margins, company sources said.
Among the four, Shanghai SECCO was facing SM shortage and would need to tap the market for cargoes to continue supplying to contract clients, a company source said.
Equipment problems at its 650,000 tonne/year SM unit in Shanghai would prevent the plant from optimising running rates for the most of next year. The unit was also due for a 40-day turnaround from September-October 2011, with production loss estimated at around 50,000 tonnes, the source added.