Taiwan's supply of ethylene will become problematic by 2015

(Tai Pei Times) -- Taiwan's supply of ethylene will become problematic by 2015 if a proposed petrochemical development project is scrapped, a Ministry of Economic Affairs official said yesterday.

Industrial Development Bureau Director-General Woody Duh said the proposed Kuokuang complex in Changhua County would offer a major alternative supply after the state-run oil refiner CPC Corp, Taiwan closes its fifth naphtha cracker in Greater Kaohsiung in 2015. Duh said demand for petrochemical products would grow as the economy develops and the project is necessary to fill the shortfall that will be caused when the fifth naphtha cracker closes.

Duh said Taiwan currently meets 97 % of its domestic ethylene needs with annual production of 3 mln tonnes, including 500 KT produced by CPC's fifth naphtha cracker.

MRC

(Plastics Today) -- Taiwan Synthetic Rubber Corp. has boosted its thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) capacity, global reach, and technology portfolio through the USD168 mln acquisition of Dexco Polymers LP, the ExxonMobil Chemical and Dow Chemical joint venture. Headquartered in Houston with manufacturing in Plaquemine, LA, Dexco has annual production capacity of 32 KT and 30 KT tonnes of styrene-isoprene-styrene (SIS) and styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS) block copolymers, respectively.

Tu and other TSRC and Dexco officials said that the acquisition was initially announced on Dec. 23, 2010, with the last few months spent on regulatory approval and integration plans. As part of those plans, Dexco will retain its staff, including current president, Chris Mudd, as well as its company name and the trade names of its products, including the Vector line of materials.

TSRC believes the addition of Dexco will help it leapfrog from the eighth largest producer of styrene block copolymers in the world in into the top five globally, with more than 100 KTa of annual SBC production. Company wide and including all products, TSRC has more than 500 KT of capacity.

MRC

(ICIS) -- Asian polycarbonate (PC) prices look set to weaken, suppressed by tepid derivative demand and the persistently low domestic prices in the key China market, despite attempts by producers to raise prices and boost margins, market sources said on Thursday. Spot prices were stagnant at USD 3.250-3.350/tonne (EUR 2.275-2.345/tonne) CIF (cost, insurance and freight) Hong Kong for GP-moulding grade and at USD 3,050-3,150/tonne CIF Hong Kong for optical grade, according to ICIS data.

Downstream demand in China was capped by tightening credit and reduced export orders for finished goods. Traders showed limited buying interest for imported cargoes as they were saddled with ample inventories.

Spot PC prices had gained USD150-200/tonne since mid-February, buoyed by rising feedstock bisphenol A (BPA) values and the expectations of tighter supply and firm raw material costs following the massive earthquake that hit Japan on 11 March.

MRC

(Lanxess) -- Despite major benefits, foaming processes in the past have been unsuccessful in gaining widespread acceptance for use in injection molding. One of the reasons for this was the poor surface quality of the resultant components. To counteract this problem, Lanxess has developed a new polyamide 6 and polyamide 66 Durethan designed specifically for physical and chemical foaming.

⌠Both materials produce excellent molded part surfaces that in most cases are smooth and flawless with virtually no opalescent streaks or areas that appear porous. They are therefore suitable for applications that also place high demands on the visual quality of the part - such as visible components under the hood, states Maik Schulte, a development engineer at Lanxess.

MRC

(Reuters) -- Japanese ethylene production rose 0.1% in March from the same month a year earlier, although some plants were shut after the March 11 earthquake, government data showed on Thursday. Ethylene output totalled 514.8 KT last month compared with 514.1 KT a year earlier, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said. March output was down 15.0 percent from 605.3 KT in February, when no plants were shut for maintenance.

There was one maintenance-related plant shutdown in Japan in March, while three plants were shut in the same month last year, METI said.

Maruzen Petrochemical Co Ltd and JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp, an oil refining unit of JX Holdings , have restarted their quake-shut naphtha crackers, leaving two crackers still shut at the Kashima plant operated by Mitsubishi Chemical Corp, with a total ethylene making capacity of 828 KTa.

MRC