ICIS - Search Articles by Date : May 10 2004 - May 16 2004

Perstorp site to lose 160 jobs
Sydsvenska Kemi has announced that a further 160 jobs are to be cut in its Perstorp business through a rationalisation programme implemented in the.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Business in brief
Staff layed off Hungary’s largest plastic producer Pannonplast will lay off 230 staff with the closure of its industrial plastics plant in.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

TCC Fortifies Niche in Distribution
Building on a successful growth strategy, The Chemical Company (TCC), a Jamestown, R.I.-based che-mical distributor and manufacturing representative,.... more
(14 May 2004 18:53)

Breaking News Roundup
Monsanto Shelves Roundup Ready Wheat more
(14 May 2004 18:53)

Business In Brief
DuPont Monster Bridge more
(14 May 2004 18:53)

Jobs and People
Mike Batche more
(14 May 2004 18:53)

PetroChina’s new strategy to boost petrochemicals
IN a bid to boost its competitiveness in petrochemicals, PetroChina has decided to allocate core products to relatively profitable subsidiaries, to.... more
(11 May 2004 17:07)

China credit squeeze fears plague petrochem markets
ASIAN petrochemical markets were again plagued by concerns last week about the likely impact of the Chinese government’s recent credit control.... more
(11 May 2004 17:06)

SPC mulls replacing cracker
SHANGHAI Petrochemical Co (SPC) is considering building a new cracker to replace its 150 000 tonne/year No 1 cracker in Jinshan, Shanghai, China. more
(11 May 2004 17:06)

Reliance and NPC in C2 discussions
Reliance Industries is in preliminary discussions with Iran’s National Petrochemical Co (NPC) for a cracker project in Iran, a source close to the.... more
(11 May 2004 17:05)

Alliance mooted between IPCC and Equate
IRAN Petrochemical Commercial Co (IPCC), the marketing subsidiary of National Petrochemical Co (NPC), has begun talks with Equate in an effort to.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

IPCC plans ship for methanol
IRAN Petrochemical Commercial Co (IPCC) hopes to commission a local shipbuilding firm next month to build its first vessel for shipping National.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Atofina eyes Middle East, Asia
ATOFINA’s petrochemicals strategy in the last few decades had been focused on establishing a strong position in Europe and North America. more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

‘Sharp growth’ for Cheil ECM sales
CHEIL Industries’ electronic chemical material (ECM) division sales in the first quarter of this year increased by 37% over the same quarter of last.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Hyosung claims first with PTT
HYOSUNG expects sales of about US$67m this year for its new PTT (poly trimethylene terephthalate)-fibre woven carpet, a company source told ACN. more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Specialities roundup
SHOWA DENKO (SDK) said the European Court decided on 29 April to impose a fine of Euro10.44m (US$12.6m) on the company for its involvement in.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Awaiting the second wave
With the first wave of Sino-foreign crackers well underway, attention is turning to the next wave. Companies are lining up, but their partnerships.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Tuning into the electronic circuit
Taiwan is a prime location for electronic production, providing a ready market for electronic chemicals. But their heavy reliance on the volatile.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Global roundup
From stories supplied by the CNI and ACN teams more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

PE margins dwindle in SEA as C2 costs continue to rise
MARGINS for Southeast Asian producers of polyethylene (PE) had almost disappeared, said traders, owing to the rising cost of ethylene feedstock and.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Phenol surge may boomerang
WILL the ongoing phenol price rally eventually boomerang on producers, causing a shrinkage in demand? more
(15 May 2004 17:29)

Reliance and IPCC in marketing MoU
Reliance Industries and Iran Petrochemical Commercial (IPCC) signed a preliminary MoU early this month on forging a marketing alliance between the.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Market Trends: Phenol soars by $110
Domestic prices for phenol in China rise by Rmb800/tonne. Benzene is also on the rise although business is dull. Volatile toluene affects mixed.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Market Trends: Butadiene up by $85
Strong demand from SBR players in China pushes up butadiene prices. Naphtha falls despite surge in crude. Methanol inches up while C2 and C3 are.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

New Projects Summary
REPORTED IN ACN 3-9 MAY 2004 more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Qilu mulls PX facility in Zibo
QILU Petrochemical is considering building a paraxylene (PX) facility in Zibo, Shandong, China, a company source told ACN. more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Garson and SPC to collaborate on styrene project in China
PETROCHINA Garson is to build a 200 000 tonne/year styrene unit in China. more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Sabic eyes Tianjin cracker
SABIC showed interest in investing in a cracker project in Tianjin, China, during its recent visit to China, said informed sources. more
(15 May 2004 17:29)

Continental to start piling work on Zhuhai PA-DOP
CONTINENTAL Chemical aims to start piling work on its integrated phthalic anhydride (PA)-di-octyl phthalate (DOP) complex in Zhuhai, Guangdong,.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

SIIG to revive Saudi cracker plan
SAUDI Industrial Investment Group (SIIG) is reviving plans for a cracker project in Al-Jubail, Saudi Arabia. more
(15 May 2004 17:30)

OOC in talks with an ethylene major
OMAN Oil Co (OOC) is in talks with an international ethylene major on equity participation in the former’s 1m tonne/year cracker project in Sohar,.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Indo Rama expects loan by end-June
INDO Rama Synthetics (India) expects to sign loan agreements worth Euro80m (US$96.3m) with German banks before the end of June to fund its Euro160m.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Dushanzi submits proposal for 1mtpa cracker
DUSHANZI Petrochemical has submitted a proposal to the central government for a 1m tonne/year cracker in Dushanzi, Xinjiang, China, according to.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Atofina eyes Iran C2 stake
ATOFINA is in preliminary discussions with Iran’s National Petrochemical Co (NPC) on the French major taking an equity stake in NPC’s No 14 Olefins.... more
(15 May 2004 17:28)

Margins under pressure
High energy costs, slowing demand, and softer spot pricing the main reasons. Volatile benzene affects PS and styrene markets, while chlor-alkali.... more
(15 May 2004 17:10)

Orlen/Mol merger awaits vote
Poland will make a decision within the next month on whether it goes ahead with the merger of state-owned oil and petrochemicals group PKN Orlen with.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Dynamit sale puts MG ahead
MG Technologies will have around €1bn to spend on acquisitions after selling its Dynamit Nobel chemicals and plastics businesses for €2.68bn and.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

High tech sector is up trumps
Production volumes among US chemical makers are generally up, but the news is best for suppliers to the high tech sectors. more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Kemipol clinches Zlotniki deal
Kemira’s Polish water treatment chemicals subsidiary Kemipol has acquired the water treatment chemicals business of Polish firm Zlotniki. more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Hydro set to buy back shares
Norwegian energy, metals and petrochemicals group Norsk Hydro has received approval to repurchase around 2.8m shares at NKr200-700 each over an.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

OMV petchem profit records slip
Austrian energy group OMV revealed a 2.8% drop to €17.8m in first quarter (Q1) earnings before interest and tax (Ebit) from its petrochemicals.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Sika sets seal on Secaicho
Swiss construction chemicals and materials group Sika has acquired the construction chemicals business of Japan’s Secaicho Group for an undisclosed.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Syngenta faces patent lawsuit
Syngenta was last week defending itself against a patent infringement suit over use of the GA21 technology for producing a genetically modified corn. more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Dutch chemicals due for boost
The Dutch chemical industry is predicting a 7% gain in sales this year as well as a 4% increase in production output and a 3% increase in selling.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Dystar sale is ‘conceivable’
A buyer for Dystar, the three-way textile dyes joint venture of Bayer, BASF and Aventis, may have been found. more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

BASF slashes jobs in ongoing restructuring
BASF is to cut 550-680 jobs at its plants in the US to save $30-40m. more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

DSM takes German resins firm
DSM Coating Resins, of Zwolle, the Netherlands, and Hüttenes-Albertus have reached agreement on the acquisition of Hüttenes-Albertus Lackrohstoffe.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

People on the move
Cookson Cookson’s chief executive officer Stephen Howard will be leaving the UK materials technology company once a successor has been found..... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

20 years ago
ECN 21 May 1984 more
(14 May 2004 17:49)

Environment in brief
Discrimination The European Union has given Germany 60 days to modify its mandatory deposit system for single-trip packaging to eliminate.... more
(14 May 2004 17:49)