ICIS - Search Articles by Date : June 11 2007 - June 17 2007

Lonza targets growth in Asia for pharmaceuticals business and shifts its global strategy
Lonza plans to double sales for its pharmaceuticals ­manufacturing business by 2010 from 2005, a senior ­industry official has said. The.... more
(11 June 2007 11:56)

PVC producers look to pass on ethylene price hikes
EUROPEAN POLYVINYL chloride (PVC) producers are targeting increases of up to €60/tonne ($81/tonne) for June contracts on the back of tighter vinyl.... more
(11 June 2007 11:59)

Made an innovative impact?
ICIS Chemical Business and ICIS ­Chemical Business Americas are proud to partner with Dow Corning for the fourth global chemical industry.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

ICIS Conferences
THE 3RD ASIAN AROMATICS & DERIVATIVES CONFERENCE June 28-29 Venue The Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore Email sharon.hart@icis.com .... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Boehringer voted top firm
DRUGMAKER BOEHRINGER Ingelheim continues to be rated as the top employer among German chemical industry managers. In the sixth annual survey.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Lanxess strike unresolved
PRODUCTION AT Lanxess' butyl rubber plant in Zwijndrecht, Belgium, remained at a standstill last week as 500 employees covered by a collective labor.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

IN BRIEF - Europe watch
Ruling on Romania's Petrom overturned A decision to close Petrom's Arpechim refinery in Romania on environmental grounds was overturned by a.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

5-minute news watch
Chemtrade eyes its alternatives Toronto-based industrial chemical producer Chemtrade Logistics is continuing to evaluate "strategic.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

ANNOUNCEMENT - A new type of magazine launches for a new media age
On July 16, a new global magazine debuts. It will be tailor-made to deliver high reader value in an internet age - a magazine that will be unique to.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

QUOTES OF THE WEEK
"These new regulations are designed to assure that we don't have free riders" Michael Chertoff, Homeland Security "The price surge is.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Conferences and events
EPCA 2007 ANNUAL MEETING September 29-October 1 Berlin, Germany Tel +32 2 741 8660 Fax +32 2 741 8680 Email meetings@epca.be .... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Iran eyes olefins venture with India
IRAN IS still planning to form a joint venture with India to run an olefins project, a senior Iranian company official said last week. "We have.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Valspar eyes more deals outside US
PAINTS AND coatings maker Valspar will continue growing through acquisitions outside the US, according to CEO William Mansfield. "We are looking.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Europe to US benzene arbitrage opens
TWO BENZENE shipping fixtures from Europe to the US have marked the opening of the latest transatlantic arbitrage window, a shipbroker reported last.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Wacker to triple polysilicon
GERMAN CHEMICAL producer Wacker Chemie plans to triple polysilicon production to 21,500 tonnes/year by 2010 at a cost of €400m ($533m) at its plant.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

TiO2 hikes are tough sell
  ATTEMPTS TO hike TiO2 pigments on July 1 are unlikely to succeed because of continued softness in demand for.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Soda ash output down
NORTH AMERICAN soda ash output was 444,000 tonnes below capacity during first quarter, according to the US Geological Survey, but one producer last.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

China vaults ahead
CHINA HAS become the world's leader in soda ash production with total nameplate capacity of 16m tonnes/year in 2006, surpassing US production, an.... more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

Following the sun at Dow Corning
Dow Corning sees the light when it comes to investingin the future of energy needs for North America more
(15 June 2007 16:40)

ICIS Chemical Shipping News:13 June 2007
ICIS Chemical Shipping News 13 June 2007   more
(13 June 2007 10:43)

ICIS radio Americas 14 June 2007
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(14 June 2007 09:20)

ICIS radio: Chemical News Central: 15 June 2007
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(15 June 2007 15:50)

Maaden selects contractors for Saudi fertilizer project
Saudi Arabian Mining (Maaden) is finalising lumpsum turnkey contracts with South Korea's Samsung Engineering, Finland's Outotec, Litwin of France.... more
(11 June 2007 11:58)

CCMP Capital Advisors sell PQ Corp to Carlyle Group for $1.5bn
Private equity firm CCMP Capital Advisors has sold specialty chemicals company PQ Corporation to Carlyle Group for about double its initial.... more
(11 June 2007 11:57)

SigmaKalon goes up for sale
Paints and coatings producer SigmaKalon has confirmed that its private equity owner, Bain Capital, is looking to dispose of the company. US-based.... more
(11 June 2007 11:20)

UK's INEOS acquires Borealis Norwegian assets
INEOS GROUP has agreed to buy Borealis' Norwegian petrochemicals operations for €290m ($392m) on a debt-free basis. Under the deal, which is.... more
(11 June 2007 11:19)

Synthesis plans coal-to-DME project for China
US-BASED Synthesis Energy Investments, a coal-to-chemicals company, has signed a joint-venture agreement with utilities provider Inner Mongolia.... more
(12 June 2007 16:28)

THINK TANK - Majors ramp up bio-polymers production
Bio-based chemicals and plastics are coming of age. Consumers are looking for performance and biodegradability. The origin and fate of.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

MIDDLE EAST INSIDER - A blow for the GCC unified currency
It looks like the Middle East's Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has admitted defeat before the real battle has begun. Ambitious plans to create a.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

IN BRIEF - Asia Watch
Far eastern textile sees revenue expand Taiwan's polyester major Far Eastern Textile posted a 37.7% year-on-year increase in its May revenue to.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

NEW PROJECTS REPORTED BY ICIS 4-17 June 2007
Company Product Capacity Process Contractor Cost Startup Status Bayer MaterialScience .... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

IN BRIEF - Environment Watch
EXPORT DEALS TO FACE TOUGHER REGULATION OECD countries have agreed to recommendations calling for tougher environmental requirements for.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

IN BRIEF - Supply chain
Distrupol adds technical polymers Distrupol has added the technical polymers Aquamid AR100 and the Aquamid HC range from Aquafil Technopolymers.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

PETER'S PREDICTIONS - Speculation surrounds mass shutdowns
Negotiations for third quarter (Q3) acetic acid contracts are normally quiet following the storm of second quarter talks. This year, however, things.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

IN BRIEF - Project Watch
Basell ups Brindisi spherizone PP unit Basell is debottlenecking and revamping its Spherizone polypropylene (PP) plant at Brindisi, Italy,.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

Washington Insider - US companies get help to track terrorists
US chemical companies will soon be able to check the identities of their employees and job applicants against a national terrorist database.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

IN BRIEF - Europe Watch
Ruling on Romania's Petrom overturned A decision to close Petrom's Arpechim refinery in Romania on environmental grounds was overturned by a.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

EU Insider - G8 summit settles on key goals for treaty
The annual meeting of the Group of Eight (G8) leading industrialised nations held earlier this month in Heiligendamm, Germany, was in danger of.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

5-minute Americas watch
Solvay expands soda ash for pharma use Solvay is expanding capacity for ultra-pure soda ash at its site in Dombasle, France, to meet demands.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

5-minute project watch
Dupont highlights renewables on web DuPont has launched a website to provide information on its range of bio-based materials, which it has.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

5-minute market watch
Ammonia unit restarts Chinese fertilizer producer Hubei Yihua Chemical planned to restart its fire-hit ammonia unit by the end of last week. A.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

A new type of magazine launches for a new media age
On 16 July, a new global magazine debuts. It will be tailor-made to deliver high reader value in an internet age - a magazine that will be unique to.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

Top news from ICIS news, 11-17 JUNE
China faces naphtha shortage on C2 growth - IEA China's booming domestic demand using ethylene as a raw material may lead to a shortage of.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

Quotes of the week
"The [algae-based] technology is much further along than most people realise" Jerry Fiddler, chairman of Solazyme, after its deal to provide.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

Aromatics prices stabilise after freefall
Naphtha remained unchanged in Europe, while in Asia, surging Indian exports exerted downward pressure on prices. Ethylene also weakened on expected.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

Markets - Data bank
          .... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

The pressure's on as the market slows
Following a positive first few months of the year, an unprepared shipping market gets ready for some harder times ahead, with Europe bearing the brunt more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

View from the bridge - Shipping caught off-guard
Climate change was top of the agenda for this month's informal G8 group meeting. And changes to our climate will certainly affect the industry as.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

Brunner builds UK bicarbonate plant
BRUNNER Mond, a subsidiary of India's Tata Chemicals, is investing £10m ($20m, €15m) to build a third sodium bicarbonate plant. The new 50,000.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)

Dow begins second solution SBR unit
DOW Chemical has begun to build a second solution styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) plant in Schkopau, Germany. Scheduled for completion in the second.... more
(15 June 2007 14:58)