ICIS - Search Articles by Date : July 12 2004 - July 18 2004

Product profile: Polychloroprene
Consumption will continue to fall in the developed economies as product substitution from competing polymers takes its toll. Strong growth in China.... more
(15 July 2004 11:37)

Product profile: VCM
Demand in Europe is healthy, but limited ethylene feedstock availability has constrained output. The region is still in dire need of more.... more
(15 July 2004 10:57)

Success and the Supply Chain: How Chemical Companies Can Master Complexity
How is it that while chemical manufacturers race to become more competitive many are actually increasing the complexity and inefficiency of their.... more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

PeopleSoft Releases Version 8.10 of its Asset Lifecycle Management Suite
PeopleSoft Inc. has announced the general availability of PeopleSoft Enterprise One Asset Lifecycle Ma-nagement (ALM) 8.10. This latest ALM offering.... more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

Countdown: Strategic Sourcing Summit and Showcase
Strategic Sourcing Summit & Showcase more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

SemiCon Shows Industry Strength
With more than 1,500 exhibitors, SemiCon West 2004 was an opportunity for semiconductor material and equipment suppliers and manufacturers to put the.... more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

Solutia Explores Options for Pharma Unit
Solutia Pharmaceutical Services Division (PSD) may soon be on the selling block. In a filing last week with the US Securities and Exchange.... more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

Halocarbon Expands to Maintain Customer Focus
In an industry pressured by increasing consolidation, smaller suppliers can find ways to maintain advantages over their larger brethren through.... more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

Specialties Pricing
ALBEMARLE Corp. has increased global prices for its Sanibrom bromine-based water treatment chemicals by around 15 percent as of July 15. more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

Wall Street Upgrades Lyondell and Cytec
Wall Street is turning more bull-ish on the chemicals group, with upgrades of Lyondell Chemical Company and Cytec Industries Inc. last week. more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

EPA Seeks Penalty Against DuPont for PFOA
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will seek a multimil-lion dollar penalty against DuPont for allegedly withholding evidence for 20 years.... more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

ExxonMobil Chemical Names New President
Michael J. Dolan has been tapped to become president of ExxonMobil Chemical Company and a vice president of Exxon Mobil Corp. on September 1, upon the more
(16 July 2004 19:35)

Novartis Bags Sabex for $565 MM
Seeking to further boost its position in generics drugs, Sandoz, the generics arm of Novartis AG, has agreed to acquire Sabex Holdings Ltd. in a more
(16 July 2004 19:47)

Sinochem in shipping jv
SINOCHEM Shipping & Enterprises Co (Hainan) plans to form a 51:49 domestic shipping joint venture with Stolt Nielsen in China soon, Tang Xuan Ting,.... more
(12 July 2004 10:36)

Transport costs soar in China
ROAD transportation charges for petrochemicals in China have doubled after the 20 June clampdown on the overloading of trucks, according to industry.... more
(12 July 2004 10:35)

TPC conducts study on Thai VCM
THAI Plastics and Chemicals (TPC) is conducting a feasibility study on building a 300 000 tonne/year vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) plant in Mab Ta.... more
(12 July 2004 10:35)

Medco considers second methanol
MEDCO Energy is considering building a methanol plant, probably in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, a company official told ACN. more
(12 July 2004 10:34)

Luring investors
The place to be in SEA is Thailand, where companies have drawn up an impressive list of projects. Clara Tan takes a look at what is making Thailand.... more
(13 July 2004 11:25)

Giant Star sets schedule for third phase of PVC
GIANT Star Group plans to bring the third phase of its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) project onstream at the end of 2005 or in early 2006. more
(13 July 2004 11:25)

Nard, Avecia ink tech deal
JAPAN’s Nard Institute has signed a technology-transfer agreement with Avecia Pharmaceuticals, ACN was told. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Specialities roundup
CLARIANT has announced the sale of its Lancaster Synthesis subsidiary for about SF32m (US$26m) and confirmed it was in advanced talks to.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Syngene eyes big earnings growth
SYNGENE is looking to grow its earnings from its outsourcing work by at least 50% over the next few years, its chief operating officer, Goutam Das,.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Anti-dumping: China ‘just using WTO rights’
DAYS after the EU refused to recognise China as a market economy, it was reported that the Beijing government planned to increase its use of.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Meti mulls safety standards
JAPAN’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Meti) is reviewing its system of plant inspections under the country’s High-Pressure Gas Safety Law.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

India Budget: Boost for PVC
The Indian Budget for 2003-04, announced earlier this month, held few surprises for the chemicals industry, and had little to offer directly. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Running out of steam?
Will China’s chlor-alkali and vinyls industries continue to run on the expansion track? Or will a combination of factors such as recent government.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

A growing appetite
The chlor-alkali industry faces the prospect of a shortfall in chlorine in the coming years. But this does not guarantee strong returns for.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Global roundup
From stories supplied by the CNI and ACN teams. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Market Trends: Styrene up by $260
Styrene prices rocket, reflecting soaring benzene costs. Toluene and paraxylene are also higher. Orthoxylene is quiet owing to wide gap between.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Market Trends: C3 rises $50/tonne
Propylene moves up to US$830/tonne cfr SEA as supply tightens. Butadiene shows signs of softening owing to Chinese resistance. Ammonia is upbeat more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Tight supply gives Asia crackers good margins
CRACKER operators in Asia were enjoying very good margins last week, as tight supply and strong demand resulted in a significant rise in propylene.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Styrene hits nine-year high
ASIAN styrene prices soared to a nine-year high last week, overtaking derivative prices and prompting strong customer resistance. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Asia-US benzene arbitrage surpasses expectations
ASIAN producers and traders last week doubled their benzene shipments to the US for July and August from the same period last year owing to the wide.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

New Projects Summary
As reported in ACN 12-18 July 2004 more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Ibrahim mulls back-integration
IBRAHIM Fibre is to conduct a feasibility study on back-integrating into purified terephthalic acid (PTA) sometime next year, a company source told.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

ExxonMobil to expand in ’05?
EXXONMOBIL is believed to be planning to expand its 800 000 tonne/year cracker on Jurong Island, Singapore, during its turnaround in mid-2005, an.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Kingboard delays phenol unit
KINGBOARD Chemical Holdings has delayed the start-up of its phenol-acetone project in Changzhou, Jiangsu, China, to 2008, a company official told ACN. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Daicel’s acetic study by end-04
DAICEL Chemical Industries aims to complete a feasibility study on its acetic acid project by the end of this year, a company source told ACN. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Runhua VCM/PVC in two phases
JIANGYIN Runhua Chemical Products Co has decided to pursue its vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)-polyvinyl chloride (PVC) project in two phases. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Sinochem builds two-berth port
SINOCHEM International is building a port in Taicang in Suzhou city, Jiangsu, China. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Sipchem in Tasnee C2 plan
SAUDI International Petrochemical Co (Sipchem) will be taking part in National Petrochemical Industrialisation Co’s planned 1m tonne/year cracker.... more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Yanzhou plans coal-based methanol unit
YANZHOU Coal Mining Co plans to build a 300 000 tonne/year coal-based methanol unit in Shaanxi, China. more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

PE demand looking hopeful
Improvement in C2 volumes and PE demand, but outlook is cautiously optimistic. Polyethylene volumes increase and chlorine supplies remain tight more
(16 July 2004 19:19)

Business in brief
PPG sales up US-based PPG Industries reported second quarter sales up 5.7% to $2.3bn, generating net income up 20% to $183m for the period..... more
(16 July 2004 19:11)

Staff sign on protection from job cuts
Bayer has signed a three-pronged agreement with its group works council aimed at safeguarding jobs at German sites, including those operated by the.... more
(16 July 2004 19:11)

Bayer lets go of 15% stake
Bayer has sold its 15% stake in German seeds producer KWS Saat to private investors Tessner Beteiligungs and Arend Oetker, thus fulfilling a.... more
(16 July 2004 19:11)

Life at the top
Karin Dorrepaal, Schering’s new managing board member with responsibility for diagnostics from 1 September 2004, is one of only two women.... more
(16 July 2004 19:11)

Rhodia to shut down HF unit
Rhodia plans to close its anhydrous hydrofluoric acid (HF) manufacturing operation in Avonmouth in the UK and will cease HF manufacture at the site.... more
(16 July 2004 19:11)

Terms agreed for GTL plant
ExxonMobil and the government of Qatar have agreed on terms for a $7bn gas-to-liquids (GTL) project that would be the largest such facility in the.... more
(16 July 2004 19:11)

Solutia seeks potential buyers
Solutia Europe, a subsidiary of US speciality chemicals maker Solutia, has hired investment bankers to seek out potential buyers for its.... more
(16 July 2004 19:11)