ICIS - Search Articles by Date : August 25 2003 - August 31 2003

Campaign: Classroom disappointment
I have to say that I was disappointed by the campaign article in ECN 21 July - especially the last couple of paragraphs, which misrepresented the.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Campaign: Primary science can be fun
I was disappointed with the article: We must address primary concerns ( ECN 21 July), as I did not feel it did justice to the impact of the project.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Managing growth is a tall order
Soaring unemplooyment due to structural reforms and rapidly rising money supply and therefore the potential for a harmful inflation rate are a few of.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

It's not entirely a bed of roses
China's plastics processing sector has its fair share of problems, most of which result from the booming demand growth, discovers Malini Hariharan..... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Victim of success
China's boming textile exports have led to US pressure for safeguard duties with other countries threatening to follow suit, reports Malini.... more
(29 August 2003 19:47)

New Project Summary
As reported in ACN 25-31 August 2003 more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

CMAI:Iraq could build two crackers by 2012-16
CMAI expects Iraq to build two worldscale steam crackers between 2012 and 2016, said Andrew Pettman, CMAI's director of European and Middle Eastern.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Japan Rings in the next wave
Japan has launched the second wave of its 'refining and petrochemical renaissance' project following budgetary approval by the Ministry of Finance of.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Sinopec non-core assets to go?
Sinopec Corp is looking to either spin off, sell, scrap or transfer all or some of its ammonia-urea and synthetic-fibre businesses more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Cheil Industries to change name, but not its strategy
Cheil Industries, the parent company of the Samsung Group, will have a new name, probably by the end of this year more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Huntsman is in no hurry to proceed with IPO
Huntsman is no hurry to launch an initial public offering (IPO), although president and chief executive officer Peter Huntsman mentioned the.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Japanese chems set for TSE rule change
A number of Japanese chemical companies are releasing their quarterly financial results for the first time in preparation for 1January 2004, when the.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Shin-Etsu invests $830m in facilities
Shin-Etsu Chemical is investing Yen100bn (US$830m) in building and expanding facilities for the manufacture of silicon wafers, silicone resins, and.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Global roundup
From stories supplied by the CNI and ACN teams more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Polymer Trends: PS up, PE/PP in limbo
PS prices continue to rally but PE and PP buyers back away from markets, with the next 10 days said to be crucial more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Acrylo players seek rise of $50-70
Asahi Kasei and Taekwang Industrial were each seeking a September contract price of US$850/tonne cfr Asia for acrylonitrile last week, an increase of.... more
(29 August 2003 19:43)

PVC rises on back of strong demand
PVC prices were rising steadily last week, on strong demand from China, high feedstock costs and tight supply more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Phenol prices up as demand soars
Demand for phenol in Southeast Asia (SEA) is rising rapidly due to its increasing use in the construction and furniture segments, a producer and a.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

C2s, C3s in muddle on downstream uncertainty
Ethylene and propylene markets were in a muddle last week as the continued tight supply, and in the case of ethylene stronger demand, were being.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Styrene dips by $30 on US cargo arrival
The arrival of 100 000 tonne of US styrene in Asia, most of which has been delivered to China, weakened market sentiment in the region last week and.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Market Trends: Benzene down $50-60
Benzene prices continue to fall, with the last reported deal at $460-470. Prices of toluene and MX also rise, but uncertainty in crude could cause.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Market Trends: C4 market softens
Chinese buying ideas said to be around $710. Asian naphtha prices, however, bounced back amid strong crude values more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Yanhua, Mitsub in BPA-PC talks?
Beijing Yanhua Petrochemical and Mitsubishi Chemical are holding talks on a worldscale bisphenol A (BPA)-polycarbonate (PC) project in Yanshan,.... more
(29 August 2003 19:42)

Huajin plans Xinjiang NH3-urea unit
Liaoning Huajin Chemical (Group) Corp plans to build an integrated 300 000 tonne/ year ammonia and 530 000 tonne/year urea plant in Kuqa, Xinjiang,.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

MA unit for Tianjin
Zhonghe Chemical plans to build a 15 000 tonne/year maleic anhydride (MA) plant in Dongli, Tianjin, China, that would boost its total capacity to 65.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Shell eyes Q1 for C2 definition study
Shell Chemicals expects to proceed to the next stage of its feasibility study on its 1m tonne/year cracker project in Pulau Bukom, Singapore, in Q1.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Tosoh to firm up China PVC by end-2003
Tosoh Corp plans to firm up its back-integrated PVC project in China by end-2003, a company source said more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Luzhou butanediol
Sichuan Tianhua Co plans to build a 25 000 tonne/year 1,4-butanediol plant with a 10 000 tonne/year acetylene facility and a 60 000 tonne/year.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Sabic confirms study on Panjin expansion
Sabic has confirmed for the first time that it has signed an in-principle agreement to study an investment in the proposed expansion of Panjin.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Two cos to produce PTA jointly
Zhejiang Rongsheng Chemical Fibre and Zhejiang Hengyi Group have decided to build a 500-600 000 tonne/year purified terephthalic acid (PTA) plant in.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Informal Asean talks on INAplas' polymer tariffs request
An Asean working group is discussing the request by the Indonesia Olefin and Plastic Industries Association (INAplas) for the reinstatement of the.... more
(29 August 2003 19:38)

Chem-wire Express Japan
Chem-wire Express Japan: Edition of 22 August Basic and Fine Chemicals Sony expects to commercialise a new technology called phase.... more
(25 August 2003 07:18)

Chem-wire Express Japan
Chem Wire Express Japan Edition of 25 August   Basic and Fine Chemicals more
(26 August 2003 05:47)

Chem-wire Express Japan
Chem-wire Express Japan: Edition of 26 August Basic and Fine Chemicals Marubeni Plax Corp has recently startedf operations at its first.... more
(27 August 2003 04:52)

Chem-wire Express Japan
Chem-wire Express Japan: Edition of 27 August   Basic and Fine Chemicals Nippon Kayaku has inaugurated a corporate.... more
(28 August 2003 04:59)

Chem-wire Express Japan
Chem-wire Express Japan: Edition of 28 August Basic and Fine Chemicals Kuraray has tripled the production capacity of its.... more
(29 August 2003 06:17)

Product Profile: Butanediol
Excess capacity still holds the sector to ransom with no change in the medium term. Future investments may focus on derivatives as new processes.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Campaign: THE CV CIA AWARD
Name Maranda Thomson Age: 26 University: Imperial College, London, UK Degree:BSc in chemistry and biochemistry Graduated: 1999 .... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Phoschem agrees DAP deal with China
The Phosphate Chemical Export Association (Phoschem) has signed a memorandum of understanding with China National Agricultural Means of Production.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Campaign: Time to be positive on the role of chemists
I agree wholeheartedly with the letters published ( ECN 28 July) and would like to add something on chemistry and the media. As Colin Humphris.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

UK Solutia sets green objectives
Solutia's Newport, Wales, site is proud of its health and safety record. Key to the company's success is its continual improvement in HSE.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Nano industry must be upfront
There is, it seems, increasing controversy over the build up, and indeed hype, surrounding nanotechnology more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

People on the move
IG&H Management Consultants Ex-Vopak executive board member Niels von Hombracht has joined consultancy firm IG&H Management Consultants.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

20 years ago
ECN 29 August 1983 more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Strong demand supports markets
A number of price hikes were achieved during August with supply problems serving to back increases. Sales volumes reached 'record' levels and.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

Market Trends: Plant outages keep ethylene tight
Ethylene plant outages are affecting markets keeping material tight. Prices have risen to $500-530/tonne cif NWE range, although some force majeure.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

News in brief
Sweet addition A range of mannitol grades, under the trade name Pearlitol , has been developed and launched by French starch processing company.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

MRO savings could cut 'millions of dollars', claims consultancy
LCP Consulting of Berkhamsted, UK, has recently completed a project looking at the costs of MRO (maintenance, repair operations) and believes that.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

US pushes for WTO panel
The US, Argentina and Canada have asked for a World Trade Organisation (WTO) panel on the European Union's approach to genetically modified organisms more
(29 August 2003 16:02)

News in brief
Ban still in force The European Union's ban on phthalate softeners in PVC toys has been renewed again, for the 15th time since it was introduced.... more
(29 August 2003 16:02)