ICIS - Search Articles by Date : July 26 2004 - August 01 2004

Business in brief
Takeover cleared The US Federal Trade Com­mission has officially cleared Sanofi-Synthélabo’s takeover of Aventis. The FTC insists that.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Basell up for sale, to complete 2005
Basell, the European polyolefins joint venture owned 50:50 by BASF and Shell, is up for sale. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Fresh look?
India's chemical industry is looking to get a new look with a strong helping hand from the government. The industry has plenty of strengths, but can.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

The record breaker
Strong export and domestic demand are expected to help the Malaysian plastics industry post a record turnover of over Ringgit10bn this year. This.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Global roundup
From stories supplied by the CNI and ACN teams more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Market Trends: PX strengthens
Benzene market sentiment weakens and toluene slips by US$20/tonne. MX and phenol remain stable, while a wide price gap stalls OX business more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Market Trends: A new high for C2
Ethylene jumps by US$95/tonne to US$1015 even as cracker operators trim PE production to sell spot C2. Naphtha soars to US$397/tonne more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

MMA to see further hikes?
SOARING raw-material costs, tight supplies, and firm demand have prompted Asian methyl methacrylate (MMA) producers to aim for a fresh round of price.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

DOP producers seek increase
ASIAN di-octyl-phthalate (DOP) producers were last week trying to raise spot prices to US$930/tonne cfr China to compensate for rising raw-material.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

ABS and PS soar on high styrene
ACRYLONITRILE butadiene styrene (ABS) and polystyrene (PS) prices soared last week by US$150-160/tonne and US$60-110/tonne, respectively, supported.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Spot naphtha in bullish market
THE Asian naphtha spot market changed direction last week after the cancellation of two sell tenders by India owing to low export prices. more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

PE rises... but so does C2
POLYETHYLENE (PE) producers managed to push up prices by US$40-70/tonne for August shipments last week, only to find that spot ethylene had risen.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

High paraxylene costs push up PTA spot and term prices
HIGH feedstock costs compelled purified terephthalic acid (PTA) producers to raise spot offers to US$760/tonne cfr China after settling business at.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

New Projects Summary
As reported in ACN 26 July-1 August 2004 more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Dalian C2 assessment due soon
A PROJECTS team formed by representatives from Dalian Shide Group, Sabic and Jin Hua Group is expected to complete a feasibility study on Shide’s.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Aromatics at CNOOC’s refinery
CHINA National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) will build an aromatics unit integrated into its 12m tonne/year refinery project in Daya Bay, Huizhou,.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

India-Iran NH3
AN India-Iran ammonia project, abandoned last year, is expected to be discussed by India’s Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers, Ram Vilas Paswan,.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

PTT mulls long-term Viet petchems
PTT Pcl is mulling producing petrochemicals in Vietnam in the long term. more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Qapco to hike ldPE capacity
QATAR Petrochemical Co (Qapco) will use part of the extra ethylene capacity from its planned cracker expansion to debottleneck its low-density.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

SPC to expand PTA to 400ktpa
SHANGHAI Petrochemical Co (SPC) is to expand its 280 000 tonne/year purified terephthalic acid (PTA) unit in Jinshan, Shanghai, China. more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Sinopec cracker in Qingdao?
SINOPEC is considering integrating its planned refinery in Qingdao, Shandong, China, with a cracker, said a source close to the project. more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Styrene shelved
SHANTOU Ocean Enterprise (Group) has shelved its styrene project in Quanzhou, Fujian, China, until it knows where it can obtain its benzene.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

Cangzhou Dahua TDI gets nod
THE Chinese government has approved Hebei Cangzhou Dahua Group’s feasibility study on a 50 000 tonne/year toluene diisocyanate (TDI) unit in Lingang.... more
(30 July 2004 17:59)

BASF staff get new pay plan
BASF is implementing a performance-related variable pay plan for its 29 000 German workers who fall under the industry-wide collective agreement with.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

BP to fold chemicals arm into group
UK-based oil giant BP will fold the rump of its chemicals operations into its refining and marketing business, after divesting its olefins and.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Clariant sells AZ electronics
Clariant has sold its AZ Electronic Materials business unit to US-based private equity firm Carlyle Group for SF518m (€336m/$405m). more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Croda notes strong Asian demand
UK oleochemicals maker Croda says it is seeing firm underlying demand for its products, with Asia looking especially bright. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Chemical giants report boost in earnings for Q2
US chemical industry giants Dow Chemical and DuPont have both reported strong second quarters, as demand rebounds in all world regions. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Profits up but recovery slow
DSM chairman Peter Elverding has warned against over-optimistic assumptions about a European recovery, despite improved trading results for the.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

ICI profits in line with targets
ICI has reported a 20% increase in second quarter pre-tax profits to £118m (€178m/ $215m), despite a 6% fall in sales to £1.43bn more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Rockwood snaps up pigments
UK group Johnson Matthey is to sell its pigments and dispersions business to Rockwood Specialties for £27m (€41m/$50m) in cash. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Merck makes sales from LCDs
Germany’s Merck KGaA is cashing in on the boom in liquid crystal-based screens for flat-screen televisions. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Radici moves out of PET sector
Radici has exited the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) sector with the sale of its Aussapol manufacturing operation to Portugal’s Selenis for an.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

‘Challenging’ times for Rhodia
Heavily-indebted Rhodia is taking urgent steps to get its spiralling interest payments under control. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Shell margins upbeat for Q2
Shell Chemicals’ margins and profitability improved in the second quarter despite high energy and feedstock costs, as capacity utilisation increased.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Monsanto faces seeds lawsuit
Syngenta’s US subsidiary Syngenta Seeds has launched a legal challenge against Monsanto’s claim of a US monopoly on biotechnology corn seed. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

People on the move
DuPont/Air Products DuPont Air Products NanoMaterials, a 50:50 joint venture of DuPont Electronic Technologies and Air Products, has.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

25 years ago
ECN 30 July 1979 more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Minister puts Reach fears aside
UK secretary of state for the environment, food and rural affairs, Margaret Beckett, does not believe that the impending Reach chemicals legislation.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

French AFSSA questions GMOs
France’s food safety agency (L’Agence française de sécurité sanitaire des aliments – AFSSA) says it remains uncertain about both the risks and the.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

UK/Hungary call for easier chemicals registration
The governments of Hungary and the UK have put forward a joint proposal to improve and simplify the ‘one substance, one registration’ component of.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Environment in brief
Cognis gets award A range of surfactants produced by Cognis has been selected as the only nomination to go forward for the German Chemical.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Modern chemistry facility
Prince Andrew, the UK’s Duke of York, has opened the Tripos Discovery Research Centre (TDRC) at Bude in Cornwall. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Scavenger resin joins Avecia
Avecia has added a new product to its range of pharmaceutical catalyst technologies. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Fine Chemicals in brief
Antisoma gains UK-based cancer drug development company Antisoma has gained exclusive rights over the drug BC1-IL12 and will now accelerate.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Bayer/Bertschi get connected
Bayer MaterialScience is now electronically linked to the logistics company Bertschi by business-to-business (B2B) provider Elemica. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Shippers forced to chew over taking pollution cover
Shipping companies are being urged to consider taking out extra insurance cover ahead of the European Union directive likely to come into force later.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Univar signs exclusive deal
ExxonMobil has chosen Univar as exclusive distributor for its range of packed white oils, process oils and waxes in the UK, Ireland, Belgium,.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

Logistics in brief
Ammonia contract Uhde of Dortmund, Germany, has won a €9m contract to build a new ammonia storage tank facility for Lithuanian company AB.... more
(30 July 2004 17:36)

ACN price riles consumers
European acrylonitrile (ACN) producers are seeking price increases of €90-€120/tonne for quarter three (Q3) contracts. more
(30 July 2004 17:36)