ICIS - Search Articles by Date : August 29 2005 - September 04 2005

Katrina hits markets, but is there a silver lining?
Major disruption to oil and gas supplies could hamper US economic growth for the rest of 2005. Petrochemical markets have reacted sharply, but price.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Investment plans show faith in PVC
THE SUCCESSFUL recapitalisation of German polyvinyl chloride (PVC) producer Vinnolit in late August, and unconfirmed news that private equity owner.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Boehringer tops A-list
FOR THE fourth consecutive year, Boehringer Ingelheim finished at the top of the list of the best German companies to work for, compiled annually by.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

All change for Lanxess
LANXESS IS to close some smaller sites and consolidate unprofitable facilities in the US and Europe in a second restructuring that will involve the.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

IN Brief News Watch
BOREALIS WARNS OF CONTINUED MARGIN SQUEEZE more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Hydro upgrades Rafnes plant
HYDRO POLYMERS, the petrochemical arm of Norsk Hydro, has plans for further investment in its operations in Qatar. Hydro has joint ownership of.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

DuPont to team with Tate & Lyle
DUPONT AND Tate & Lyle, working in a joint venture (jv), have 50% completed a $100m plant that will convert maize into 1,3-propanediol (PDO). more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Katrina could lead to US petchems peak in 2006
SURGING OIL and US natural gas prices were made worse by Hurricane Katrina last week, and companies in states close to Katrina’s landfall are likely.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

MMA price-fixing probe
THE EUROPEAN Commission is investigating Repsol, BASF, Arkema, Degussa, Lucite International and ICI over possible price-fixing and other.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Clariant to cut 1128 jobs in German overhaul
CLARIANT HAS identified the potential to cut 1128 of its 7000 jobs in Germany and save €146m in overheads at the 11 production sites in the country. more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Celanese Corp reaches deal with hold-out shareholders
AN AGREEMENT between US-based Celanese Corp and Paulson & Co and Arnhold and S Bleichroeder Advisers, institutional investors with shares in.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

ICL unveils sharp 57% profit rise
ISRAEL CHEMICALS (ICL) unveiled a 57% increase to $142.2m in second quarter operating profits driven by cost savings and higher product prices. more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

BASF buys east German nylon manufacturer
BASF IS to buy east German engineering plastics producer Leuna-Miramid for an undisclosed sum in a deal due to be completed in the fourth quarter. more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

TCG continues its fight with Indian Oil
THE CHATTERJEE Group (TCG) will have to wait until at least the end of September to see if it can prevent Indian Oil gaining a 7.5% stake in Haldia.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Global Roundup
BP PUTS CUSTOMERS ON ALLOCATION WARNING more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

IN BRIEF News Watch
PKN ORLEN INCREASES ITS OFFERS FOR MINORITY SHARES IN UNIPETROL AND SUBSIDIARIES more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Azelis expands with Brøste
AZELOS HAS acquired Denmark-based distributor Brøste in a move towards pan-European coverage. The deal is expected to take Azelis group sales to over.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Price-fixing hits Odfjell’s Q2 earnings
SECOND QUARTER (Q2) earnings at Odfjell have been hit by a $24m provision for antitrust settlements. The money will go to customers affected by.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Traffic doubles from eastern Europe
LORRY OPERATORS in the European Union accession states have doubled traffic volumes to the UK over the last year. Government statistics show that.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Dutch port to add distribution centre
DAVID HART Property is building a 100 000m2 distribution centre at Rotterdam port, the Netherlands. The centre, on Distripark Botlek, is near the.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Roundup
AIR PRODUCTS TO SUPPLY HYDROGEN TO JOLIET more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Green light for BASF cracker
BASF HAS decided to proceed with an expansion of its naphtha cracker in Antwerp, Belgium. more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

BASF debottleneck for extra DMAPA
BASF WILL debottleneck its dimethylaminopropylamine (DMAPA) capacity in Ludwigshafen, Germany. more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Tank farm wins for CB&I
THE CONTRACTOR CB&I has been awarded two major lump-sum turnkey contracts to supply gas storage tanks. more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Solvay selects its sulphone project site
SOLVAY ADVANCED Polymers has chosen Marietta in Ohio, US, as the site for its $50m world-scale sulphone polymers plant (ECN 25 April). more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Sharq signs deal
EASTERN PETROCHEMICAL Company (Sharq), a Sabic subsidiary, has signed a letter of intent with Foster Wheeler for the construction of utility units in.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

SBC plant for LCYCIC
LEE CHANG Yung Chemical Industry Corp (LCYCIC) will build a styrenic block copolymers (SBC) plant in Daya Bay, Huizhou, Guangdong, China. more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

NEW €1M SILO TO SOLVE RAW MATERIAL STORAGE PROBLEM
BASF Coatings has begun installing a new silo at its Münster-Hiltrup site, Germany, which will cost over €1m more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Power performers
After years of mediocre results, 2004 marks a welcome change – an upturn in the fortunes of many chemical producers. Nigel Davis reviews the Top 100 more
(03 September 2005 08:41)

Poised for profit?
After a five-year start-up effort, transaction hub Elemica is about to pay its own way, writes Eric Johnson more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Creative cost-cutting
BASF’s i-TCM system has reduced the company’s equipment and engineering costs, writes Cath O’Driscoll more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

BCDTA queries UK ideas
THE BRITISH Chemical Distributors and Traders Association (BCDTA) has broadly welcomed the UK presidency’s compromise proposals on Reach, but.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

IN BRIEF Environment Watch
PATAGONIA UNDRESSES TO ADDRESS RECYCLING more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Japan forms HPV initiative
JAPAN’S MINISTRY of health, labour and welfare; the ministry of economy, trade and industry; and the ministry of environment are undertaking a.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

ACSH claims carcinogen tests are ‘junk science’
THE AMERICAN Council on Science and Health (ACSH) has petitioned the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to eliminate what it calls ‘junk.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Natureworks buy-back
NATUREWORKS has announced plans to establish a large-volume buy-back programme for post-consumer polylactic acid (PLA) bottles. The programme also.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Only five implement recycling legislation
ONLY FIVE member states have told the European Commission that they have transposed into national legislation a European Union directive setting.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

US chemists find a safer route to stain resistance
US CHEMISTS have developed an alternative way of making stain-resistant coatings that promises significantly to reduce contamination of the.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Genetic vaccine boosts TB fight
EFFORTS TO curb the rise of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis bacteria should be helped by the development of a more effective TB vaccine. The BCG.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Cost-cutting nanocatalyst
AT ABOUT one-fifth of the cost of platinum powder, a nickel/cobalt alloy developed by US company QuantumSphere, promises to offer an effective and.... more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

CHEMICAL PROFILE
USES more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

People on the move
NEW PROJECTS REPORTED IN ECN 22 AUGUST 2005 more
(03 September 2005 07:59)

Global Roundup
CHINA OPERATIONS BOOST VOPAK ASIAN PROFITS BY 6.7% more
(03 September 2005 09:38)

ROUNDUP New projects
NEW PTA CAPACITY DUE IN BELARUS more
(03 September 2005 09:38)

ROUNDUP Markets
CPC SET TO RESTART NO3 CRACKER IN MID-SEPTEMBER AFTER OUTAGE more
(03 September 2005 09:38)

CHINA SAFEGUARDING SUPPLY
31 August. China has unveiled a series of measures to secure energy supplies following warnings that surging oil prices could hurt Asian economic.... more
(03 September 2005 09:38)

COMMENT An unresolvable dilemma?
DIE IF you do and die if you don’t. Isn’t this the dilemma that petrochemical companies face these days? more
(03 September 2005 09:38)

Innovene up for grabs ahead of IPO
IN WHAT appears to be a shift in strategy,BP could be looking to sell Innovene, its olefins and polyolefins subsidiary, through direct negotiations.... more
(03 September 2005 09:38)

Hurricane may bring gains in Q4 after Q3 pain
WHILE CHEMICAL companies in the US will certainly feel short-term pain from feedstock cost pressure and temporary shutdowns triggered by Hurricane.... more
(03 September 2005 09:38)

Power struggle comes to a head
THE RECENT major power outage which hit petrochemical facilities on the Indonesian island of Java last month has again put under the spotlight an.... more
(03 September 2005 09:38)