Israel's Gadiv postpones PX shutdown at Haifa to November

22 June 2005 17:33  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (CNI)--Israel’s Gadiv has had to postpone a turnaround and catalyst change at its 170,000 tonne/year Haifa paraxylene (PX) unit from August to mid-November, a company official said on Wednesday.

 

“We expect the market will be stronger in the third quarter, so our change in shutdown schedule was not for market reasons,” the official commented.

 

The plant is expected to restart at the end of the year. 

 

The paraxylene (PX) facility has been running at 65-70% due to technical constraints since December 2004, when aromatics units came out of a planned turnaround.

 

These reduced operating rates are expected to persist until after the catalyst change takes place during the shutdown. Orthoxylene (OX) production remains at normal levels.

 

The company has been exporting mixed xylenes (MX), which have been in excess due to the low rates on paraxylene. In July, however, Gadiv does not expect to sell spot mixed xylenes, since it would be more economical to divert this product into the gasoline pool at its Haifa refinery. Xylenes can be used as an octane booster in gasoline.

By: Philippa Davies
+44 208 652 3214

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