Dow to halt Louisiana PP plant end-Nov - source

21 November 2007 23:53  [Source: ICIS news]

WASHINGTON (ICIS news)--Dow Chemical will be shut down the Union Carbide Hahnville polypropylene (PP) plant in Louisiana on 30 November, a company source said on Wednesday.

Dow had previously announced that it would permanently close the St. Charles Operations plant by year-end.

Dow said that the 500m lb (228,000 tonne)/year plant at the St. Charles Operations site would be closed due to problems in obtaining reasonably priced feedstock.

The facility's outmoded technology and the need of capital upgrades also prompted the capacity shutdown, according to Dow.

The propylene feedstock used at the 30-year plant was supplied by outside sources, and Dow failed to find an affordable way to obtain propylene, according to the company.

Record-high propylene prices were making PP production uneconomical, the source said.

The company was also considering cutting down production at one of its remaining PP sites in Texas, and implementing an allocation programme on December orders.

By: Gabriela Wheeler
+1 713 525 2600

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