SABIC delays Al-Jubail PS maintenance shutdown

23 April 2008 11:44  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) has deferred the annual maintenance turnaround at its 175,000 tonne/year polystyrene (PS) plant in Al-Jubail by a month to 7 May, a source close to the company said on Wednesday.

  

The three-four week maintenance shutdown was earlier scheduled for April but had to be postponed due to delays in the delivery of spare parts and a human resource shortage, the source said.

 

It would have little market impact, he added, “as the company plans to build up enough inventory ahead of the shutdown to ensure that supply will not be disrupted”.

 

Supply of PS, including expandable PS (EPS), has been tight in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, with SABIC being the only producer.

 

Meanwhile, tight availability caused PS prices to rise by up to $60/tonne month on month in the GCC on  Friday, to $1,640-1,650/tonne CFR (cost and freight) GCC for general purpose PS (GPPS) and $1,680-1,710/tonne CFR GCC for high impact PS (HIPS), according to global chemical market intelligence service ICIS pricing.

 

For more on PS visit ICIS chemical intelligence

By: Prema Viswanathan
+65 6780 4359

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