Global epichlorohydrin op rates hover at 70%

20 June 2008 09:37  [Source: ICIS news]

BANGKOK (ICIS news)--Global epichlorohydrin (ECH) operating rates have been running at around 70% due to increased supply in Asia and technical issues, a senior industry player said on Friday at the 12th ICIS Asian Chlor-alkali conference.

Technical difficulties such as leakages and corrosion and the rapid growth in China's capacities were cited as factors in production running below global capacity of 1.7m tonnes/year, said Danny Lin, sales director for chemical major Dow Chemical.

China's capacity will jump above 300,000 tonnes/year in the space of three years from 70,000 tonnes/year in 2006, he said, hence reducing the need for imports from the rest of Asia.

By 2015, Asian production will account for more than 40% of global production due to the onslaught of 20 new plants and expansions, including Dow's own production in China, Bohui Chemical and Tianjin Bohai, also in China, and Triplex in Taiwan.

By then, operating rates could drop as low as 60%, he added. Demand for downstream epoxy resins is expected to grow at a steady 6-7% a year based on GDP growth estimates of around 8-9% in China, he said.

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By: Steve Tan
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