Chandra Asri cuts July ethylene supplies by 20%

04 July 2008 11:06  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Indonesia’s sole cracker operator Chandra Asri has reduced ethylene supplies to its domestic customers by 20%, or more than 4,000 tonnes, this month and could maintain the cuts into August, a company source said on Friday.

 

“We are very short of ethylene,” said the source, adding that delays in the arrival of a July naphtha shipment, and current reduced operating rates on high costs at its 600,000 tonne/year cracker in Merak, West Java, had created the shortage.

 

Chandra supplies more than 20,000 tonnes of ethylene each month to domestic customers such as vinyls producers Sulfindo Adiusaha and Asahimas Chemical, as well as monoethylene glycol (MEG) maker Polychem.

 

The cuts would also affect supplies to its styrene unit, Styrindo Mono Indonesia (SMI), the source added.

 

Ethylene supply to its downstream 300,000 tonne/year polyethylene plant was not affected, he added.

 

Chandra has been running its cracker at an average of 80% in the second quarter due to rising feedstock naphtha costs, which hit a new record of above $1,240/tonne CFR Japan late on Thursday.

 

Non-integrated producers like Chandra, who rely on naphtha imports, have been particularly hard hit by the rapid hike in naphtha prices.

 

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By: Peh Soo Hwee
+65 6780 4359

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