BP Zhuhai to restart one PTA unit mid-August

13 August 2008 05:43  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--BP Zhuhai would restart its 900,000 tonne/year purified terephthalic acid (PTA) plant in southern Guangdong province next week, following a turnaround lasting almost a month, sources close to the China-based company said Wednesday.

But the company intends to keep its smaller 500,000 tonne/year PTA line at the same site idle, citing poor economics, said other sources.

“PTA sales remain tough, and margins are still squeezed,” said one of the sources, explaining why the smaller line would remain shut.

BP officials declined to comment on the restart plans.

In the past two months, PTA producers in various parts of Asia had slashed operating rates due to the squeezed margins.

Feedstock paraxylene prices shot up to as high as $1,705/tonne CFR (cost and freight) Taiwan in early July, even as PTA prices had fallen towards $1,150-1,160/tonne CFR China, according to global chemical market intelligence service ICIS pricing.

Although PX prices had fallen to around $1,400/tonne CFR Taiwan by this week, PTA prices also fell to $1,070-1,080/tonne CFR China, keeping producers in loss-making mode.

BP is the world’s leading supplier of PTA. Besides the Zhuhai facilities in China, the major has Asian ventures in Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Kino Zhu of CBI China contributed to this article

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