Crimea Titan plan integrates TiO2, sulphuric acid

16 September 2008 18:07  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--Ukraine titanium dioxide (TiO2) producer Crimea Titan is progressing well with its project to build an integrated sulphuric acid facility, it said on Tuesday.

Crimea Titan had secured €55m ($79m) in funding from new shareholder Ostchem Germany, which contributed €25m, and Commerzbank, which also granted €30m in credit for the project, for which initial construction on the site had begun on 1 September.

Contracts have also been successfully negotiated between prime contractor and the insurer.

According to producers, TiO2 feedstock sulphuric acid had become increasingly tight over the last few years, leading to concerns over securing volumes at reasonable prices.

The hikes in sulphuric acid prices have been one of the main justifications behind hikes in the European TiO2 market in recent months

Crimea Titan is the largest eastern European TiO2 producer, with around 80,000 tonnes/year of TiO2 capacity at its plant in Armyansk, northern Ukraine.

The sulphuric acid project represents a significant step towards Titan's plans of expanding capacity to produce 120,000 tonnes/year of TiO2 by 2010.

Some market players that the majority of sulphuric acid that will be produced at the location will be for captive use, with few volumes entering into the European market.

However, one TiO2 producer said there were negatives to such integrating sulphuric acid and TiO2 production, arguing it “was always a risk to build a large-scale plant, you have to make sure your cost remains competitive otherwise it’s a negative investment".

($1 = €0.70)

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By: Stephanie Wilson
+44 20 8652 3214

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