Solvay exit will not impact soda ash exports - US ANSAC

22 January 2009 18:17  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS news)-- The American Natural Soda Ash Corporation (ANSAC) said on Thursday its activities would see little effect after founding member Solvay Chemicals withdraws from the group late next year.

The three remaining constituents of the US export consortium - FMC Wyoming, General Chemical Industrial and OCI Chemical - reaffirmed their long-term commitments to the consortium, ANSAC president John Andrews said in a statement.

“With our member production capacity exceeding 10m tons per year [this] will enable ANSAC to continue to be the world’s most competitive, reliable and efficient source of soda ash export supply,” Andrews said.

Solvay said on Wednesday that it had developed its own logistics and commercial systems enough that it no longer needed to export through ANSAC. Its official last day with the export consortium will be December 2010, after which it will compete with ANSAC in global sales of US soda ash.

A source close to the situation said the remaining members of ANSAC recently made five-year commitments to the organisation.  

The four companies formed ANSAC in 1983 to market US soda ash around the globe. The US exported 5.6m short tons in 2007, nearly half the total produced, according to the latest data available from the US Geological Survey. 

Solvay has production capacity of 3m short tons/year at its Green River plant in Wyoming, making it the second largest US soda ash manufacturer.

($1 = €0.77)

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By: Ben Lefebvre
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