Mitsubishi Chemical plans September start for new PP unit

30 June 2009 13:12  [Source: ICIS news]

TOKYO (ICIS news)--Japan’s Mitsubishi Chemical plans to start operations at its new 300,000 tonne/year polypropylene (PP) unit at Kashima, in Ibaraki prefecture, in September, a company official said on Tuesday.

“It’s ready to be started and doesn’t need further adjusting. Commercial production may begin from the beginning of September after a few days of test runs,” the official said in a telephone interview in Japanese.

The new 150,000 tonne/year olefin conversion unit (OCU) at the same site, which was completed around the beginning of 2009, would also start up around the same time as the PP unit “unless the PP unit’s operating rate is extremely low”, the official said.

The company was currently reviewing the possibility of increasing its purchases of propylene from outside sources because the feedstock would run short once the PP unit is fully operational, depending on future demand, the official said, without stating when.

He said the company had been receiving propylene supplies from producers in Japan and overseas because the quantity produced from its own crackers in Kashima and Mizushima, in Okayama prefecture, was not enough.

“We are in talks about what to do about propylene [shortage]. [Increasing propylene purchases] is one of the options, but we haven’t decided any details yet such as signing contracts,” the official said. 

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By: Tomomi Yokomura
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