Borealis to close 180,000 tonne/year Beringen HDPE plant

30 October 2009 14:14 [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--Borealis will permanently close its 180,000 tonne/year high density polyethylene (HDPE) plant at Beringen, Belgium, at the end of the first quarter of 2010, the Austria-based chemical producer said on Friday.

Borealis is in negotiations with the 109 staff that the plant employs, a company spokeswoman told ICIS news.

The decision to close the HDPE plant was part of Borealis’ strategy to close or divest plants that did not use the company’s core technology, Borstar, the spokeswoman added.

The move comes at a time when polyethylene (PE) capacity in the Middle East is increasing significantly.

PE prices eroded in October and were already under downward pressure in November after the €27/tonne drop in the November ethylene contract, which was settled at €833/tonne FD (free delivered) NWE (northwest Europe).

High upstream costs stemmed erosion for the time being, but 2010 was expected to be a difficult year for European sellers, according to market sources.

Borealis also produces HDPE at Burghausen, Germany.

HDPE net prices in Europe were reported in a wide range around €950/tonne FD NWE.

($1 = €0.68)

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By: Linda Naylor
+44 20 8652 3214

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