InterviewEastman cites equipment, demand in turnaround

03 November 2009 14:58 [Source: ICIS news]

Eastman plans turnaround By Landon Feller

HOUSTON (ICIS news)--Planned fourth-quarter maintenance on Eastman’s South Carolina polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plant was motivated by weak demand forecasts and ongoing mechanical issues, a company source said on Tuesday.

“This is a typical planned maintenance shutdown that we’ve been planning for a while to ensure no customer or order impact,” said Keith Morley, business manager for Eastman’s performance polymers business.

“The timing is optimal because the fourth quarter is the low point of the seasonal demand cycle,” he said.

Morley said the routine cleaning and maintenance period at the plant near Columbia would also offer an opportunity to repair equipment that has caused continuing operating challenges and prevented Eastman from consistently running the plant’s IntegRex technology at full capacity of 525,000 tonnes/year.

Eastman’s proprietary IntegRex process eliminates the need for solid-stating of PET resin, and was designed to double production capacity on half the acreage at a lower operating cost.

“This is not a core technology issue [with the IntegRex design], it is an equipment issue,” Morley said.

Morley would not comment on the specific dates for the maintenance, but said that Eastman expects the plant to be fully operational and running at full capacity by the end of the fourth quarter of this year.

“The duration would be in the range of a typical turnaround for the industry and would not be considered an extended shutdown,” Morley said.

The company’s 2008 annual report said the facility’s capacity is 525,000 tonnes/year, following debottlenecking from its initial 350,000 tonne/year capacity at start up in 2007.

For more on PET visit ICIS chemical intelligence
To discuss issues facing the chemical industry go to ICIS connect

By: Landon Feller
+1 713 525 2653

For the latest chemical news, data and analysis that directly impacts your business sign up for a free trial to ICIS news - the breaking online news service for the global chemical industry.

Get the facts and analysis behind the headlines from our market leading weekly magazine: sign up to a free trial to ICIS Chemical Business.

Printer Friendly