Shell ramps up Dutch EO/MEG plant after maintenance

17 December 2009 17:56  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--Shell is ramping up operating rates at its ethylene oxide (EO)/mono ethylene glycol (MEG) facility at Moerdijk in the Netherlands following routine maintenance work, amid better-than-expected EO demand in December, according to a company source on Thursday.

The unit went down on 11 December and was scheduled to remain down for approximately one week. It was due to be operating fully on Friday.

Some market participants suggested that consumption in December 2009 was exceeding expectations, with only minor signs of softening.

Possible reasons for this included less of a de-stocking effect, as players had been operating with lower inventory levels throughout the year in view of the poor economic climate. Some customers were also reportedly pre-buying in December in the anticipation of higher prices in January.

Shell’s Moerdijk site has a nameplate capacity of 305,000 tonnes/year for EO and 160,000 tonnes/year for MEG, according to the ICIS plants and projects database.

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By: Heidi Finch
+44 20 8652 3214

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