US caustic force majeure to be short-lived - Dow

26 February 2010 17:04  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS news)--Dow Chemicals has declared force majeure (FM) on membrane-grade caustic soda from its Freeport plant in Texas as a result of a mechanical failure, but expects to resolve the situation shortly, the company said on Friday.

“It’s a short-lived event,” a Dow spokesperson said. The FM was declared on Tuesday.

Production capacity for the membrane caustic unit was estimated at about 500,000 tons/year (551,146 tonnes), a small percentage of the overall chlor-alkali capacity at the Freeport complex, the company said.

A source close to the situation said the downtime and lost production would more readily affect derivative applications, particularly Dow’s internal uses.

The unit was expected to restart by late Friday or over the weekend, according to a Dow spokesperson.

Dow said it put FM into effect to ensure its obligations would be properly met should the repair job take longer than anticipated.

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

By: Judith Taylor
+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