NPRA `10: Rising US acrylates prices prompting substitutions

29 March 2010 23:01  [Source: ICIS news]

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (ICIS news)--Rising US acyrylic acid and acrylate esters prices under continued supply pressure continues to prompt buyers to seek cheaper alternatives, a source said on Monday on the sidelines of the International Petrochemical Conference (IPC).

“There is a trend toward vinyl-acrylic interior paints versus all-acrylic paints for interior walls,” the supplier said. Acrylic paints provide the weather-resistance needed for exterior surfaces, the supplier said, but there is increasing interest in vinyl-acrylic coatings for interior surfaces because those paints use about half the butyl acrylate (butyl-A) needed for all-acrylic coatings.

Other sources have cited vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) as a cheaper paint additive than acrylic acid or butyl-A, and have predicted that ongoing acrylates increases will see more production of coatings based on alkyds and urethanes than on acrylics and methacrylates.

US acrylates supply constraints have intensified since unplanned outages in December 2009 at two sites in Texas. The outages prompted ongoing sales controls or allocations, and contract prices have climbed sharply since December.

Current acrylates initiatives for April are at plus 8-12 cents/lb ($176-265/tonne, €130-196/tonne) from producers citing continued supply constraints as part of their rationale.

Hosted by the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association (NPRA), the IPC continues through Tuesday.

($1 = €0.74)

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By: Larry Terry
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