India's Reliance to shut 510,000 t/year PTA unit on 24 May

24 May 2010 09:52  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--India’s Reliance Industries plans to shut a 510,000 tonne/year purified terephthalic acid (PTA) unit at Hazira in Gujarat state on Monday for a scheduled turnaround of seven to eight days, a company source said on Monday.

The shutdown was deferred from its original plan in April as preparations were not complete, the source said.

“Supply is expected to be tight in the coming weeks,” a South Korea trader said.

In addition, Mitsubishi’s new 800,000 tonne/year PTA unit in Haldia was also scheduled to be shut for a two-week maintenance period from either 24 May or 25 May, another source close to the company said.

“But demand has waned recently due to production cut backs at downstream textile industry,” a major Indian polyester maker said, adding that polyester producers were mulling price cuts for yarn products in early June due to mounting inventory pressures.

Textile factories in India were heard to have greatly reduced operating rates recently on the back of high feedstock costs and poor margins, a market observer said.

Reliance, the largest PTA producer in India, runs two other PTA lines with a combined capacity of 1.15m tonnes/year at Hazira and one small 275,000 tonne/year PTA unit in Patalganga.

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By: Becky Zhang
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