US methanol December contracts roll on rising crude prices

29 November 2011 17:54  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS)--US methanol December contract postings rolled over for the third month in a row at 135-138 cents/gal (€0.27/litre) as crude prices continued to rise.

Southern Chemical Corp (SCC) and Methanex, which typically set the monthly contract range with their postings, posted $1.35/gal and $1.38/gal, respectively, a repeat of their postings for October and November.

Industry sources say methanol tracks oil over long time periods. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude has increased about 7% in the past month, trading slightly above $99/bbl in morning trading.

US methanol spot prices remained much lower than contract prices, at 110 cents/gal on Tuesday. Some experts said that, even with an ongoing cutback in Trinidad, methanol still is characterised by overproduction in North America.

Methanex restarted a plant in Canada in April, and a mothballed plant in Texas is expected to restart early next year.

($1 = €0.75)

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By: Lane Kelley
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