Saudi’s IAC restarts Jubail acetic acid plant on schedule

04 May 2012 14:31  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS)--Saudi Arabia’s International Acetyl Company (IAC) has restarted its 460,000 tonne/year acetic acid plant in Jubail Industrial City on schedule, a source at Helm said on Friday.

“The plant did restart according to its schedule. Everything went well,” the Helm source confirmed.

The plant was shut in early April for routine maintenance, and was close to restarting late last week, a source close to IAC said on 26 April.

IAC’s aim was to have acetic acid cargoes ready for sale after May, once it had rebuilt its stocks, the source said.

The plant also supplies International Vinyl Acetate Company’s (IVC) downstream 330,000 tonne/year vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) plant at the same site.

IAC and IVC are limited liability companies that are 76%-owned by Sipchem. Ikarus Petroleum Industries Company has an 11% stake in the two companies, while Helm Arabia holds 10%, and the remaining 3% is with Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Endowments.

Helm is responsible for marketing acetic acid and VAM produced at the plants outside the Middle East.

Major acetic acid producers in Asia include US-based Celanese; UK’s BP; China’s Jiangsu Sopo, Shanghai Wujing, Yankuang Cathay Coal Chemicals, Henan ShunDa Chemical and Hebei Yingdu Gasification Co Ltd; Taiwan’s Chang Chun Petrochemicals; India’s GNFC, and Iran's Fanavaran Petrochemical Co.

By: Samuel Weatherlake
+44 20 8652 3214

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