No firm restart dates for Mitsui Chem's Iwakuni PTA, PET plants

11 May 2012 10:22  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Japan’s Mitsui Chemicals has no definite restart dates set for its purified terephthalic acid (PTA) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle chip plants at Iwakuni that were shut after explosions hit the site on 22 April, a company source said on Friday.

The PTA unit has a 400,000 tonne/year, while its PET bottle chip plant has a 150,000 tonne/year capacity.

“We have run out of our inventory, and imported Thai PTA to plug the shortage,” the source said.

Mitsui operates three joint venture PTA units in Thailand with a total capacity of 1.45m tonnes/year.

The company’s 400,000 tonne/year PTA in Iwakuni is one of the two remaining PTA plants in Japan.

Mizhushima Aromatics, a joint venture between Mitsubishi Gas Chemical and Toyobo, owns the other unit in Okayama prefecture with a 250,000 tonne/year capacity.

By: Becky Zhang
+65 6780 4359

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