Methanol US

US methanol contract and spot prices jumped in the quarter ended in early May, responding mainly to a renewed natural gas curtailment in Trinidad but also to rising values in Europe and tariffs in Brazil. Monthly contract postings by Methanex and Southern Chemical rose more than 11%, and spot barge values increased almost 17%.

The discount between China and US spot methanol prices reached a five-year high recently, highlighted by three large shipments from the Yangtze river basin to Texas. It marks the largest gap between the two countries’ prices since late 2007.

There was plenty of US plant news in the quarter, led by Methanex’s decision to move a second idled plant in Chile to Louisiana. The Canada-based producer also will play a major role in buying and selling methanol produced by LyondellBasell at a Texas plant when the unit is restarted later this year.

Celanese will break ground on a new methanol unit at its Clear Lake complex near Houston later this year and is negotiating with a potential partner. OCI will debottleneck at its Texas plant in Beaumont, adding 25% more capacity to the unit when completed in the second half of 2014.

Updated to mid-May 2013