OUTLOOK ’14: DOP output to fall further as Arkema plans closure
Sam Weatherlake
27-Dec-2013
By Samuel Weatherlake
LONDON (ICIS)–While the macroeconomic environment has
remained unfavourable to the European plasticizers industry
in 2013, producing a largely flat market, the process of
replacing low-phthalate dioctyl phthalate (DOP) with
alternative plasticizers has continued apace, and will be a
major feature of the market in 2014.
French producer Arkema announced on 20 September that it
would begin the process of closing down its 70,000
tonne/year plant in Chauny, with operations at the facility
planned to end by March 2014.
The producer cited a decline in market demand for its
products and what it identified as “substantial overcapacity”
in Europe.
DOP has been included in the EU Candidate List and is likely
to be phased out by February 2015 under the EU chemical
regulation programme Reach (the registration, evaluation and
regulation of chemicals).
The closure of the Chauny plant would represent the latest
stage in a long-term rationalisation of DOP production
capacity in Europe.
One participant in the plasticizers market described the
closure as “the last nail in the DOP coffin”.
Poland’s Zaklady Azotowe Kedzierzyn (ZAK) operates a 60,000
tonne/year DOP plant in Kedzierzyn-Kozle, while Deza’s plant
in Valasske Mezirici, Czech Republic, has a nameplate
capacity of 50,000 tonnes/year.
In recent years, there has been a move away from consumption
of low-phthalate plasticizers such as DOP towards more
environmentally-friendly compounds such as dioctyl
terephthalate (DOTP).
One producer noted that many customers have already switched
to other plasticizers, and said the closure of the Chauny
unit would not create a shortage of DOP, as there is
sufficient domestic and imported supply to meet existing
demand.
A reseller said that there is no future for DOP, and the
remaining European producers are likely to switch to other
plasticizers in an increasingly competitive market
environment.
While the planned closure prompted little concern among most
participants in the European DOP market, some suggested that
the loss of Arkema’s production could be problematic for the
medical products industry, which uses DOP to produce the
flexible polyvinyl chloride (PVC) used in blood bags.
A producer of DOTP said that Arkema has a large presence in
the medical products market, and emphasised that product
quality is critical for medical applications.
Only high-quality DOP can currently be used for the
manufacture of PVC blood bags, the source said.
BASF’s non-phthalate plasticizer
Hexamoll DINCH (di-isononyl-cyclohexane-dicarboxylate)
is a possible substitute product for this application,
another source noted.
One buyer said it is moving away from consumption of
diisononyl phthalate (DINP) in favour of DOTP, and this
process will continue through 2014.
The source added that aggregate demand for plasticizers is
increasing in Europe, with DOTP being the main
beneficiary.
Some price erosion was noted for plasticizers in December, in
accordance with usual seasonal trends.
Upstream oxo-alcohols prices were stable from November in
most cases, with end-of-year destocking being counterbalanced
by a €30/tonne increase in the feedstock propylene contract
price.
Participants in the plasticizers market had fairly bullish
expectations for January. Two buyers said they expect to see
price increases, while a third said it had heard that some
consumers were pre-buying on the assumption that further
increases would be applied to feedstock costs.
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