Lucite International declares force majeure on MMA at Cassel, UK

LONDON (ICIS)–UK-based methyl methacrylate (MMA) producer Lucite International has declared force majeure (FM) on methacrylate monomers at its Cassel facility in the north of England, market sources said on Friday.

In a letter to customers seen by ICIS, Lucite said it regretted to inform customers that as a result of an unforeseen technical issue at the Cassel site it had no option but to temporarily shut down operations for an as yet unspecified period of time in order to resolve the situation.

The dispatch of MMA, methacrylic acid (MAA), and n-butyl methacrylate (nBMA) will be suspended with immediate effect until production at the Cassel site has been restored to a stable position.

Upon resumption of dispatches, available volumes of MMA, MAA and nBMA will be allocated to customers on a fair and reasonable basis, and in accordance with contract agreements.

The company tried to assure its customers that it is working to mitigate the impact on business and will continue to update its customers as the situation develops.

Lucite was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.

Lucite International has the capacity to produce 200,000 tonnes/year of MMA from its Cassel facility in Billingham, northern England.

Global MMA supply remains short, on the back of a series of planned and unplanned outages.

MMA is used in the manufacture of acrylic sheet, surface coatings, emulsion polymers and adhesives.

Pictured above: a Lucite International production site
Source: Lucite