Tosoh to shut down caustic soda plant in Japan

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Tosoh is in plans to shut a caustic soda plant for maintenance turnaround, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Japan informed that the plant is planned to be shut in March 2014. It is likely to remain off-stream for around one month.

Located in Nanyo, Japan, the plant has a production capacity of 1.125 million mt/year.

As MRC informed previously, this plant was shut for maintenance works in mid-May 2013 for a period of month and a half.

Last year, Tosoh's proposed restructuring of operations in Nanyo could lead to a net loss of 320,000 tpa of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) capacity, thereby tightening feedstock supply to the polyvinylchloride (PVC) industry. Almost one year after a fire seriously damaged its complex in Nanyo, Tosoh Corporation (Tokyo, Japan) has touted plans to raise output at the site's number 3 vinyl chloride monomer plant. The building phase of the 200,000 t/y capacity expansion was to kick off in November last year, with completion scheduled for October 2014.

Tosoh is one of the largest chlor-alkali manufacturers in Asia. The company supplies the plastic resins and an array of the basic chemicals that support modern life. Tosoh's petrochemical operations supply ethylene, polymers, and polyethylene.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Alain de Krassny has been officially appointed as President of Kem One, Europe’s third-largest producer of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), reported the company on its site.

This appointment has been finalised after the purchase of Kem One SAS shares by Alain de Krassny and OpenGate Capital, under the terms of the takeover plan accepted by the Lyon Commercial Courton December 20th 2013.

"Our mission is to appropriately serve our customers, building on improving our expertise and our reliability. After Kem One got through such difficult times, we have been fortunate to be supported by our customers, as well as our suppliers and all our partners. We must now build the future Kem One together," said Alain de Krassny.

Alain de Krassny (71 years) is a graduate from "Ecole Nationale de Chimie de Lille" and holds a Master of Science degree from the University of California at Berkeley and an MBA from INSEAD. He joined the Rhone-Poulenc Group, in 1972, where he held various industrial positions mainly in Europe. In 1997, he acquired Donau Chenie, a subsidiary of this industrial group based in Austria.

Donau Chemie is specialized in basic chemistry, distribution of chemicals, production and reactivation of activated carbon and production of liquid detergents, antifreeze and cosmetic products for supermarkets.

Kem One, a fully integrated vinyl production company, was established mid-2012 following the acquisition of Arkema's vinyl products division by the Klesch Group. The company employs 2,600 people at 22 manufacturing sites, primarily in Europe but also in Asia and North America. Europe’s third-largest producer of PVC with revenues in excess of one billion euros, Kem One continues to grow and build on its numerous strengths with a view to becoming market leader for integrated vinyl solutions.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PolyOne Corporation, a premier global provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions, has announced the addition of new capabilities to its OnColor HC Plus portfolio, according to the company's press release.

These expanded offerings add medical-grade LDPE, nylon, PEBA, PS and PVC to the globally available palette of specialty healthcare colorants, and are pre-certified to meet or exceed biocompatibility requirements for ISO 10993 and/or USP Class VI protocols.

James Petrie, marketing director for PolyOne Color and Additives, explained, "This expansion of the OnColor HC Plus portfolio reinforces our commitment to the healthcare industry and adds new alternatives for customers who seek to streamline their qualification, testing and supply chain management processes."

All OnColor HC Plus colorants include formulation lock-down provisions, and are suitable for specialized pharmaceutical goods and medical devices.

As MRC reported earlier, PolyOne Corporation has also recently announced the launch of ECCOH XLS low smoke and fume, non-halogen formulation for flame retardant wire and cable applications. The new offering was developed for applications including low-voltage power cables for building and construction use and specialty wire and cable for marine environments.

PolyOne Corporation is a global provider of specialized polymer materials, services, and solutions. PolyOne is a provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions with operations in specialty polymer formulations, color and additive systems, polymer distribution and specialty vinyl resins.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- U.S. chemical maker Huntsman Corp's forecast higher earnings across all its business units this year, after posting a better-than-expected quarterly profit as cost cuts boost margins, said the producer in its press release.

Huntsman's shares rose as much as 5.7% to USD23.41. A 7% drop in operating costs and higher sales at four of Huntsman's five businesses helped the company post a fourth-quarter profit, compared with a loss a year-ago.

The 4% rise in revenue at its biggest business, polyurethane, was the steepest rise across all its businesses. The business makes materials used in foam insulation and accounted for more than 45% of revenue in the quarter.

Revenue in the pigments business rose 3%, the first rise in seven quarters, driven mainly by a increased demand from Europe, the company's largest market for the product.

Huntsman bought Rockwood Holdings Inc's pigments business for USD1.1 billion, betting on a turnaround in the market demand for titanium dioxide, a pigment used to whiten everything from toothpaste to cars.

A recovery in automobile and housing industries in North America is boosting demand for the pigment and Huntsman said it expected prices to be modestly higher in the current quarter and the third quarter.

"Improvement in volumes and declining inventory levels point to stabilizing pigment market conditions," UBS analyst John Roberts said in a note.

As MRC informed earlier, last year, Huntsman Corp. signed a definitive agreement to acquire Oxid LP, a privately-held manufacturer and marketer of specialty urethane polyols based in Houston, Texas. Oxid's polyols are a key component in the production of energy-saving polyurethane insulation products that are used in residential and commercial construction.

Huntsman is a global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated chemicals. Our operating companies manufacture products for a variety of global industries, including chemicals, plastics, automotive, aviation, textiles, footwear, paints and coatings, construction, technology, agriculture, health care, detergent, personal care, furniture, appliances and packaging.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Solvay announces the opening of a new Research & Innovation center in Singapore, which will be the Group’s core innovation ground for its Consumer Chemicals growth engine in the Asia-Pacific region,said the producer in its press-release.

Located in Singapore’s Biopolis research hub, the 1,100 square-meter laboratory will lead worldwide innovation projects primarily for Solvay’s business unit Novecare, which is active in the fields of Home and Personal Care, Coatings and Oil & Gas. It will also be a regional hub in developing sustainable solutions for the Agrochemical business and provide technical support to Solvay’s regional customers as well as plants in the region.

Solvay, which received strong support from the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), invested close to EUR2 million in the laboratory and expects to invest another EUR5 million in the next five years to boost the laboratory’s capabilities, including the hiring of an extra 30 researchers. The laboratory is Solvay’s latest investment in Singapore after Novecare, a global leader in the specialty surfactants industry, announced in April 2013 the construction of a large scale alkoxylation facility.

As MRC reported earlier, in 2012, Solvay Specialty Polymers and Rhodia Engineering Plastics launched a new EUR 21 million compounding plant in Changshu, Jiangsu province. It will serve the Chinese markets for electrical and electronics, wire and cable, automotive, consumer, and industrial applications.

In addition, Solvay is building a new EUR 120 million production plant for fluorinated polymers at its industrial site in Changshu, to meet growing demand in Asia in end-use markets such as automotive, photovoltaic, Li ion batteries, membranes for water purification, and oil and gas applications. The new plant is scheduled to be operational early 2014.

Solvay Specialty Polymers manufactures over 1500 products across 35 brands of high-performance polymers - fluoropolymers, fluoroelastomers, fluorinated fluids, semi-aromatic polyamides, sulfone polymers, aromatic ultra polymers, high-barrier polymers and cross-linked high-performance compounds - for use in aerospace, alternative energy, automotive, healthcare, membranes, oil and gas, packaging, plumbing, semiconductors, wire and cable, and other industries.
MRC