Styrolution increases prices for specialty products in EMEA

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Styrolution, the global leader in styrenics, has announced that effective April 1, 2014, or as existing contracts permit, it increased its European sales prices for specialty products in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), reported the company on its site.

Thus, the price increase for the specialties stated below will be as follows:

- Luran S (ASA) - EUR80/tonne;
- Luran SC (ASA/PC) - EUR80/tonne;
- Novodur (ABS) - EUR80/tonne;
- Terblend N (ABS/PA, ASA/PA) - EUR50/tonne;
- Luran (SAN) - EUR50/tonne;
- Luran HH (AMSAN) - EUR80/tonne or by the equivalent amounts in local currency.

Throughout the first quarter of 2014, Styrolution has absorbed increased raw material costs for almost all of its product lines. The price adjustments are necessary to reflect these developments and to ensure feedstock availability in the second quarter.

As MRC wrote before, in December 2013, Styrolution announced measures to better serve customers in EMEA. New initiatives include the optimization of Styrolution's production network in Germany and the opening of a regional specialties logistics center. These measures enable Styrolution to offer customers greater flexibility, long-term and secure supply, and lot-to-lot consistency. They also extend Styrolution's regional reach and further strengthen its leading market position in the region's key focus industries, such as automotive, healthcare and diagnostics, and building and construction.

The Styrolution Group GmbH is a global provider of styrenics , headquartered in Frankfurt am Main. The company is a joint venture between BASF (50%) and INEOS (50%), were merged into the main styrene operations of the two partners. Its main focus is on the production of monomer, polystyrene, styrenic specialties, and ABS. The company offers styrene plastics for a variety of everyday products from different industries, such as automotive, electronics, construction, household, leisure, packaging, medicine and health.
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Imports of PVC to Kazakhstan increased by 68% in January and February 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) - Imports of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to Kazakhstan increased by 68% and reached the level of 7,700 tonnes over the first two months of this year, according to MRC analysts.
PVC imports to Kazakhstan slightly decreased to 3,500 tonnes in February, compared with 4,300 in January. Total PVC imports to Kazakhstan rose to 7,800 tonnes in January and February 2014, compared with 4,600 tonnes year on year.

The main suppliers of PVC to Kazakhstan were producers from China: Xinjiang Zhongtai and Xinjiang Tianye, with the share of 95% from the total imports over the reported period. Small volumes of PVC were delivered from Turkey and South Korea.

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Arkema increases prices of its amines range

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Arkema, a France-based chemical manufacturer, is increasing the price by 6% from April 1, 2014 on its amines range, as per the company's press release.

Thus, the price increase will be applied to the following products:

- N,N-diethylhydroxylamine 85% in solution (DHEA 85%);
- ethylamine range: monoethylamine 70% in solution (MEA 70%), diethylamine (DEA) and triethylamine (TEA).

These price increases are effective excluding existing contractual obligations.

These products are used as synthesis intermediates or active ingredients in many applications and industry sectors (pharmacy, fine chemicals, polymers, water treatment, coatings, etc.)

As MRC wrote previously, Arkema has recently announced a EUR150/tonne price increase for its whole Evatane range (high content ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) copolymer) from April 1, 2014 or when contracts allow. This increase is due to rough market conditions, including the world wide unavailability of vinyl acetate monomer.

Marketed under the trademark Evatane, Arkema's EVA resins are used in highly diverse industrial applications, including hot-melt, cable, multilayer packaging film, technical polymer modification, solar panel, petroleum additives, bitumen and ink.

Arkema with annual revenue of EUR6.4 billion is a leading European supplier of chlorochemicals and PVC. Kynar and Kynar Flex are registered trademarks of Arkema Inc.
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Altuglas International increase prices for its acrylic sheet and blocks

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Effective April 28th 2014, Altuglas International, subsidiary of Arkema Group, will increase by 9% the prices of its PMMA sheet and blocks in Europe, Middle East and Africa marketed under the brand name of Altuglas and Oroglas, reported Arkema on its site.

The price revision is the result of the continuous raw materials price increase.

Known as "acrylic glass", this polymer (polymethylmethacrylate) has exceptional optical properties, superior to that of glass. These properties have lead it to become the material of choice across numerous industries, from the automotive industry to construction.

As MRC wrote before, in December 2012, Altuglas International and NatureWorks, one of the leaders in the bio-plastics market with its Ingeo biopolymers derived from plants, signed a global co-marketing agreement. The agreement is designed to deliver a range of newly formulated bio-based, high performance alloys based on polymethylmethacrylate and Ingeo. The new materials will be marketed by Altuglas International as Plexiglas/Altuglas Rnew biopolymer alloys.

Altuglas International (a subsidiary of Arkema), world leader integrated in PMMA, is heavily involved in the field of engineered plastic - from MMA monomer to PMMA acrylic glass.

Arkema is a leading European supplier of chlorochemicals and PVC. Kynar and Kynar Flex are registered trademarks of Arkema Inc.
MRC

Oxea increasing plastisizer capacity in Europe

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Oxea, part of Oman Oil Group, says it is planning to increase its European capacity for its Oxsoft GPO dioctyl terephthalate (DOTP) by 50,000 metric tons by the end of 2015, said Plasticsnews.

DOTP is a general-purpose plasticizer used in a wide range of applications such as construction, automotive and flooring.

Oxea says it has signed an agreement with a third party in order to establish joint production of DOTP.
"The European market for phthalate-free plasticizers is growing rapidly. As a replacement mainly for dioctyl phthalate and diisononyl phthalate, DOTP is benefiting particularly from this development and our capacities need to be planned correspondingly," said Oxea’s project leader, Christian Boehmer.

We remind, Oman Oil Company (OOC), a commercial company wholly owned by the Government of the Sultanate of Oman, concluded the acquisition of Oxea which was announced in October 2013. With the acquisition, OOC aims to become a vertically integrated global chemical leader in the downstream industry.

Oxea is a global manufacturer of Oxo intermediates and Oxo derivatives, such as alcohols, polyols, carboxylic acids, specialty esters, and amines. These products are used for the production of high-quality coatings, lubricants, cosmetics and pharmaceutical products, flavorings and fragrances, printing inks and plastics. Oxea, based in Oberhausen, Germany, 1,400 people worldwide and had annual sales of 1.5 billion euros (USD2.06 billion) last year.


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