MOSCOW (MRC) -- In an official letter to its customers in Southeast Asia, Muntajat - the sole marketing and distribution arm for Qatar Petrochemical Company (QAPCO) declared a force majeure on linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipment due to an unexpected shutdown at the production line on 3 May 2020, according to CommoPlast.
The LLDPE line is expected to remain off-line until 12 May 2020.
"We are unable to quantify the impact of the shutdown on the overall supply condition at the moment. However, the unplanned stoppage significantly impacted and prevented our ability to meet our delivery obligations," said the letter.
As MRC informed previously, in 2013, Qatar Chemical and Petrochemical Marketing and Distribution Company (Muntajat) took over the marketing and distribution responsibilities for Qatar’s globally recognised Lotrene brand of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and LLDPE. Muntajat has the mandate to export Qatar’s 10 million tonnes/year of chemicals and petrochemicals to markets worldwide.
In Qatar, LDPE and LLDPE are produced by Qatar Petrochemical Company (Qapco) and Qatofin, respectively, and these high-quality products are being sold to more than 4,500 customers worldwide under the brand name Lotrene.
Qatar’s chemical and petrochemical industry’s planned investments will further increase the country’s export portfolio to 23 million tonnes per year by 2020, from 10 million tonnes in 2013, according to Muntajat CEO Abdulrahman Ali Al-Abdulla's statement.
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, March LLDPE shipments to Russia grew to 36,790 tonnes from 25,690 tonnes a month earlier, production increased. Overall LLDPE shipments into the Russian market totalled 110,000 tonnes in the first three months of 2020, up by 11% year on year. SabSibNeftekhim accounted for the main increase in shipments.
MRC