MOSCOW (MRC) -- BASF (Ludwigshafen), the world's petrochemical major, will keep in place a force majeure (FM) declared on low-viscosity nylon-6 manufactured at its production site in Antwerp, Belgium, until further notice, reported Kunststoffweb with reference to a spokesperson.
After a fire in the production plant for PA 6 in Antwerp/Belgium, BASF has declared force majeure. Deliveries of the polyamide 6 types "Ultramid B24", "Ultramid B27" and qualities with low viscosity are affected, a spokeswoman said when asked.
The fire occurred in a reactor building in the early evening of March 26, 2021 and was quickly extinguished, the spokeswoman said.
There were no environmental impacts for the neighborhood and no injuries. The repair work was already underway. However, the duration of the FM cannot yet be estimated. The force majeure affects the already limited availability of PA 6.
Nylon-6 is used in the production of compounds for automotive parts, electrical and electronics components, and in the manufacturing process of industrial goods, appliances and consumer goods.
As MRC informed before, in mid-February, BASF said it was restarting one of its steam crackers at its Ludwigshafen complex in Germany after operations were halted last Wednesday due to a technical issue. The naphtha cracker produces ethylene and propylene, and is one of two crackers on the site. One has a production capacity of 420,000 metric tons/year, with the other's capacity at 240,000 metric tons/year, according to IHS Markit data.
Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).
According to MRC"s ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated polyethylene (PE) consumption totalled 356,370 tonnes in the first two month of 2021, down by 9% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market was 246,870 tonnes in January-February 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries.
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