Geno, Sojitz partner to scale up biobased nylon-6

Genomatica Inc. (Geno; San Diego, California) and Sojitz Corp. (Tokyo) have partnered to commercialize biobased nylon-6, as per Chemweek.

“Sojitz has made a strategic financial investment to accelerate time-to-market, while also contributing its commercial and business expertise,” the two companies stated in an Oct. 7 press release. “Geno will seek to collaboratively establish a consortium of industry leaders focused on creating a separate entity for the flagship commercial plant with Sojitz.”

Geno developed the underlying technology for producing feedstock caprolactam by fermentation. In 2018, the company partnered with nylon-6 producer Aquafil (Arco, Italy) to build a demonstration-scale biobased nylon-6 plant at an Aquafil site in Slovenia. In 2022, Geno and Aquafil announced the first demonstration-scale production runs.

Geno licensed its fermentation-based technology for the production of 1,4-butanediol (BDO) to Qore (Eddyville, Iowa), a joint venture between Cargill and Helm. In July, Qore said its $300-million, 66,000-metric tons per year bio-BDO plant in Edyville had begun operation.

mrchub.com

This week, PVC spot prices tumbled while contract prices remained constant in the European region, as per Polymerupdate.

An industry source in Europe informed a Polymerupdate team member, "The European PVC market experienced a downtrend in spite of a key derivative sector like construction witnessing a seasonal upswing. Market participants cited excess supplies, slowdown in material offtake, and a drop in feedstock rates as key factors weighing on the overall market conditions. General demand sentiments were weak, with material replenishment initiatives by customers experiencing a decelerated momentum. While output was held stable by producers in Europe, demand is unlikely to witness a rebound in the immediate future."

In the spot markets, FD North West Europe PVC prices were assessed at the Euro 815-825/mt levels, a week on week decline of Euro (-30/mt).

In the contract markets, PVC Suspension grade prices were assessed at the Euro 950-955/mt FD NWE Germany and FD NWE France levels, both unchanged from the previous week. PVC Suspension grade prices were assessed at the Euro 960-965/mt FD NWE Italy levels, stable from last week. Meanwhile, PVC prices were assessed at the GBP 825-830/mt FD NWE UK levels, a fall of GBP (-5/mt) week on week.

Meanwhile, feedstock EDC prices were assessed at the USD 100-110/mt FOB North West Europe levels, marginally up USD (+5/mt) from last week while VCM prices were assessed at the USD 485-495/mt FOB North West Europe levels, a rise of USD (+10/mt) from the previous week.

Ethylene spot prices on Thursday were assessed at the Euro 660-670/mt FD North West Europe levels, a week on week fall of Euro (-5/mt).

European ethylene contract price for October 2025 settled at the Euro 1130/MT FD North West Europe levels. This price represents a roll over from its September 2025 settlement levels.

mrchub.com

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2025 to Susumu Kitagawa of Kyoto University, Japan; Richard Robson of the University of Melbourne, Australia; and Omar Yaghi of the University of California, Berkeley, “for the development of metal-organic frameworks,” the academy said in a statement Oct. 8, as per Chemweek.

The three Nobel Prize laureates have created molecular constructions with large spaces through which gases and other chemicals can flow. These constructions, called metal-organic frameworks (MOF), can be used to harvest water from desert air, capture CO2, store toxic gases or catalyze chemical reactions.

Kitagawa, Robson and Yaghi have developed a new form of molecular architecture, the academy said. In their constructions, metal ions function as cornerstones that are linked by long organic carbon-based molecules. Together, the metal ions and molecules are organized to form crystals that contain large cavities. These MOFs are porous materials. By varying the building blocks used in the MOFs, chemists can design them to capture and store specific substances. MOFs can also drive chemical reactions or conduct electricity, the statement said.

“Metal-organic frameworks have enormous potential, bringing previously unforeseen opportunities for custom-made materials with new functions,” said Heiner Linke, chair of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry.

In 1989, Robson first tested utilizing the inherent properties of atoms in a new way, the academy’s statement said. He combined positively charged copper ions with a four-armed molecule; this had a chemical group that was attracted to copper ions at the end of each arm.

When they were combined, they bonded to form a well ordered, spacious crystal. It was like “a diamond filled with innumerable cavities,” the statement said.

Robson “immediately” recognized the potential of his molecular construction, but it was unstable and collapsed easily, the academy said. However, Kitagawa and Yaghi provided this building method with a firm foundation; between 1992 and 2003 they made, separately, a series of “revolutionary” discoveries, the committee said. Kitagawa showed that gases can flow in and out of the constructions and predicted that MOFs could be made flexible. Yaghi created a very stable MOF and showed that it can be modified using rational design, giving it new and desirable properties, it said.

Following the laureates’ “groundbreaking” discoveries, chemists have built tens of thousands of different MOFs, the statement said. “Some of these may contribute to solving some of humankind’s greatest challenges, with applications that include separating PFAS from water, breaking down traces of pharmaceuticals in the environment, capturing carbon dioxide or harvesting water from desert air,” it said.
mrchub.com

With the growth outlook for electric vehicles (EVs) more muted than in recent years, battery materials suppliers and manufacturers are shifting focus to the energy storage systems (ESS) market, according to attendees at the Battery Show North America, held this week in Detroit, as per Chemweek.

The massive growth in AI data centers is a key driver for ESS demand, which is also supported by increasing deployment of solar and wind energy.

The ESS market “is growing more critical” for LG Energy Solution, a battery cell manufacturer, Bob Lee, president/North America at LG Energy Solution Ltd., said in an Oct. 7 keynote. ESS batteries typically use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode materials, making the sector “an opportunity” for LG, which produces LFP battery cells for ESS applications at site at Holland, Michigan.

LG invested about $1.4 billion into the site. It is “the only large-scale LFP cell producer in the US,” according to Lee. “We are shifting capacity more to ESS,” he added.

Materials suppliers have noted the shift to ESS. “There has been as lowdown in EVs, but ESS has done OK,” said Murat Gursoy, head of innovation/inorganic pigments at Lanxess AG.

“The ESS market is growing significantly,” said Adrian Steinmetz, global vice president/batteries at Orion Engineered Carbons GmbH. “It’s about grid storage, AI data centers, and also storage that’s needed for renewable energy production.”

The market is growing faster than the EV market in the US, according to Selamawit Belli, global strategic market manager at Dow Inc. “Mobility isn’t growing as fast as it had been…we are moving into ESS,” she added.

Arkema is seeing “strong traction in ESS, driven by data centers,” said Woldemar d’Ambrieres, global market manager/batteries. “It’s a growth bridge for US battery demand.”

LFP production is generally focused in China, a challenge for the mostly-LFP-based ESS market. “There is not as much Western cell production for ESS,” noted Samuel Burrow, co-founder and chief technical officer at Anaphite (Bristol, UK), an early-stage battery materials firm.

This presents supply chain challenges, particularly related to geopolitical competition and trade barriers imposed by the Trump administration. Firms such as LG have launched LFP cell production in the US, and ICL Group Ltd. broke ground on an LFP cathode active materials (CAM) plant in 2023.

ICL received a $197 million grant from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to help fund construction of the plant. It is not currently clear if the funding has been revoked by the Trump administration.

While LFP has seen growing interest in the US, China’s dominance of the technology means that LFP-based battery chemistries will inevitably rely on an import-heavy supply chain, at least for now, according to Battery Show attendees. “Some factories in the US will build LFP cells, but need to import CAM,” said Arkema’s d’Ambrieres.

Still, to the extent that materials can be supplied locally, it is an advantage, show attendees said. Orion Carbons, for example, is nearly done with an acetylene-based conductive additives in Texas. “There is a focus on local supply chains, avoiding transportation issues and tariffs,” Steinmetz said.

Suppliers of battery additives, including conductive materials, binders, coatings, adhesives, and flame retardants, said that most products that work for EV applications can work for ESS. “There are some differences, but we can serve both markets,” d’Ambrieres said.

“We have product grades that can be used in cathodes and anodes for EV or ESS,” Orion’s Steinmetz said. “So it’s one grade for all the different applications.”

Even automakers are getting into the ESS game. In July, General Motors Company (GM; Detroit) signed an MOU with tk Redwood Materials (tk) for using recycled EV battery backs for energy storage at a data center project in Nevada. GM and Redoowd “expect to announce more details on their plans later in 2025,” the companies said at the time.

Despite some uncertainty in the industry, GM is investing across the battery supply chain, said Kurt Kelty, vice president/batteries in a keynote at the Battery Show. “We are investing in cathode precursors, CAM, and raw materials…we want to bring this supply chain to the US,” he said.

mrchub.com

INEOS has announced today that it is cutting 20% of the workforce at its acetyls plant at Hull in the UK. 60 skilled jobs are being lost as a direct result of sky-high energy costs and anti-competitive trade practices, as importers ‘dump’ product into the UK and European markets, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Dirt-cheap carbon-heavy imports from China, produced using coal and emitting up to eight times more CO? than INEOS’s UK operations, are now flooding the market. These Chinese products have been blocked from entering the US by effective tariffs but face no trade barriers in the UK or Europe.

INEOS is calling on the UK Government and European Commission to introduce urgent anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese and US importers to protect the chemicals sector. The company warns that unless firm action is taken, more sites will close and thousands more jobs will be lost, not only at Hull but across the UK and European chemical industry.

David Brooks, CEO of INEOS Acetyls, said: “This is a very difficult time for everyone at the Hull facility. We have a leading-edge, efficient and well-invested site and the team here is highly skilled, professional, and dedicated. Making the decision to cut 60 roles was not taken lightly. We have explored every possible alternative but in the face of sustained pressure from energy costs, combined with unfairly low-cost imports into the UK and Europe, we’ve been left with no other choice. Our priority now is to support those affected and protect the long-term future of the site.”

This is not an isolated issue. It is part of the same structural crisis that is hitting chemicals companies across the UK and EU.

INEOS recently invested ?30 million at the Hull site to switch from natural gas to hydrogen, cutting emissions by 75%, the equivalent of taking 160,000 cars off the road. Despite this major step forward for industrial decarbonisation, the company now warns that without trade defence measures, (tariffs) progress will come at the cost of British jobs.

INEOS welcomes the UK Government’s recent U-turn on its decision to penalise the Hull site under the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) but structural problems remain unresolved.

“This is a textbook case of the UK and Europe sleepwalking into deindustrialisation. INEOS has invested heavily at Hull to cut CO?, yet we’re being undercut by China and the US while left wide open by a complete absence of tariff protection. If governments don’t act now on energy, carbon and trade, we will keep losing factories, skills and jobs. And once these plants shut, they never come back.”

INEOS is the largest producer of acetic acid, acetic anhydride, and ethyl acetate in the UK and Europe. These chemicals are essential for everything from food preservation and pharmaceuticals, including aspirin and paracetamol, to diagnostic tests, adhesives, and industrial coatings. Without them, modern life doesn’t function.

mrchub.com