Industry News
Chemical Industry News
European LNG terminal 2026 maintenance schedules
LONDON (ICIS)--European LNG terminals have various planned maintenance work scheduled for 2026, which may affect the terminals send out and access. Here is an initial list that ICIS will update over...
INSIGHT: Suez Canal reopening will heap pressure on Europe chemicals
BARCELONA (ICIS)--As Maersk resumes regular services through the Suez Canal, the prospect of a broader reopening of this important route which links Asia and the Middle East with Europe and the US...
GAS ALERT: BBL pipeline announced additional reduced tariff capacity for Britain to Netherlands summer flows on multi-gas year bookings
LONDON (ICIS)--BBL company announced an additional 1 GWh/h of available capacity under its booking incentive for seasonal reverse flow capacity. Multiyear bookings for summer firm reverse flow...
Germany’s economic confidence jumps in January on stronger exports
LONDON (ICIS)--Current and future economic confidence improved among financial analysts in January on the back of stronger demand for export-oriented industries, including chemicals, research...
Construction in Europe declines in November, reversing previous growth trend
LONDON (ICIS)--European construction output declined in November, reversing gains from the previous month, according to the latest data from Eurostat on Tuesday. Production fell 1.1% in both the EU...
China’s MX prices pressured by slowing procurement from PX producers
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--The growth momentum in China’s mixed xylenes (MX) prices may slow as the intensity of procurement from paraxylene (PX) producers eases. Cost side supported by higher crude values...
Plant status: China’s Wanhua restarts MDI Ningbo plant after maintenance
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Wanhua Chemical Location: Ningbo, Zhejiang, China Product: Methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) Capacity (tonnes/year): 1 million Event start:...
Brazil’s urea imports decline in 2025 as ammonium sulphate grabs share
LONDON (ICIS)-- Brazil’s urea imports fell by 7% in 2025 to 7.7 million tonnes, down from a record 8.3 million tonnes in 2024, customs data shows, as farmers switched to ammonium sulphate (AS), a...
Borealis invests €49m to expand PP production in Burghausen, Germany
LONDON (ICIS)--Borealis is investing €49 million to scale up its polypropylene (PP) production site in Burghausen, Germany, the producer announced on Tuesday. The announcement did not mention any...
Plant status: Planned maintenance at Shell’s Wesseling, Germany cracker due in H2 – sources
LONDON (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Shell Location: Wesseling, Germany Products: Ethylene, propylene Capacity (tonnes/year): 315,000 (ethylene), 195,000 (propylene) Event start:...
Three centuries of Roman limescale reveals a dirty secret about Pompeii’s public baths
Carbon isotope ratios suggest that pre-aqueduct, the water was often contaminated with human waste
How do gold nanorods become nanometer-sized electrolyzers?
For the first time, a research group at the University of Potsdam has succeeded in tracking and quantifying the light-induced accumulation of charge on gold nanorods in real time. A new physical model of this
Swedish start-up produces graphite from forest waste for batteries and green steel
EIT RawMaterials has announced an investment of €0.6 million in Nordic Bio-Graphite, a Swedish startup developing high-purity graphite using renewable carbon sources. The funding enables the company to validate market demand and advance detailed plans
Climate-friendly production of formic acid and hydrogen from the waste product glycerine
Researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have developed a method that can be used to produce the raw materials formic acid and hydrogen from the waste product glycerine. Formic acid has many uses in
World Record: Nano Membrane for Future Quantum Metrology
A major leap in measurement technology begins with a tiny gap of just 32 nanometers. This is the distance between a movable aluminum membrane and a fixed electrode, together forming an extremely compact parallel-plate capacitor—a
CBAM confusion dampens nitrates market momentum
LONDON (ICIS)--The European nitrates market is set to remain cautious in the coming weeks, with persistent uncertainty around CBAM, sluggish buying interest, and weather‑related delays shaping...
JERA Nex bp drops UK’s 1.5GW Morgan offshore wind project, proceeds with 1.5GW Mona project
1.5GW Mona offshore wind project will be continued, but JNBP will not proceed with the 1.5GW Morgan project which was due to be operational by 2030 JNBP acquires EnBW’s stake in the UK’s 1.5GW...
African PE spot prices firm on tighter supply
LONDON (ICIS)--Spot prices in the Africa polyethylene (PE) market were edging higher this week on mixed feedback, while low-density polyethylene (LDPE), saw a clearer uptick on news that SABIC would...
FBMC WEEKLY: French power spot could fall amid return of 2GW nuclear capacity in week 4
LONDON (ICIS)--France could continue its net exporting position within the flow-based market coupling (FBMC) region as weather fundamentals lean towards more of a bearish trend with the French...
Toluene demand continues to rally in Europe
LONDON (ICIS)--Spot premiums for European toluene rose in the week ending 16 January, on the back of ongoing restocking taking place across the continent. The spot premiums for European toluene on 16...