Industry News
Chemical Industry News
Syngenta to close UK paraquat herbicide factory
90 jobs will be cut when Huddersfield plant stops making chemical that is banned in EU
WACKER cuts over 1,500 jobs to reduce costs by €300 million
With the presentation of its 2025 Annual Report, Wacker Chemie AG confirmed that its sales and earnings in 2025 fell versus the previous year due to a challenging market environment. The Group’s total sales came
Ig Nobel prize ceremony set to move from ‘unsafe’ US to Europe indefinitely
Issues with visas for attendees has led to the satirical award moving from its home at Harvard University
Water spider and fish scale bioinspiration drives Janus air electrode for advanced zinc-air batteries
Zinc-air batteries (ZABs) are recognized as a promising option for next-generation sustainable energy storage, thanks to their high theoretical energy density, eco-friendliness, and cost-effectiveness. However, their practical deployment has been limited by slow oxygen reduction
The competitiveness of low-carbon fuels depends on location
In a new study, researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI compare the production costs of 21 different low-carbon fuel technologies across the globe. Their analysis shows that location-specific factors including both resource availability and
Roland Fornika elected President of FECCIA
VAA board member Dr. Roland Fornika has been elected President of FECCIA. At the FECCIA Executive Committee meeting during the JusTransLEAD conference in Malaga, the committee voted in favor of the 58-year-old Röhm GmbH employee.
March WASDE lacking any significant change for US row crops
HOUSTON (ICIS)--The USDA of Agriculture (USDA) presented no significant changes for the major US rows crops within their March World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate (WASDE) report. The agency...
NYMEX: US gas futures ease as winter draws near to an end
Front-month US natural gas futures lowered on 10 March on late winter seasonality and strong production The April 2026 Henry Hub contract on NYMEX settled at $3.02/MMBtu, down nearly 3.2% from the...
US LNG NEWS WRAP: Cheniere, VG announce offtake deals while Texas LNG lines up EPC contract
HOUSTON (ICIS)-- ICIS tracks key developments across the US LNG sector, as new offtake agreements and project updates continue to shape the market. NEW CONTRACTS Below is a line-up of recent offtake...
US chemicals may gain short-term edge from oil price shock but ratings upgrades not in play – Fitch
NEW YORK (ICIS)--US chemical producers stand to gain a competitive advantage from the Iran war oil price shock, but demand destruction looms as a risk, said credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings. US...
CRUDE SUMMARY: Crude pares gains after Monday’s short-lived price spike
Oil dips back from $100/barrel with optimism that war will end soon ICIS analysis warns that regional conflict likely to persist even if war ends Possible return of Russian seaborne crude to ease...
Gas to remain in Germany’s residential demand mix amid proposed heating law reset
Additional reporting by Eduardo Escajadillo Germany plans to scrap its heating mandate and let households keep choosing gas/oil Residential gas demand is likely to stay stable, as decarbonization...
Italian gas curve backwardation likely to persist amid regulation uncertainties and war in Middle East
Italian summer deliveries priced at premium over winter contracts This disincentivizes timely purchases to build storage in run-up to winter, raising concerns Market awaiting ministerial...
Dow declares order control on US GMAA and MMA
HOUSTON (ICIS)--Dow has declared order control on US glacial methacrylic acid (GMAA) and methyl methacrylate (MMA), effectively immediately, according to market players. The company confirmed the...
EU energy officials vow not to intervene in energy market functioning
EU officials pledge only targeted, temporary interventions if needed No fundamental price or market intervention foreseen Action not currently needed, but EU monitoring situation closely LONDON...
Plant status: ADNOC refinery No 2 shut on incident – sources
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) Refining Location: Ruwais, United Arab Emirates Product: Crude refining Refining capacity...
Plant status: PETRONAS melamine plant in Malaysia has technical issues; start-up expected by late March at earliest
LONDON (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: PETRONAS Chemicals Group (PCG) Location: Gurun, Kedah, Malaysia Product: Melamine Capacity (tonnes/year): 60,000 Event start: Estimated start-up...
Europe MA spot prices surge on tight supply exacerbated by Middle East conflict
LONDON (ICIS)--The European maleic anhydride (MA) market strengthened sharply in the week ending 6 March as tightening supply and Middle East related logistics disruption pushed spot prices to new...
UK gas, power Summer-Winter ’26 spread inverted amid US-Iran war
Summer '26 NBP and baseload UK power prices rise above Winter ‘26 on US-Iran war Risk premium on summer contracts indicate market expects LNG disruption to end by winter Spread direction to remain...
Australia’s Mayfair agrees to acquire Phosphate Hill operations in boost to local fertilizer production
LONDON (ICIS)--Australia’s Mayfair Corporations Group has agreed to acquire Dyno Nobel’s Phosphate Hill fertilizer operations in northwest Queensland in a deal valued at up to Australian dollar...