Industry News
Chemical Industry News
British NBP gas prompt support expected to continue in week 20
LONDON (ICIS)--ICIS assessed the British NBP Day-ahead product at a premium to the Winter ’26 contract on 6 May for the first time since early April. NBP prompt prices have been supported by a...
Europe methanol spot prices rebound to record highs, Hormuz blockade drives bullish trend
LONDON (ICIS)--European methanol spot prices rebounded with a 4% increase based on the ICIS mid-point, reaching a new record high. Spot prices were valued at €540-545/tonne FOB (free on board)...
Germany’s new heating draft law targets 60% share of climate-friendly fuels by 2040, likely to boost biomethane demand
Germany draft Building Modernization Act (GMG) set 60% share target of climate-friendly fuels in new heating systems by 2040 The targets will likely drive demand for biomethane in the long term The...
INSIGHT: Pequiven unit Monomeros eyes US market after license renewal as Venezuela walks normalization tightrope
SAO PAULO (ICIS)--Fertilizers producer Monomeros Colombo Venezolanos says it stands to benefit from renewed access to US markets after Washington extended its sanctions license for the group, a...
WEEKLY POWER OUTLOOK: Balkan nuclear outages to support Hungarian power spot prices
Balkan nuclear outages tighten CEE power balances Hungarian Week 20 ’26 contract surges on outage concerns Strong wind output to pressure north-west European prices next week LONDON (ICIS)—Total...
Iran war’s global impact keeps growing
Shortages of bitumen, cooking gas and jet fuel are pushing up prices and disrupting construction
Paint manufacturers still putting consumers at risk in Mexico with sale of toxic lead paints
Over half of paints sold in the country contain unsafe levels of lead pigments, with some reaching up to 29% lead
Vulcan Energy advances Frankfurt lithium refinery project with NESI’s electrolysis technology
NORAM Electrolysis Systems Inc. (NESI), a Vancouver-based clean technology company advancing industrial electrochemical processing, is marking a major international commercialization milestone as construction begins on Vulcan Energy Resources’ Central Lithium Plant at Infraserv Industrial Park
Everstone Capital acquires Qlar Group from Blackstone
Everstone Capital has completed the acquisition of Qlar Group, formerly Schenck Process, from Blackstone. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Qlar is a leading global provider of material handling and processing equipment for
Producing nanoparticles more efficiently by laser
Nanoparticles are tiny particles that are around a thousand times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. They play a central role in areas such as catalysis in energy technology and biomedical imaging. HM
Plant status: China’s CNOOC Dongfang restarts one ACN line
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: CNOOC Dongfang Petrochemical Location: Dongfang, Hainan, China Product: Acrylonitrile (ACN) Capacity (tonnes/year): 200,000 (two lines) Event...
East China DEG inventories rebound on more arrivals
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Diethylene glycol (DEG) inventories at Jiangsu in east China increased by around 61% from 30 April, as cargo arrivals increased, outpacing consumption. The total inventories are...
Plant status: China’s Hanwha PVC op rates lowered in May due to feedstock disruptions
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Hanwha Solutions Location: Ningbo, Zhejiang, China Products: Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) Capacity (tonnes/year): 400,000 Event start: Beginning of...
Plant status: Taiwan’s FPC runs ACN unit at 85% in May
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Formosa Plastics Corp (FPC) Location: Mailiao, Taiwan Product: Acrylonitrile (ACN) Capacity (tonnes/year): 280,000 Event start: 1 May 2026 Event...
Plant status: China’s Hanwha PVC op rates halved in April due to feedstock disruptions
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Hanwha Solutions Location: Ningbo, China Products: Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) Capacity (tonnes/year): 400,000 Event start: Beginning of April...
Plant status: Indonesia’s Sulfindo force majeure continues due to feedstock disruption
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Sulfindo Adiusaha Location: Bojonegara, Indonesia Products: Caustic soda, ethylene dichloride (EDC), vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), polyvinyl...
China major producers’ polyolefin inventories rise after the holidays
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--The combined polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) inventories of Chinese state-owned petrochemical giants Sinopec and PetroChina rose after the Labour Day holidays (1-5 May),...
China’s Sinopec OX list price steady for third consecutive week at CNY9,400/tonne
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China's Sinopec list price for its domestic orthoxylene (OX) price was steady for the third consecutive week at Chinese yuan (CNY) 9,400/tonne EXWH (ex-warehouse), despite softer...
Plant status: China’s CSPC restarts No 2 BD plant
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: CNOOC and Shell Petrochemicals (CSPC) Location: Huizhou, Guangdong, China Product: Butadiene (BD) Capacity (tonnes/year): 180,000 (No 2) Event...
Plant status: S Korea’s SKGC on track Incheon PX maintenance in Q4
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: SK Geo Centric (SKGC) Location: Incheon, South Korea Product: Paraxylene (PX) Capacity (tonnes/year): 1.3 million Event start: Q4 2026 Event...