Industry News
Chemical Industry News
WEEKLY CRUDE OUTLOOK: Oil price direction hinges on outcome of proposed US-Iran peace talks
LONDON (ICIS)--Leaving aside the crude price dip of 17 April, when hopes soared that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened, oil prices have been rangebound below $100 as the market continues to price...
CHINAPLAS ’26: Vietnam downstream factories await clarity on Middle East
SHANGHAI (ICIS)--Developments in the Middle East are the main focus for many plastic converters in Vietnam as some hold off purchasing to get more clarity, according to market sources at the...
Germany March producer prices rise 2.5% from Feb on Iran war impacts
LONDON (ICIS)--After falling 0.5% month on month in February, producer prices in Germany rose 2.5% in March, according to data from the country’s federal statistics office. Impacts from the Iran...
Awards awaited in 2.5 million tonne Indian urea import tender as geopolitics eyed
LONDON (ICIS)--In India, awards in the latest import tender are likely by 23 April, with final volumes still under discussion at the Department of Fertilizers (DoF). Most market participants expect...
Low Ukrainian demand, narrow spreads undermine interest in CEE/SEE monthly gas transport capacity auctions
Interest in monthly capacity auctions continues to fall No bookings at UA interconnections for second month in a row Traders point to no Ukrainian demand and marginal location spreads as explanation...
Plant status: Olin’s Stade epoxy ops in planned maintenance
Houston (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Olin Location: Stade, Germany Products: epoxy resins Capacity (tonnes/year): 140,000 Event start: circa mid April (estimate) Event finish: mid May...
More than 20 organic compounds found on Mars – many for the first time
International team detects benzothiophene, methyl benzoate, naphthalene, as well as single and dicyclic aromatic molecules
How chemists are making laboratories more sustainable
A collection of articles sharing tips from researchers who reduced their environmental impact with support from the RSC’s Sustainable Laboratories grants
Sustainable laboratories: Reducing plastics
When to reuse plastic pipette tips and how to overcome psychological barriers to recyling single-use items
Sustainable laboratories: Reducing water
How to adapt water cooling for water-stressed regions and investigate the carbon footprint of different circulation options
Sustainable laboratories: Reducing energy
How to identify an efficient heating mechanism and implement energy-saving measures across the lab
Sustainable laboratories: Cleaner solvents and substrates
How to identify greener replacements for DMF and recover ITO from glass substrates
Sustainable laboratories: Recovering metals
How to scavenge platinum group metals from laboratory waste
Sustainable laboratories: Best lab practice
How to encourage better environmental practices across a department and influence the next generation of researchers
Electrochemistry unleashes untapped potential of strained rings to build molecules
One pot technique achieved functionalisation at up to four sites
New AI system extracts numerical data from academic texts, freeing researchers from routine tasks
Numbers are the language of science—yet in research articles, they are often buried within the text and difficult to analyze. Researchers at Jülich have developed an AI system that automatically identifies these numbers, categorizes them,
Starch Instead of Plastic: Colombian Startup Reinventing Fruit Packaging
For its contribution to Sustainable Chemistry, Natupla (Natural Plastic) was recognised as Start-up of the Month by the International Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Centre (ISC3) in September 2022. The Colombian start-up, which had been founded just
Deep brines in northern Germany could be among Europe’s largest lithium resources
In the joint project RoLiXX ("The Rotliegend as a lithium resource in the North German Basin - from EXploration to EXtraction"), researchers are investigating whether lithium can be extracted sustainably and economically from very saline
CHINAPLAS ’26: Cost management in spotlight amid Mideast supply shock
SHANGHAI (ICIS)--At the 38th International Exhibition on Plastics and Rubber Industries (CHINAPLAS 2026), cost management will take center stage. Producers pursue cost-cutting strategy amid Mideast...
MOVES: Westlake names Jonathan Baksht as CFO
HOUSTON (ICIS)--Westlake has appointed Jonathan Baksht as senior vice president and CFO, effective 15 June, the US-based vinyls and polyethylene (PE) producer said in a government filing on Monday....