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Europe: Huntsman – TiO2
F O C US this total, 22,500 tonnes/y is accounted for by plants that are wholly- or partlyowned by foreign companies. Shenyang Chemical is the most prominent Chinese company and it is the only one that has developed proprietary technology for making highgrade fumed silica, with a specific area of more than 200 sq m/g. China Chemical Reporter, 6 May 2009, 20 (13), 20
India imposes anti-dumping duties on carbon black imports Phillips (part of the RP Goenka group), Hi-Tech Carbon (part of the Aditya Birla group) and Continental Carbon India (CCI, which is majority controlled by China Synthetic Rubber of Taiwan) jointly filed an official complaint last December about foreign suppliers selling carbon black in India at “less than normal value.” (See ‘Focus on Pigments’, Feb 2009, 4-5). Investigation by the Directorate General of Anti-dumping & Allied Duties revealed that during the year to end-March 2006, imports of carbon black from Australia, China, Russia, Iran, Malaysia and Thailand amounted to only 20,746 tonnes. They more than doubled over the next two years, reaching 53,652 tonnes in 2007/08. The Directorate General determined that dumping by suppliers from these six countries had occurred and had caused material injury to Indian carbon black producers. Therefore, anti-dumping duties ranging from $78 to $195 per tonne should be levied on imports of carbon black from Australia, China, Russia, Iran, Malaysia and Thailand. Business Line, 6 Jun 2009, 16 (156), 10 & Chemical Weekly, 16 Jun 2009, 54 (44), 132
PLANTS Australia: Tronox & Exxaro – TiO2 During 2Q 2009, Tiwest began construction of the fifth line at its Kwinana TiO2 pigment plant in Western Australia. This will raise capacity here from 110,000 tonnes/y to 150,000 tonnes/y, with completion anticipated early next year. Tiwest was originally established in the late 1980s as a 50:50 joint venture between Kerr-McGee (of the US) and Minproc (of Australia). Following
AUGUST 2009
O N
PIGMENTS
several changes of ownership to both parent companies, Tiwest has become a 50:50 joint venture between Exxaro (of South Africa) and Tronox (of the US). Tronox declared bankruptcy in January 2009 and it is operating under a Court order, which requires it to sell all its assets by the end of August 2009. (See also ‘Focus on Pigments’, Mar 2009, 6). Exxaro is expected to buy-out the Tronox stake in Tiwest. Total investment in the current expansion project has been budgeted at A$100 M, which will be fully funded by Exxaro. The project will involve 150 new jobs in the construction phase, with a requirement for an additional 12 full-time plant operating staff once the plant is up and running. Prospect, Jun-Aug 2009, 29
Canada: Canadian Wollastonite – wollastonite Canadian Wollastonite is a privately owned company, registered in Ontario in 2001. Its main objective is to develop a high-grade wollastonite deposit located north of the River St Lawrence in eastern Ontario. The deposit is about 1 km south of the Seeley’s Bay municipality, about 26 km north of Kingston. Reserves here have been assessed at more than 9 M tonnes. The company is currently building a pilot-scale plant, designed to produce up to 15,000 tonnes/y of wollastonite and 10,000 tonnes/y of diopside (a type of pyroxene), which should be ready for operation before the end of 2009. Industrial Minerals, Jun 2009, (501), 9 & Jul 2009, (502), 12
China: Clariant, Panchem & Kunming GaoHeng – P2O5 for quinacridone Clariant has entered into a joint venture with Kunming GaoHeng Huagong Chemical Industry Co Ltd and Panchem International Trading & Industrial Co to build a new phosphorus pentoxide plant at Kunming (Yunnan province). The plant should be ready to start-up in 1Q 2010. Its capacity has not been identified. Some of the output will be used captively by Clariant for the manufacture of quinacridone pigments, Exolit flame retardants, and Hordaphos corrosion-inhibitors and
degreasing agents; the rest will be sold to companies making agrochemicals and healthfoods. The new Kunming plant will supplement production from Clariant’s existing phosphorus pentoxide plant at Knapsack (Germany). Chemical Engineering World, May 2009, 44 (5), 20
China: Huber – precipitated silica In line with the project schedule, Huber Engineered Materials startedup its 40,000 tonnes/y precipitated silica plant at Qingdao (Shandong province) in June 2009. This will bring the total of Huber’s precipitated silica plants up to seven, the other six being located at: Havre de Grace, MD and Etowah, TN (in the US); Oostende (Belgium); Hamina (Finland); Uddevalla (Sweden); and Jhagadia (India). Parfums, Cosmetiques Actualités, Jun/Jul 2009, (207), 36 (in French)
China: Songyu Nanometer Technology – nanoparticulate calcium carbonate Songyu Nanometer Technology (Linwu) Co Ltd recently opened a new 80,000 tonnes/y nanoparticulate calcium carbonate (NCC) plant at Linwu (near Chenzhou, Hunan province). The plant cost Rmb 68 M (about $10 M) to build. China Chemical Reporter, 16 Jun 2009, 20 (17), 17
Clariant – plastics colorants Clariant has completed a programme for modernising its plastic colorants facilities in France. At its plant in St Jeoire en Faucigny (in Haute Savoie), where the company employs 60 people, it has modified five of its 10 production lines so as to produce the SPC (single pigment concentrate) range. Clariant has also established a plastic colorants technical support centre at Cergy St Christophe (in northwestern Paris). Plastiques et Caoutchoucs Magazine, Jun 2009, (867), 26 (in French)
Europe: Huntsman – TiO2 Faced with a serious downturn in TiO2 pigment demand onwards from 4Q 2008, Huntsman held a series of talks with trade union representatives at its
5
FOCUS French, Italian and Spanish plants with a view to implementing cost reductions that will involve job redundancies and some new capital investment. At the 80,000 tonnes/y Scarlino (Italy) plant, the workforce will be reduced from 270 to 210 by the end of 2010. The 80,000 tonnes/y Huelva (Spain) plant will be idled for 12 months, onwards from the end of June 2009. When the plant reopens next year, it will operate with 225 employees, representing about 75 fewer than now. Huntsman has also committed to invest €12.5 M in a modernisation programme for the Huelva plant and the Andalusian Regional Government has promised to contribute a further €1.25-1.875 M towards this programme. The 95,000 tonnes/y Calais (France) plant will be closed for six weeks during Summer 2009 for an extended maintenance campaign. But, its production target for this year has been raised from 45,000 tonnes to 65,000 tonnes, which is not much lower than the 70,000 tonnes output figure recorded for full-year 2008. The workforce quota at the Calais pigment plant will be reduced from 273 (including 20 job-vacancies) at the end of 2008 to 187 by 2012. In midJune, Huntsman announced another cost-reduction initiative for Calais. It has embarked on a feasibility study for establishing a fertiliser plant at Calais, which would ‘mop up’ all the spent acid wastes generated during TiO2 manufacture here. This would enable Huntsman to shut down its existing effluent treatment facilities, including a Lurgi-type acid-recycling plant and a 30,000 tonnes/y plant for making the magnesium-enriched fertiliser additive Magnolite. Assuming a positive outcome to the feasibility study, Huntsman will invest up to €30 M on this and other smaller projects at Calais. Meanwhile, during 1Q 2009, Huntsman permanently closed its 40,000 tonnes/y TiO2 pigment plant at Grimsby (UK). This was more than compensated by commissioning the third 50,000 tonnes/y ICON unit at its Greatham plant (further up the east coast of England), raising capacity here to 150,000 tonnes/y. With additional plants in South Africa and Malaysia plus a 50% stake
6
ON
PIGMENTS
in the Lake Charles (US) joint venture, Huntsman now has a global nameplate capacity of around 560,000 tonnes/y of TiO2, but actual production for 2009 will be significantly lower than this. TiO2 Worldwide Update, May/Jun 2009, 17 (3), 35-38
France: PolyOne – plastics masterbatch PolyOne (headquartered in Cleveland, OH) has announced job cuts for two of its French plastic masterbatch plants because of the recession. At Tossiat (near Bourg-enBresse in eastern France), the workforce will be reduced from 135 to 97. At St Ouen l’Aumône (in northwestern Paris), the workforce will be reduced from 80 to 53. PolyOne France reported a moderate profit on sales of €70 M in 2008, but the company is anticipating a 20-30% drop in sales revenue for full-year 2009. Currently, PolyOne employs 4000 people worldwide, of which about 1000 in Europe. More redundancies, besides the 65 in France, are anticipated at other locations. Plastiques et Caoutchoucs Magazine, Jun 2009, (867), 21 (in French)
India: Micro Inks – coloured toners Micro Inks Ltd has received Government environmental approval for its Rup 358 M project to expand capacity for making yellow and magenta toners at its Vapi plant in Gujarat. Micro Inks is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Michael Huber group. The Michael Huber group (not to be confused with the US-based JM Huber Corp) is a privately owned group of companies, with headquarters at Kirchheim (Germany). Chemical Weekly, 26 May 2009, 54 (41), 142
Japan: Hayashi Kasei – talc Hayashi Kasei is budgeting Yen 800 M for a project to expand its talc processing capacity at Hashimoto from 10,000 tonnes/y to 30,000 tonnes/y. Construction work is due to commence in September 2009, with the additional capacity becoming operational in April 2010. Hayashi has signed a long-term agreement with Golcha (of India) for the supply of
20,000 tonnes/y of crude talc from its mines in Rajasthan. With the additional output, Hayashi plans to increase its sales to the automotive plastics sector. Japan Chemical Web, 3 Jun 2009, (Website: http://www.japanchemicalweb.jp)
Japan: Mitsubishi – carbon black Last August, Mitsubishi Chemical declared that it was reviewing options for the future of its carbon black business in the light of spiralling raw material costs, which then represented 80% of total manufacturing costs. The company has now declared that it will scale back on its activities at the Kurosaki, near KitaKyushu (Fukuoka prefecture) and Yokkaichi (Mie prefecture) plants, dropping standard grades and focusing on speciality grades for pigments, semiconductor trays and high-performance tyres. Japan Chemical Web, 23 Jun 2009, (Website: http://www.japanchemicalweb.jp)
Japan: Mitsubishi – titanium black Mitsubishi Materials intends to double its production of titanium black at Kashima (Ibaraki prefecture) to 20-40 tonnes/y by the fiscal year ending March 2012. Titanium black is manufactured by eliminating a certain proportion of the oxygen atoms in TiO2 and the company’s M-C grade, produced in this way, is said to have better light-protecting and electricalinsulating properties than carbon black. This is an important feature in the manufacture of liquid crystals for television and video screens: LCD displays, using titanium black, deliver clearer images with better lightshielding. Japan Chemical Web, 3 Jul 2009, (Website: http://www.japanchemicalweb.jp)
Malaysia: Sukano – plastics masterbatch Sukano (of Switzerland) inaugurated its new plastics masterbatch plant on 6 March 2009. The plant is located on the Jalan Kasil Industrial Estate at Johor Bahru in Malaysia and from here Sukano will supply all its Asian
AUGUST 2009
India imposes anti-dumping duties on carbon black imports Phillips (part of the RP Goenka group), Hi-Tech Carbon (part of the Aditya Birla group) and Continental Carbon India (CCI, which is majority controlled by China Synthetic Rubber of Taiwan) jointly filed an official complaint last December about foreign suppliers selling carbon black in India at “less than normal value.” (See ‘Focus on Pigments’, Feb 2009, 4-5). Investigation by the Directorate General of Anti-dumping & Allied Duties revealed that during the year to end-March 2006, imports of carbon black from Australia, China, Russia, Iran, Malaysia and Thailand amounted to only 20,746 tonnes. They more than doubled over the next two years, reaching 53,652 tonnes in 2007/08. The Directorate General determined that dumping by suppliers from these six countries had occurred and had caused material injury to Indian carbon black producers. Therefore, anti-dumping duties ranging from $78 to $195 per tonne should be levied on imports of carbon black from Australia, China, Russia, Iran, Malaysia and Thailand. Business Line, 6 Jun 2009, 16 (156), 10 & Chemical Weekly, 16 Jun 2009, 54 (44), 132
PLANTS Australia: Tronox & Exxaro – TiO2 During 2Q 2009, Tiwest began construction of the fifth line at its Kwinana TiO2 pigment plant in Western Australia. This will raise capacity here from 110,000 tonnes/y to 150,000 tonnes/y, with completion anticipated early next year. Tiwest was originally established in the late 1980s as a 50:50 joint venture between Kerr-McGee (of the US) and Minproc (of Australia). Following
AUGUST 2009
O N
PIGMENTS
several changes of ownership to both parent companies, Tiwest has become a 50:50 joint venture between Exxaro (of South Africa) and Tronox (of the US). Tronox declared bankruptcy in January 2009 and it is operating under a Court order, which requires it to sell all its assets by the end of August 2009. (See also ‘Focus on Pigments’, Mar 2009, 6). Exxaro is expected to buy-out the Tronox stake in Tiwest. Total investment in the current expansion project has been budgeted at A$100 M, which will be fully funded by Exxaro. The project will involve 150 new jobs in the construction phase, with a requirement for an additional 12 full-time plant operating staff once the plant is up and running. Prospect, Jun-Aug 2009, 29
Canada: Canadian Wollastonite – wollastonite Canadian Wollastonite is a privately owned company, registered in Ontario in 2001. Its main objective is to develop a high-grade wollastonite deposit located north of the River St Lawrence in eastern Ontario. The deposit is about 1 km south of the Seeley’s Bay municipality, about 26 km north of Kingston. Reserves here have been assessed at more than 9 M tonnes. The company is currently building a pilot-scale plant, designed to produce up to 15,000 tonnes/y of wollastonite and 10,000 tonnes/y of diopside (a type of pyroxene), which should be ready for operation before the end of 2009. Industrial Minerals, Jun 2009, (501), 9 & Jul 2009, (502), 12
China: Clariant, Panchem & Kunming GaoHeng – P2O5 for quinacridone Clariant has entered into a joint venture with Kunming GaoHeng Huagong Chemical Industry Co Ltd and Panchem International Trading & Industrial Co to build a new phosphorus pentoxide plant at Kunming (Yunnan province). The plant should be ready to start-up in 1Q 2010. Its capacity has not been identified. Some of the output will be used captively by Clariant for the manufacture of quinacridone pigments, Exolit flame retardants, and Hordaphos corrosion-inhibitors and
degreasing agents; the rest will be sold to companies making agrochemicals and healthfoods. The new Kunming plant will supplement production from Clariant’s existing phosphorus pentoxide plant at Knapsack (Germany). Chemical Engineering World, May 2009, 44 (5), 20
China: Huber – precipitated silica In line with the project schedule, Huber Engineered Materials startedup its 40,000 tonnes/y precipitated silica plant at Qingdao (Shandong province) in June 2009. This will bring the total of Huber’s precipitated silica plants up to seven, the other six being located at: Havre de Grace, MD and Etowah, TN (in the US); Oostende (Belgium); Hamina (Finland); Uddevalla (Sweden); and Jhagadia (India). Parfums, Cosmetiques Actualités, Jun/Jul 2009, (207), 36 (in French)
China: Songyu Nanometer Technology – nanoparticulate calcium carbonate Songyu Nanometer Technology (Linwu) Co Ltd recently opened a new 80,000 tonnes/y nanoparticulate calcium carbonate (NCC) plant at Linwu (near Chenzhou, Hunan province). The plant cost Rmb 68 M (about $10 M) to build. China Chemical Reporter, 16 Jun 2009, 20 (17), 17
Clariant – plastics colorants Clariant has completed a programme for modernising its plastic colorants facilities in France. At its plant in St Jeoire en Faucigny (in Haute Savoie), where the company employs 60 people, it has modified five of its 10 production lines so as to produce the SPC (single pigment concentrate) range. Clariant has also established a plastic colorants technical support centre at Cergy St Christophe (in northwestern Paris). Plastiques et Caoutchoucs Magazine, Jun 2009, (867), 26 (in French)
Europe: Huntsman – TiO2 Faced with a serious downturn in TiO2 pigment demand onwards from 4Q 2008, Huntsman held a series of talks with trade union representatives at its
5
FOCUS French, Italian and Spanish plants with a view to implementing cost reductions that will involve job redundancies and some new capital investment. At the 80,000 tonnes/y Scarlino (Italy) plant, the workforce will be reduced from 270 to 210 by the end of 2010. The 80,000 tonnes/y Huelva (Spain) plant will be idled for 12 months, onwards from the end of June 2009. When the plant reopens next year, it will operate with 225 employees, representing about 75 fewer than now. Huntsman has also committed to invest €12.5 M in a modernisation programme for the Huelva plant and the Andalusian Regional Government has promised to contribute a further €1.25-1.875 M towards this programme. The 95,000 tonnes/y Calais (France) plant will be closed for six weeks during Summer 2009 for an extended maintenance campaign. But, its production target for this year has been raised from 45,000 tonnes to 65,000 tonnes, which is not much lower than the 70,000 tonnes output figure recorded for full-year 2008. The workforce quota at the Calais pigment plant will be reduced from 273 (including 20 job-vacancies) at the end of 2008 to 187 by 2012. In midJune, Huntsman announced another cost-reduction initiative for Calais. It has embarked on a feasibility study for establishing a fertiliser plant at Calais, which would ‘mop up’ all the spent acid wastes generated during TiO2 manufacture here. This would enable Huntsman to shut down its existing effluent treatment facilities, including a Lurgi-type acid-recycling plant and a 30,000 tonnes/y plant for making the magnesium-enriched fertiliser additive Magnolite. Assuming a positive outcome to the feasibility study, Huntsman will invest up to €30 M on this and other smaller projects at Calais. Meanwhile, during 1Q 2009, Huntsman permanently closed its 40,000 tonnes/y TiO2 pigment plant at Grimsby (UK). This was more than compensated by commissioning the third 50,000 tonnes/y ICON unit at its Greatham plant (further up the east coast of England), raising capacity here to 150,000 tonnes/y. With additional plants in South Africa and Malaysia plus a 50% stake
6
ON
PIGMENTS
in the Lake Charles (US) joint venture, Huntsman now has a global nameplate capacity of around 560,000 tonnes/y of TiO2, but actual production for 2009 will be significantly lower than this. TiO2 Worldwide Update, May/Jun 2009, 17 (3), 35-38
France: PolyOne – plastics masterbatch PolyOne (headquartered in Cleveland, OH) has announced job cuts for two of its French plastic masterbatch plants because of the recession. At Tossiat (near Bourg-enBresse in eastern France), the workforce will be reduced from 135 to 97. At St Ouen l’Aumône (in northwestern Paris), the workforce will be reduced from 80 to 53. PolyOne France reported a moderate profit on sales of €70 M in 2008, but the company is anticipating a 20-30% drop in sales revenue for full-year 2009. Currently, PolyOne employs 4000 people worldwide, of which about 1000 in Europe. More redundancies, besides the 65 in France, are anticipated at other locations. Plastiques et Caoutchoucs Magazine, Jun 2009, (867), 21 (in French)
India: Micro Inks – coloured toners Micro Inks Ltd has received Government environmental approval for its Rup 358 M project to expand capacity for making yellow and magenta toners at its Vapi plant in Gujarat. Micro Inks is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Michael Huber group. The Michael Huber group (not to be confused with the US-based JM Huber Corp) is a privately owned group of companies, with headquarters at Kirchheim (Germany). Chemical Weekly, 26 May 2009, 54 (41), 142
Japan: Hayashi Kasei – talc Hayashi Kasei is budgeting Yen 800 M for a project to expand its talc processing capacity at Hashimoto from 10,000 tonnes/y to 30,000 tonnes/y. Construction work is due to commence in September 2009, with the additional capacity becoming operational in April 2010. Hayashi has signed a long-term agreement with Golcha (of India) for the supply of
20,000 tonnes/y of crude talc from its mines in Rajasthan. With the additional output, Hayashi plans to increase its sales to the automotive plastics sector. Japan Chemical Web, 3 Jun 2009, (Website: http://www.japanchemicalweb.jp)
Japan: Mitsubishi – carbon black Last August, Mitsubishi Chemical declared that it was reviewing options for the future of its carbon black business in the light of spiralling raw material costs, which then represented 80% of total manufacturing costs. The company has now declared that it will scale back on its activities at the Kurosaki, near KitaKyushu (Fukuoka prefecture) and Yokkaichi (Mie prefecture) plants, dropping standard grades and focusing on speciality grades for pigments, semiconductor trays and high-performance tyres. Japan Chemical Web, 23 Jun 2009, (Website: http://www.japanchemicalweb.jp)
Japan: Mitsubishi – titanium black Mitsubishi Materials intends to double its production of titanium black at Kashima (Ibaraki prefecture) to 20-40 tonnes/y by the fiscal year ending March 2012. Titanium black is manufactured by eliminating a certain proportion of the oxygen atoms in TiO2 and the company’s M-C grade, produced in this way, is said to have better light-protecting and electricalinsulating properties than carbon black. This is an important feature in the manufacture of liquid crystals for television and video screens: LCD displays, using titanium black, deliver clearer images with better lightshielding. Japan Chemical Web, 3 Jul 2009, (Website: http://www.japanchemicalweb.jp)
Malaysia: Sukano – plastics masterbatch Sukano (of Switzerland) inaugurated its new plastics masterbatch plant on 6 March 2009. The plant is located on the Jalan Kasil Industrial Estate at Johor Bahru in Malaysia and from here Sukano will supply all its Asian
AUGUST 2009