- Email: [email protected]
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F O C U S Pradesh Minerals Development Corp and several other leading producers focus exclusively on barytes products for the oil drilling sector and do not produce filler/pigment grades. IBC Ltd (formerly Indian Barytes & Chemicals) is the largest Indian company which does supply filler grades. This company mines up to 40,000 tonnes/y of barytes at its Khammam and Prakasam mines in Andhra Pradesh. Other suppliers of filler grades include: Tiffin Barytes, Asbestos & Paints (at Pulivendla), Krishnapa Asbestos & Barytes (at Vermula), Cuddapah Star Barytes, Hindustan Mineral Products and Gimpex. According to figures compiled by the US Geological Survey, India produced 250,000 tonnes of ilmenite and 15,000 tonnes of rutile in 2004. Indian Rare Earths (IRE) is the dominant force in the titanium minerals sector, with the capability of producing 240,000 tonnes/y of ilmenite and 13,000 tonnes/y of rutile. Kerala Minerals & Metals Ltd (KMML) produces over 50,000 tonnes/y of ilmenite, but this is all consumed captively at its synrutile and TiO2 pigment complex. An ilmenite capacity of 180,000 tonnes/y is attributed to Beach Minerals Co (BMC), while Vetri Vel Minerals (VVM) is said to be capable of supplying over 150,000 tonnes/y of ilmenite. Both BMC and VVM produce ilmenite as a co-product of garnet. India is the world leader in garnet production, with a total output of nearly 600,000 tonnes/y, mainly from Tamil Nadu. Besides VVM and BMC, Transworld Garnet and Indian Ocean Garnet Sands (IOGS) are major garnet suppliers. Industrial Minerals, Dec 2005, (459), 28-39
Modest increase in China’s organic pigments output China’s production of organic pigments was 66,500 tonnes in 1H 2005, indicating a rather modest increase of 2.4% on the corresponding period of 2004. Exports increased by 8.5% in volume terms to 55,202 tonnes and by 11.7% in value terms to $236.3 M. At the same time, China’s imports of organic pigments fell by 7.5% to 15,373 tonnes. China Chemical Reporter, 6 Nov 2005, 16 (31), 24-25
JANUARY 2006
ON
PIGMENTS
China’s ink consumption approaching 4 M tonnes/y China’s consumption of printing inks was estimated at 285,000 tonnes in 2004 and it is forecast to increase at 5.9% per annum to reach 379,000 tonnes by 2009. This will be catered for by certain new inks plants and by expansions of existing facilities. Several Western companies, including notably Ciba and Clariant, have been actively investing in new organic pigment units in China, with a view to increasing their sales to Chinese ink manufacturers. Asian Chemical News, 19 Dec 2005, (Website: http://www.asianchemicalnews.com) & Chemical Market Reporter, 19 Dec 2005, (Website: http://www.chemicalmarketreporter.com)
PLANTS China: Dainichiseika – plastics masterbatch Dainichiseika Color & Chemicals Manufacturing is nearing completion of a 2400 tonnes/y plastics masterbatch plant, which will be an important component in its new Yen 2.5 bn chemical complex in Shanghai. (See also ‘Focus on Pigments’, Aug 2004, 3). Japan Chemical Week, 17 Nov 2005, 46 (2343), 5
China: Degussa – colorants for polyesters About a year after construction work began, Degussa’s Coatings & Colorants business unit is on the point of starting-up two new plants at the Shanghai Chemical Industry Park on the southern outskirts of the city. These plants are for the manufacture of polyesters and associated colorants and colour pastes. No further details are available on the scale of investment or capacity. APCJ, Asia Pacific Coatings Journal, Dec 2005, 18 (6), 7
China: Shandong Laizhou Gold & Beijing Headmen Consultants – kaolin The Wulanhaote kaolin deposit in the Nei Monggol (aka Inner Mongolia) province of China is said to be one of the largest in Asia. The provincial Government recently granted permits
to Shandong Laizhou Gold Corp and Beijing Headmen Consultants to go ahead with plans to bring a kaolin mine into production here, with initial output scheduled to be of the order of 150,000-200,000 tonnes/y. Industrial Minerals, Jan 2006, (460), 13
Germany: BASF – isopropanolamine & Paliotol quinophthalone pigments BASF has stepped up capacity at Ludwigshafen for making quinophthalone pigments by 40% to 1400 tonnes/y. These products are sold under the Paliotol brandname as a range of high-performance yellow pigments, colour index reference Pigment Yellow 138. They are extremely lightfast and increasingly popular among manufacturers of printing inks, plastic film, injection mouldings, industrial paints, synthetic polymer fibres and plastics masterbatches. Also at Ludwigshafen, BASF recently started-up a new 15,000 tonnes/y plant for making isopropanolamines, some of which will be used captively for pigments manufacture. (See also ‘Focus on Pigments’, Dec 2005, 4). Isopropanolamines are also used in gas scrubbing, as well as in the production of cement additives, pharmaceuticals, crop protection agents, lubricants and corrosion inhibitors. The new plant employs an innovative process which gives better control of the product mix as between mono-, di-, and tri-isopropanolamines, using ammonia and propylene oxide as the inputs. European Paint and Resin News, Nov 2005, 43 (11), 10 & Dec 2005, 43 (12), 6 & Kunststoffe, Jan 2006, 96 (1), 6 (in German)
India: KMML – TiO2 & titanium metal Kerala Minerals & Metals Ltd (KMML) is on target to achieve its TiO2 pigment production of 35,000 tonnes for the current fiscal year, ending 31 March 2006. Sales revenue for the year will be of the order of Rup 3.15 bn. Completion of the latest capacity expansion – from 40,000 tonnes/y to 60,000 tonnes/y – is scheduled for August 2006. The next phase of expansion at KMML’s TiO2 pigment in Sankaramangalam will lift capacity from 60,000 tonnes/y to 100,000
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Modest increase in China’s organic pigments output China’s production of organic pigments was 66,500 tonnes in 1H 2005, indicating a rather modest increase of 2.4% on the corresponding period of 2004. Exports increased by 8.5% in volume terms to 55,202 tonnes and by 11.7% in value terms to $236.3 M. At the same time, China’s imports of organic pigments fell by 7.5% to 15,373 tonnes. China Chemical Reporter, 6 Nov 2005, 16 (31), 24-25
JANUARY 2006
ON
PIGMENTS
China’s ink consumption approaching 4 M tonnes/y China’s consumption of printing inks was estimated at 285,000 tonnes in 2004 and it is forecast to increase at 5.9% per annum to reach 379,000 tonnes by 2009. This will be catered for by certain new inks plants and by expansions of existing facilities. Several Western companies, including notably Ciba and Clariant, have been actively investing in new organic pigment units in China, with a view to increasing their sales to Chinese ink manufacturers. Asian Chemical News, 19 Dec 2005, (Website: http://www.asianchemicalnews.com) & Chemical Market Reporter, 19 Dec 2005, (Website: http://www.chemicalmarketreporter.com)
PLANTS China: Dainichiseika – plastics masterbatch Dainichiseika Color & Chemicals Manufacturing is nearing completion of a 2400 tonnes/y plastics masterbatch plant, which will be an important component in its new Yen 2.5 bn chemical complex in Shanghai. (See also ‘Focus on Pigments’, Aug 2004, 3). Japan Chemical Week, 17 Nov 2005, 46 (2343), 5
China: Degussa – colorants for polyesters About a year after construction work began, Degussa’s Coatings & Colorants business unit is on the point of starting-up two new plants at the Shanghai Chemical Industry Park on the southern outskirts of the city. These plants are for the manufacture of polyesters and associated colorants and colour pastes. No further details are available on the scale of investment or capacity. APCJ, Asia Pacific Coatings Journal, Dec 2005, 18 (6), 7
China: Shandong Laizhou Gold & Beijing Headmen Consultants – kaolin The Wulanhaote kaolin deposit in the Nei Monggol (aka Inner Mongolia) province of China is said to be one of the largest in Asia. The provincial Government recently granted permits
to Shandong Laizhou Gold Corp and Beijing Headmen Consultants to go ahead with plans to bring a kaolin mine into production here, with initial output scheduled to be of the order of 150,000-200,000 tonnes/y. Industrial Minerals, Jan 2006, (460), 13
Germany: BASF – isopropanolamine & Paliotol quinophthalone pigments BASF has stepped up capacity at Ludwigshafen for making quinophthalone pigments by 40% to 1400 tonnes/y. These products are sold under the Paliotol brandname as a range of high-performance yellow pigments, colour index reference Pigment Yellow 138. They are extremely lightfast and increasingly popular among manufacturers of printing inks, plastic film, injection mouldings, industrial paints, synthetic polymer fibres and plastics masterbatches. Also at Ludwigshafen, BASF recently started-up a new 15,000 tonnes/y plant for making isopropanolamines, some of which will be used captively for pigments manufacture. (See also ‘Focus on Pigments’, Dec 2005, 4). Isopropanolamines are also used in gas scrubbing, as well as in the production of cement additives, pharmaceuticals, crop protection agents, lubricants and corrosion inhibitors. The new plant employs an innovative process which gives better control of the product mix as between mono-, di-, and tri-isopropanolamines, using ammonia and propylene oxide as the inputs. European Paint and Resin News, Nov 2005, 43 (11), 10 & Dec 2005, 43 (12), 6 & Kunststoffe, Jan 2006, 96 (1), 6 (in German)
India: KMML – TiO2 & titanium metal Kerala Minerals & Metals Ltd (KMML) is on target to achieve its TiO2 pigment production of 35,000 tonnes for the current fiscal year, ending 31 March 2006. Sales revenue for the year will be of the order of Rup 3.15 bn. Completion of the latest capacity expansion – from 40,000 tonnes/y to 60,000 tonnes/y – is scheduled for August 2006. The next phase of expansion at KMML’s TiO2 pigment in Sankaramangalam will lift capacity from 60,000 tonnes/y to 100,000
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