- Email: [email protected]
India: Phillips – carbon black
FOCUS Pompat merged its business with the Thai subsidiary of Oriental Silica (headquartered in Taiwan). Tokuyama will also be able to utilise Oriental Silica’s marketing facilities in China. The demand for dry precipitated silica for use in the paints and plastics sectors is growing fast in a number of Asian markets, especially in China and South Korea. Japan Chemical Week, 24 Feb 2005, 46 (2307), 12
France: Roquette Frères & Sethness – caramel colorants Sethness Products Co (of the US) and Roquette Frères SA (of France) have established a joint venture company, named Sethness-Roquette, to operate a newly opened caramel colorants plant at Merville in northern France. Output from this facilty will be sold to customers throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Chemical Market Reporter, 14 Feb 2005 (Website: http://www.chemicalmarketreporter.com)
Hong Kong: Viba & CVI – plastics masterbatch The joint venture created by Viba SpA (of Italy) and CVI Modern Technology Ltd (of Hong Kong) has begun producing plastics masterbatch in the Hong Kong autonomous province of China. The operating company, VibaCVI, started-up its plant in January 2005, with an initial capacity of 2000 tonnes/y. This should be expanded to 9000 tonnes/y within the next three years. Viba-CVI’s main target market is the polyolefin film sector. Plastics News, 17 Feb 2005 (Website: http://www.plasticsnews.com)
India: KMML – TiO2 For the year to end-March 2005, Kerala Minerals & Metals Ltd reported a net profit of Rup 650 M on sales of Rup 2.9 bn, compared against Rup 490 M on Rup 2.66 bn for the previous year. The company set a new record for annual TiO2 pigment output from its plant at Sankaramangalam – 30,662 tonnes. Sales of pigment reached 32,153 tonnes, including more than 12,000 tonnes of exports. This represents an increase of nearly 70% on the 7285 tonnes exported in 2003/04. KMML
MAY 2005
ON
PIGMENTS
now has customers in 33 different export markets, the major recipients being: Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, South Africa, Italy and Turkey. The company also has a contract to supply 6200 tonnes of TiO2 pigment to the Chinese market. Profit margins on TiO2 export sales have been quite good. KMML’s average realised export price increased by 6%, comparing 2004/05 against the previous year. The longterm objective is to expand the Sankaramangalam plant to 100,000 tonnes/y, with 50% of the total pigment output being available for export. APCJ, Asia Pacific Coatings Journal, Feb 2005, 18 (1), 4 & Business Line, 12 Apr 2005, 12 (101), 17
India: Phillips – carbon black The carbon black plant at Ambalamugal (near Kochi in Kerala province) has been awarded ISO14001:96 certification, which embraces high pollution control standards. The plant is operated by Phillips Carbon Black Ltd (part of the RP Goenka group). Although substantially smaller than the company’s 125,000 tonnes/y plant at Durgapur (West Bengal) and its 95,000 tonnes/y plant at Vadodara (Gujarat), the 39,000 tonnes/y Kochi plant is a showpiece facility for Phillips’ environmental image. At Kochi, Phillips has installed on-line monitoring for all operative stacks, secondary bag collectors to prevent carbon black leakage, dedusting systems, venturi scrubbers and complete recycling of treated effluent water through a complex system of dams, ponds and recirculating pumps. The specialised filtration system here is unique within India. Typically, other carbon black manufacturers in India and in other parts of the world depend on primary bag filters alone to prevent the release of carbon black into the atmosphere. Phillips has also installed sound mufflers to control noise pollution at the carbon black plant. Chemical Weekly, 8 Feb 2005, 50 (25), 129
India: WGI/Earth Minerals Resources – TiO2 feedstock The Indian Government has withdrawn the export licence of Earth Minerals Resources Ltd, one of the four major suppliers of ilmenite from
deposits in Tamil Nadu province. Earth Minerals Resources is associated with WGI (formerly Western Garnet) and it had been WGI’s sole source of ilmenite supplied to an unnamed major TiO2 pigment company under a contract announced in August 2003. Because of the Government’s move, WGI has been obliged to declare force majeure on its ilmenite supply contracts. Deliveries of ilmenite from the other three suppliers – Indian Rare Earths, VV Mineral/AMT and Beach Minerals/MDL – are unaffected. TiO2 Worldwide Update, Mar/Apr 2005, 13 (2), 10 & Press release from: WGI Heavy Minerals Inc, 1875 North Lakewood Drive, Suite 201, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho 83814, USA, Fax: +1 208 666 4000 (6 Mar 2005)
Russia: Aricom – TiO2 Details of the Aricom project as reported in ‘Focus on Pigments’, Feb 2005, 6 were essentially confirmed in a recent article in the Russian trade press. The capital investment required for setting up the Kuranakh mine, with processing facilities at Olekma, was reported as $58 M instead of $56 M. Also, the latest report indicates that Aricom will be supplying ilmenite and titaniferous magnetite onwards from January 2007 rather than “by the end of 2007.” There are no major TiO2 pigment plants in Russia at the present time. The country is said to be importing 130,000 tonnes/y of TiO2 pigment, of which 60% from the Ukraine and 40% from other sources in Europe and the US. Kommersant, 4 Apr 2005 (58/P), 16 (in Russian)
Taiwan: JSR – liquid crystals Japan Synthetic Rubber Corp (JSR) plans to establish a new chemicals complex at Unlin. The complex will be built on a site within the Central Taiwan Science-based Industrial Park. JSR will be investing approximately Yen 2.5 bn. Construction work is due to commence in June 2005 and it should be completed in February 2006, with full-scale commercial production beginning in Summer 2006. First-phase projects here include the establishment of facilities for making colour pigment dispersed resists used for liquid crystal display
5
France: Roquette Frères & Sethness – caramel colorants Sethness Products Co (of the US) and Roquette Frères SA (of France) have established a joint venture company, named Sethness-Roquette, to operate a newly opened caramel colorants plant at Merville in northern France. Output from this facilty will be sold to customers throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Chemical Market Reporter, 14 Feb 2005 (Website: http://www.chemicalmarketreporter.com)
Hong Kong: Viba & CVI – plastics masterbatch The joint venture created by Viba SpA (of Italy) and CVI Modern Technology Ltd (of Hong Kong) has begun producing plastics masterbatch in the Hong Kong autonomous province of China. The operating company, VibaCVI, started-up its plant in January 2005, with an initial capacity of 2000 tonnes/y. This should be expanded to 9000 tonnes/y within the next three years. Viba-CVI’s main target market is the polyolefin film sector. Plastics News, 17 Feb 2005 (Website: http://www.plasticsnews.com)
India: KMML – TiO2 For the year to end-March 2005, Kerala Minerals & Metals Ltd reported a net profit of Rup 650 M on sales of Rup 2.9 bn, compared against Rup 490 M on Rup 2.66 bn for the previous year. The company set a new record for annual TiO2 pigment output from its plant at Sankaramangalam – 30,662 tonnes. Sales of pigment reached 32,153 tonnes, including more than 12,000 tonnes of exports. This represents an increase of nearly 70% on the 7285 tonnes exported in 2003/04. KMML
MAY 2005
ON
PIGMENTS
now has customers in 33 different export markets, the major recipients being: Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, South Africa, Italy and Turkey. The company also has a contract to supply 6200 tonnes of TiO2 pigment to the Chinese market. Profit margins on TiO2 export sales have been quite good. KMML’s average realised export price increased by 6%, comparing 2004/05 against the previous year. The longterm objective is to expand the Sankaramangalam plant to 100,000 tonnes/y, with 50% of the total pigment output being available for export. APCJ, Asia Pacific Coatings Journal, Feb 2005, 18 (1), 4 & Business Line, 12 Apr 2005, 12 (101), 17
India: Phillips – carbon black The carbon black plant at Ambalamugal (near Kochi in Kerala province) has been awarded ISO14001:96 certification, which embraces high pollution control standards. The plant is operated by Phillips Carbon Black Ltd (part of the RP Goenka group). Although substantially smaller than the company’s 125,000 tonnes/y plant at Durgapur (West Bengal) and its 95,000 tonnes/y plant at Vadodara (Gujarat), the 39,000 tonnes/y Kochi plant is a showpiece facility for Phillips’ environmental image. At Kochi, Phillips has installed on-line monitoring for all operative stacks, secondary bag collectors to prevent carbon black leakage, dedusting systems, venturi scrubbers and complete recycling of treated effluent water through a complex system of dams, ponds and recirculating pumps. The specialised filtration system here is unique within India. Typically, other carbon black manufacturers in India and in other parts of the world depend on primary bag filters alone to prevent the release of carbon black into the atmosphere. Phillips has also installed sound mufflers to control noise pollution at the carbon black plant. Chemical Weekly, 8 Feb 2005, 50 (25), 129
India: WGI/Earth Minerals Resources – TiO2 feedstock The Indian Government has withdrawn the export licence of Earth Minerals Resources Ltd, one of the four major suppliers of ilmenite from
deposits in Tamil Nadu province. Earth Minerals Resources is associated with WGI (formerly Western Garnet) and it had been WGI’s sole source of ilmenite supplied to an unnamed major TiO2 pigment company under a contract announced in August 2003. Because of the Government’s move, WGI has been obliged to declare force majeure on its ilmenite supply contracts. Deliveries of ilmenite from the other three suppliers – Indian Rare Earths, VV Mineral/AMT and Beach Minerals/MDL – are unaffected. TiO2 Worldwide Update, Mar/Apr 2005, 13 (2), 10 & Press release from: WGI Heavy Minerals Inc, 1875 North Lakewood Drive, Suite 201, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho 83814, USA, Fax: +1 208 666 4000 (6 Mar 2005)
Russia: Aricom – TiO2 Details of the Aricom project as reported in ‘Focus on Pigments’, Feb 2005, 6 were essentially confirmed in a recent article in the Russian trade press. The capital investment required for setting up the Kuranakh mine, with processing facilities at Olekma, was reported as $58 M instead of $56 M. Also, the latest report indicates that Aricom will be supplying ilmenite and titaniferous magnetite onwards from January 2007 rather than “by the end of 2007.” There are no major TiO2 pigment plants in Russia at the present time. The country is said to be importing 130,000 tonnes/y of TiO2 pigment, of which 60% from the Ukraine and 40% from other sources in Europe and the US. Kommersant, 4 Apr 2005 (58/P), 16 (in Russian)
Taiwan: JSR – liquid crystals Japan Synthetic Rubber Corp (JSR) plans to establish a new chemicals complex at Unlin. The complex will be built on a site within the Central Taiwan Science-based Industrial Park. JSR will be investing approximately Yen 2.5 bn. Construction work is due to commence in June 2005 and it should be completed in February 2006, with full-scale commercial production beginning in Summer 2006. First-phase projects here include the establishment of facilities for making colour pigment dispersed resists used for liquid crystal display
5