DATE : 2014-12-29
The supply of acrylonitrile (ACN) in Asia is expected to tighten in the first quarter of 2015 because of the heavy turnarounds at regional producers, and this will put a cap on the downtrend in prices, sources said.
Several Asian producers will shut down plants in the coming months for scheduled maintenance, which may put a stop to falling ACN prices, sources said.
China-based ACN producer, Anqing Petrochemical, plans to shut its 80,000 tonne/year line at Anqing in Anhui province for maintenance, a company source said.
The maintenance starting in January will last for about 20 days, resulting in a loss of about 5,000 tonnes of ACN, the source added.
Elsewhere, China’s Shanghai SECCO Petrochemical plan to shuthttp://www.icis.com/Articles/2014/11/19/9839775/Chinas-Shanghai-SECCO-Petrochemi cal-to-shut-ACN-unit-in-Jan.htmlits 260,000 tonne/year ACN unit in Jinshan in early January 2015 for a month, a company source said.
Taiwan’s Formosa Plastics Corp (FPC) is also expected to shut its 280,000 tonne/year ACN plant in Mailiao for scheduled maintenance, a company source said.
The plant is going to be shut in the first half of January, and the shutdown will last around three weeks to one month, the source said.
South Korea's Taekwang Petrochemical is expected to shuthttp://www.icis.com/Articles/2014/12/16/9846811/s-koreas-taekwang-petrochemical- to-shut-acn-plant-for-maintenance.htmlits 290,000 tonne/year ACN plant for scheduled maintenance from 25 February to 16 March, a company source said.
Presently, falling feedstock costs and new capacity start-ups in China has dragged ACN prices down to $1,800-1,920/tonne CFR NE Asia, sources said.
China’s Shandong Keluer Chemical Co is running its new 130,000 tonne/year plant in Dongying at around 60%, a company source said. The company, which is a joint venture between Sinopec and Wanda Petrochemical Group, started trial runs at the unit in late November.
On the feedstock front, Asia propylene prices fell to $570-660/tonne CFR NE Asia, and this has boosted the profits of ACN producers given the wide price gap between propylene and ACN.
However, most market participants said ACN price decline may slow down or even rebound in the first quarter amid the limited supply, sources said. “I think ACN prices may recover in January and February as the supply in China is limited, ” a regional trader said. The ACN supply-demand balance will tilt tight in the first quarter, but the tightness will ease from the second quarter because of the increasing new supply from China, sources said.
China’s Shanghai SECCO Petrochemical plans to start up its new 260,000 tonne/year ACN plant in the second quarter, a company source said.
“China’s imports in 2015 will definitely be reduced in line with the rising supply in domestic market,” a market player said. China imported 461,901 tonnes of ACN in the first eleven months, official data showed.
SOURCE Icis News