Recently, it was reported that South Korea’s Kumho Mitsui will not accept orders for all MDI products in May. The current MDI production capacity of Kumho Mitsui Chemicals’ Yeosu Korean factory is 410,000 tons, accounting for 6.6% of the total production capacity of the MDI industry in the Asia-Pacific region. At the same time, many companies in the market have received notices that Wanhua Pure MDI has quoted a fixed price of 20,500 yuan/ton, and non-contract orders will not be accepted or quoted. The sudden suspension of quotations has also caused the paint, chemical, home furnishing and other industries downstream of MDI to be worried about supply shortages and whether prices will rise.
No quotation for factory shutdown, load reduction, and market closure!
Many chemical industry leaders take collective action!
As anxiety about industrial deflation has been pushed to a high point, the bulk commodity and chemical industry sectors have continued to decline. In an environment of sluggish economic conditions, chemical companies have begun to fight back, choosing to close factories, reduce production capacity, and close quotations. Trying to save the current precarious living situation.
Dow: Chemical giant announces closure of some plants
Relevant sources revealed that Dow Chemical plans to close its propylene oxide (PO) plant in Freeport, Texas, by the end of 2025. Previously, Dow Chemical announced that it would close some plants, reduce raw material purchases, and cut logistics and water and electricity costs to further improve our cost structure and adapt the business to the most competitive, lowest-cost and fastest-growing markets.
Huntsman: Shut down 1/3 of MDI production capacity
In response to the high energy cost environment, Huntsman will idle a smaller MDI production line in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, for a long time until demand in the end market improves. At present, Huntsman has shut down part of its MDI production capacity in Geismar (accounting for about 30% of the total production capacity).
Olin Company: Stopping production of some solid epoxy resin plants
The American ammunition manufacturer and global chemical manufacturing giant announced that it will stop the production of solid epoxy resin at its factories in Terneuzen, the Netherlands, Gumi, South Korea, and Guaruja, Brazil. Olin previously reduced its production of epoxy resin and related upstream products in Texas and Brazil.
BASF: Closing 2 ammonia plants, shutting down TDI and other devices
German chemical giant BASF Group announced that it will close a number of factories, including two ammonia plants and related fertilizer plants. An overview of the main changes at the Ludwigshafen integrated site is as follows: closure of the caprolactam unit, one of the two ammonia units and related by-product facilities, reduction of adipic acid production capacity, closure of the cyclohexanol, cyclohexanone and sodium carbonate units, closure of TDI devices and precursor devices for DNT and TDA.
Yara: Sharp cuts in ammonia production in Europe
Yara International has sharply cut ammonia production in Europe due to high natural gas prices. As of the end of January, 35% of the company’s European ammonia production capacity and 28% of its European fertilizer production capacity were still idle.
CF Industries: Permanent closure of a fertilizer plant
US fertilizer giant CF Industries has announced plans to permanently close one of its fertilizer plants in the UK due to high energy costs. CF Industries plans to concentrate its UK manufacturing operations at the Billingham plant, the UK’s largest ammonia and ammonium nitrate facility. and carbon dioxide production facilities.
Wanhua: 45 days for maintenance of PP, ethylene, PO/SM and other equipment
Wanhua Chemical Yantai Industrial Park PP (300,000 tons/year), ethylene (1 million tons/year), PO/SM (300,000/650,000 tons/year) and other devices have been shut down for maintenance on May 8. The maintenance is expected About 45 days.
For liquid epoxy resin, Dongying Hebang and Fujian Huanyang plants are parked, Jiangsu Sanmu has a load of 70%, Zhuhai Hongchang, Kunshan Nanya, and Zhejiang Haobang have a load of 80%, and Dongfang Feiyuan has a load of 90%;
For titanium dioxide, some anatase titanium dioxide manufacturers have reduced their loads. Domestic and foreign terminals have inventory in the downstream for use. It is expected that market demand will further weaken in the third quarter, and some companies will negotiate prices one by one;
Acrylonitrile, Zhejiang Petrochemical, Shanghai Secco, Korul, and Liaoning Jinfa have a load of 50%, Fushun Petrochemical and Sierbang have a load of 70%, Jilin Petrochemical, Shandong Haijiang, and Jihua Jieyang have a load of 80%;
Adipic acid, both lines of Chongqing Huafeng adipic acid plant are in shutdown state;
Methanol, Ningxia Baofeng, Xufeng Heyuan, Shandong Mingshui, Xinjiang Guanghui, Luxi Dawei, Jinfeng Wenxi, Gansu Huating, China Shipping Chemical methanol unit maintenance, Ningxia Baofeng and a unit in Sichuan have reduced production;
PTA, Yisheng Hua PTA has reduced its load, overall to 70%, and it is tentatively scheduled to last for two weeks;
BDO, the load of Shaanxi Shaanxi Chemical’s 30,000-ton and 100,000-ton BDO units has dropped to 70%, and bulk sales have been suspended, focusing on contracts;
For ternary materials, less than 40% of domestic production companies have started operations. The domestic market for precursors has a low start-up, and some bases that have stopped production have no plans to resume operations;
For lithium hexafluorophosphate, companies have successively entered low-load production or even stopped production, and the industry has entered a state of deep destocking;
PVC, Suzhou Huasu, Formosa Ningbo, Ningbo Hanwha, Ningxia Jinyuyuan, Xinjiang Zhongtai, Shenyang Chemical Industry, and Shandong Langhui in the PVC paste resin industry have begun to close;
F141B foaming agent, Sanaifu’s main supplier factory is closed and will not accept new orders;
Ammonium chloride, Jiangsu Xuzhou and Fengcheng salinization do not quote;
For maleic anhydride, Henan Luoyang, Jiuyuan Petrochemical, and Shandong Zibo Huifeng Petrochemical do not quote;
Phosphorus oxychloride, Jiangsu Tianyuan and Zhejiang Xin’an Chemical do not quote;
Formaldehyde, Jiangsu Yangzhou Jinfeng and Shijiazhuang Yaze Chemical do not quote prices;
For yellow phosphorus, Guizhou Shengwei Chemical and Sichuan Lanhai Chemical do not quote prices.
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Why many chemical companies choose to proactively reduce production such as maintenance or load reduction in the first half of the year? Industry insiders said that it is a desperate measure to combat the industry’s oversupply pattern and market indifference. Take the once-hot lithium battery industry chain as an example. Lithium hexafluorophosphate, which once doubled in price, is now facing losses. More than 80% of the 48 manufacturers are losing money, and only one or two are really making money. Other chemical industries also have this concern. They lose money when they start operations, cannot bear the pressure caused by high inventory if they can’t sell, and the products have a short shelf life. They can only tearfully compress production to reduce losses.
The reasons behind this loss are, on the one hand, a sharp decline in overseas trade orders, which has led to a cold winter in downstream areas such as electronic technology, furniture and home appliances, and has also dealt a blow to the raw materials and supporting industry chains; on the other hand, the domestic chemical industry has It is related to the oversupply pattern caused by the crazy expansion of production capacity in the industry. Once foreign trade is transferred to domestic sales, it is conceivable that the situation of “more monks and less rice” in the reduction market will become more and more serious. The current concentrated price cuts on bulk industrial products have exacerbated the difficulty of making profits for these companies. This has also prompted companies to start adjusting their thinking and transformation, trying to focus on the main business and abandon unimportant sectors. Closing the market without quoting, reducing production and shutting down factories are undoubtedly one of the important means.
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