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Plant Watch: October 2020

Plant Watch Braskem begins commercial production at La Porte PP plant September 11, 2020 — Braskem America (Philadelphia, Pa.; www.braskem.com) launched commercial production at its new polypropylene (PP) production line in La Porte, Tex., which has a production capacity of…

Technology Profile: Sodium Chlorate Production

This column is based on “Sodium Chlorate Production – Cost Analysis,” a report published by Intratec. It can be found at: www.intratec.us/analysis/sodium-chlorate-production-cost. Sodium chlorate (NaClO3; also known as chlorate of soda) is an odorless inorganic salt with colorless crystals and…

Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB) rose in September, ACC says

The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), a leading economic indicator created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), rose 1.6 percent in September on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis, following a 2.7 percent gain in August. On a…

Artek Surfin Chemicals to acquire Baker Hughes chemical manufacturing facility

Sterling Auxiliaries Pvt. Ltd. (www.sterlingaux.com) and its parent company, Artek Surfin Chemicals Ltd. (Mumbai, India; www.artekchemicals.com) , a leading producer of specialty chemicals with manufacturing capabilities across four continents, have agreed to acquire the land and assets associated with Baker…

U.S. chemical production expanded in August, ACC says

 The U.S. Chemical Production Regional Index (U.S. CPRI) rose by 0.6 percent in August, following a 1.0 percent gain in July and a 1.4 percent decline in June, according to the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com). During August,…

2020 CEPCI Updates: July (prelim.) and June (final)

The preliminary value for the CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI) for July 2020 (the most recent available) increased compared to the previous month’s value, reversing a three-month period of decline. a similar decline prior to July. Three of the four…

Specialty chemical markets in the U.S. improve in August, ACC says

The American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) reported that with the recovery in the U.S. economy slowing, U.S. specialty chemicals market volumes rose by 0.5 percent in August, off from an upwardly-revised 2.2 percent gain in July, a 5.0…

CE Voices: Industry Analysis from Deloitte

Deloitte's oil, gas and chemicals lead Duane Dickson discusses a recent analysis from Deloitte on the current state of the chemical industry.

BASF, Sinopec, Dow and LyondellBasell top list of world’s largest chemical companies in 2019 sales

ICIS (London, U.K.; www.icis.com) has announced its annual ICIS Top 100 Chemical Companies listing of global producers ranked by 2019 sales. This year, Germany’s BASF SE (Ludwigshafen; www.basf.com) regained the lead as the world’s largest chemical company with sales of…

Ascend completes acquisition of Italian firms

Ascend Performance Materials (Houston, Tex.; www.ascendmaterials.com) today announced it has completed its acquisition of Italian firms Poliblend and Esseti Plast. With this purchase, Ascend expands its portfolio into other engineered plastics, recycled resins and masterbatches. “Poliblend and Esseti Plast complement…